The final report of the EPA-funded ‘Carbon Restore’ project shows that breathing new life into cut-away and degraded boglands would provide climate, biodiversity, water and economic benefits. UCD based Dr David Wilson led the ‘Carbon Restore’ project and it was carried out with the cooperation of Bord na Mona which own much of Ireland’s depleted … Read more
Ireland is well advanced in achieving most of the EU waste recovery and recycling targets, with the exception of end of life vehicle targets, according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Waste Report 2010. The economic downturn is having a marked influence on municipal waste generation, which has decreased by 16 per cent since … Read more
The EPA has published information on Ireland’s position in relation to meeting its 2010 obligations under the National Emissions Ceilings Directive (NEC Directive). The figures show the trends for four key air pollutants over the period 1990 to 2010. These pollutants are sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOC) and ammonia (NH3) … Read more
Provisional greenhouse gas emissions figures released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) include trends since 1990, and show Ireland’s status in meeting our obligations set under the Kyoto Protocol. Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions fell by 0.69 million tonnes (1.1%) in 2010. Agriculture remains the single largest contributor to overall emissions, at 30.4% of the total, … Read more
The Government has decided to appoint Laura Burke as the new director general of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). She succeeds Dr Mary Kelly, who took up a new role as chairperson of An Bord Pleanála in August 2011. Laura Burke has been a director of the EPA since 2004, initially serving as the agency’s … Read more
Ireland is well advanced in achieving most of the EU waste recovery and recycling targets, according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Waste Report 2009. However, the report urges continued efforts to divert biodegradable waste from landfill, improve the penetration of source separated waste collection services (3 bin), and prevent waste arisings from all sectors … Read more
A recent study by Trinity College, Dublin has found that pollution emissions from licensed industry have fallen due to regulation. Between 2001 and 2007 there were aggregate pollution reductions of 22% for the chemical sector, 28% for the food and drink sector, 40% for the pharmaceutical sector and 45% for the power generation sector. The … Read more