Citizens Group Calls for Irish Government to Take Strong Action on Climate Change

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Irelandโ€™s political response to climate change has received a stinging rebuff from a group of citizens participating in an innovative new government-supported policyย forum.

The parliament-appointed Citizens Assembly voted at the weekend in favour of 13 new recommendations to strengthen action on climateย change.

The Assembly was established in 2016 and tasked with addressing hot-button topics, including abortion and climate change, and making recommendations to parliament. The Assembly comprises 99 ordinary Irish citizens, randomly selected to give a fair representation across society, under the chairmanship of senior judge, Maryย Laffoy.

The Assembly sat for a total of four days to hear detailed expert testimonies and to engage in round-table discussions on โ€˜Making Ireland a leader in tackling climate changeโ€™. No politicians or lobbyists were permitted to address the Assembly, which aimed to deliver a scientifically robust, balanced presentation on theย issue.

National and international experts, including Denmarkโ€™s former climate minister, Connie Hedegaard, Dr Peter Stott of the UK Met Office and Prof Andy Kerr of Edinburgh University, addressed theย Assembly.

Prof Kerr pointed out how Scotland, though similar in population and climate, has taken a radically different path on climate action. This is, Prof Kerr, explained, mainly as a result of clear political leadership across the partyย divide.

Scotland set ambitious targets of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 42 percent by 2020 versus 2009. It actually hit this target five years ahead of time, and is on target for 100 percent renewable electricity production by the earlyย 2020s.

In stark contrast, Ireland has been sending politicians to Brussels throughout 2017 to demand that even its modest 2020 targets be renegotiated, as DeSmog UK previously reported. This is largely being done at the behest of the politically powerful farming and agribusinessย lobby.

On Sunday, the citizens agreed the wording of a list of 13 recommendations, which were then voted on in a secret ballot. All 13 proposals were carried, many by an overwhelming majority. The results were a powerful endorsement of urgent action and a rebuff to the Irish government for its stance on thisย issue.

A constant theme to emerge from the discussions at the Citizens Assembly was the absence of clear political leadership on climate change. One member of the assembly asked if the Irish government had, for example, funded any public information campaigns on the issue (itย hasnโ€™t).

Assembly members voted by a huge margin (97 percent) in favour of either setting up a new or tasking an existing independent body, with resources and appropriate powers, to โ€œurgently address climate changeโ€. This is seen as a pointed rebuff to Irelandโ€™s โ€˜Climate Actionโ€™ minister, Denis Naughten, who regularly publicly defends inaction by claiming it is โ€œnot his job to tell people what toย doโ€.

There was unanimous citizen support for the Irish State taking a โ€œleadership role in addressing climate change through mitigation measures, including retrofitting public buildings, low-carbon public vehicles, renewable generation on public buildings, as well as climate adaptation measures. There was also near-unanimity (96 percent) on the need for the Irish State to carry out a comprehensive audit of vulnerability of criticalย infrastructure.

Importantly, some 80 percent of citizen respondents stated they themselves would be โ€˜willing to pay higher taxes on carbon intensive activitiesโ€™, showing the willingness of the Irish public to โ€˜take a hitโ€™ financially if it means a safer future for all. The case for carbon taxes was put to the Assembly by Prof John FitzGerald, chair of Irelandโ€™s Climate Change Advisoryย Council.

An overwhelming 97 percent of citizens voted in favour of removing all subsidies for peat-burning, favouring these to be phased out over a five-year period. This could prove particularly problematic forย Naughten, as one of Irelandโ€™s three peat-burning plants is located within his Galway/Roscommonย constituency.

Naughten issued a luke-warm response to the Assembly findings, pointedly not commenting on any of its contentiousย recommendations.

There was near-unanimous agreement (99 percent) among the Assemblyโ€™s participants that the State should legislate to enable the public to sell back micro-generated clean electricity to the grid at a fair price. The so-called โ€˜rooftop revolutionโ€™ of having thousands of farmers, schools and ordinary homes generating solar electric power is being stymied by lack of market access for small energyย producers.

A strong majority (89 percent) of citizens favour taxing greenhouse gases from agriculture, on condition that there also be rewards for farmers involved in land practices that sequester carbon. The recommendation added that revenues from agricultural greenhouse gas taxes should be directed into supporting climate-friendlyย agriculture.

The argument in favour of climate taxes on agriculture was presented by Prof Alan Matthews of Trinity College, Dublin, who stated that minor tweaks in โ€˜efficiencyโ€™ in Irish agriculture were simply inadequate to meet the challenge for a sector that is on track to produce almost half of Irelandโ€™s total emissions. He added that there was an inherent injustice in expecting ordinary Irish taxpayers to have to pay EU fines incurred as a result of agriculturalย policies.

Critically, Matthews pointed out that most Irish beef farmers actually lose money on their operations, and are only remaining solvent as a result of EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)ย transfers. With Brexit on the horizon, CAP farm payments are likely to come under increasedย pressure.

The Assemblyโ€™s proposal to tax agriculture emissions was rejected by the Irish Farmers Association, which is expected to use its formidable lobbying power to deter politicians from implementing this plan. Irelandโ€™s emissions in both transport and agriculture are continuing to rise when they should be fallingย sharply.

An equally strong majority (92 percent) of the participants favoured prioritising all future infrastructure spending to be weighted by at least 2:1 in favour of supporting high quality public transport, especially in rural areas, while there was near-unanimity (96 percent) on the need for the government to support the rapid transition to electricย vehicles.

Some 93 percent of participants voted to support a switch in transport priority towards bus and cycle lanes, and that these should be given priority over private car use. Support for organic farming (99 percent) was virtually unanimous, while there was strong support (93 percent) for specific measures to reduce foodย waste.

Total unanimity was achieved by citizens in favour of the State ensuring all future renewable energy projects have community participation, consultation and ownership built in from theย outset.

The next step is for the Citizensโ€™ Assembly recommendations to be debated by Ireland’sย parliament, and this is where the pitched battle involving vested interests from the business, transport and agricultural sectors will likely takeย place.

Having been unable to directly influence the deliberations of ordinary Irish citizens, lobbyists will be betting that elected representatives prove altogether moreย pliable.

Main image credit: Maxwellย Photography

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John Gibbons is a Dublin-based specialist writer and commentator on climate and environmental issues. He blogs at ThinkOrSwim.ie. You can follow him on Twitterย @think_or_swim.

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