Carbon credits purchase blasted by TD

THE Government’s decision to approve the purchase of 4.1m carbon credits from Slovakia at a cost of €2.9m to help meet its 2020 climate ambition targets has been blasted by Independent TD Michael Collins. 

Deputy Collins was speaking during a Dáil motion on the matter where he also took the opportunity to criticise what he described as the ‘certain and ruinous consequences that will follow for dairy farmers if Ireland does not achieve a nitrates derogation after 2025.’

‘There is no doubt that Irish farmers, including dairy farmers, want to play an active part in meeting reasonable and sustainable environmental targets,’ said Deputy Collins.

‘But the combination of the carbon credit purchase and the nitrates derogation issue highlights that the current approach is simply riddled with hypocrisy,’ he said.

He said there doesn’t appear to be any recognition from this Government that farmers cannot just change their practices overnight or even over the course of a year. 

‘The emissions targets themselves are fundamentally out of kilter with farming reality. Farmers are just expected to suck it up and get on with it, derogation or no derogation, nitrate banding information or no nitrate banding information. 

It is an utterly clueless approach, and it has to end,’ Deputy Collins concluded.