August 11th, 2017 The Citizens’ Assembly can help turn Ireland from climate laggard to leader by calling for a referendum to give a constitutional right to environmental protection, says the country’s leading environmental coalition. The Environmental Pillar – a coalition of 26 national environmental organisations – outlined its view in Read more…
August 4th, 2017 Ireland’s environmental watchdog has ordered Kilkenny County Council to investigate potential contamination of the River Nore by discharge from a Council street sweeping truck. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has called for the investigation after video footage emerged of a street sweeping truck emptying a liquid substance into Read more…
July 28th, 2017 An immediate ban on logging in Poland’s ancient Białowieza Forest has been issued by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) due to fears that irreparable damage will be done to the forest. The European Commission referred Poland to the Court earlier this month for increased logging in Read more…
Ireland’s leading environmental coalition has repeated its call for the State to increase excise rates for diesel as a progressive step towards the inevitable ban on the internal combustion engine. The Environmental Pillar also welcomes the UK’s decision to ban the sale of all diesel and petrol cars from 2040, Read more…
July 27th, 2017 The Chair of the Citizens’ Assembly has called for an additional weekend to “truly do justice” to the complicated question of how Ireland can lead in tackling climate change. Ms Justice Mary Laffoy said that the decision will allow the Assembly to fully consider one of the “most complex topics Read more…
July 26th, 2017 The very fabric of rural Ireland is under threat by the contentious EU-Canada trade deal, with the farming community set to be hit hardest, says leading rural politician. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is set to be provisionally applied from September after Canada and the Read more…
July 26th, 2017 The Climate Change Advisory Council (CCAC) has warned that Ireland’s near certain failure to meet our 2020 emissions targets will impact on our longer term decarbonisation plans. In its first major report released today, the Council states that Ireland is “unlikely” to meet its 2020 emissions target Read more…
July 20th, 2017 The long-awaited National Mitigation Plan has been met with widespread criticism from environmental organisations and opposition parties for its lack of ambition or meaningful targets. The Plan, released yesterday, outlines policy measures to tackle Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions in line with EU and international obligations and meet Read more…
July 11th, 2017 A substantial step up in the redirection of financial flows to sustainable investments is needed in order to successfully shift to a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy, a new EU report has found. Published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) this week, the paper also stresses the need for Read more…
July 10th, 2017 The controversial Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) will be provisionally applied from 21 September after Canada and the European Union reached an agreement at the G20 meeting in Hamburg. In a joint statement issued last weekend, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commissioner Jean-Claude Juncker Read more…
