Letters

Dear Taoiseach, Congratulations on your appointment. It is a huge honour and privilege to lead our country and we wish you every success. We welcome the commitment in your nomination speech to create an Ireland that protects our children’s future by acting decisively on the climate crisis. The Environmental Pillar shares your concerns about the […]

Dear Minister McConalogue, We, the undersigned Irish coalitions and civil society organisations, are writing to express our deep concern about recent actions taken by the European Commission to undermine the EU’s Green Deal and weaken the Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC) conditionality within CAP and to urge you to reject all plans to dismantle […]

Dear Ministers,  We, the Environmental Pillar, Stop Climate Chaos and the Sustainable Water Network (SWAN) are strongly of the view that public land must be utilised in the public interest and that all public bodies must be mandated to lead in Ireland’s response to climate change and biodiversity loss. The Irish people should have a […]

To the Directors of PEFC International. I am writing to you on behalf of the Environmental Pillar, an organisation that works to represent the views of 32 of Ireland’s leading environmental NGOs. We work to promote environmental sustainability and the protection of our natural environment. We are the largest NGO stakeholder in the PEFC process, […]

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International shipping and aviation, huge sources of emissions, were dropped from last week’s draft Paris climate agreement. This is an incredibly backward step, leaving an emissions gap in the agreement equivalent to Germany and UK combined. Even more incredible given both sectors purchase their fuel tax free, and their emissions are set to treble by 2050. In […]

Dear Minister Coveney I am writing to highlight to you issues raised at a meeting in Clonakilty earlier this month. As I understand it the issue detailed below, and in the attached letter, was raised at the meeting by both the EU Commission and our representatives on the Shadow Monitoring Committee for the Operational Programme […]

Sadhbh O’Neill In attendance as member of EPA advisory committee on GMOs, representing the Environmental Pillar. This symposium is an event to facilitate dialogue between the scientific experts across the EU and EEA on current trends in regulating the contained use and deliberate release of GMOs. This document is merely intended to be a personal […]

The Environmental Pillar sent this letter to all TDs on 5 November 2013, asking them to support the inclusion of this definition of ‘public authorities’ in the Freedom of Information Bill   Dear Deputy, The new Freedom of Information Bill is a step forward in many ways, but at present it is missing one opportunity. […]

The Environmental Pillar has joined the calls to ask EU Commissioner De Gucht to provide transparency on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). Several Civil Society groups, including Friends of the Earth, European Environmental Bureau, Transport and Environment, and Transparency International have written to Commissioner De Gucht calling for transparency on the EU’s negotiations in […]

Dear Minister Quinn, The members of the Environmental Pillar are asking you to support a proposal under the Action Plan for Jobs 2014 for Third Level Campuses as Living Laboratories for the Green Economy and a Sustainable Ireland, as outlined on pages 73-76 of our Greening-the-Economy-and-Creating-Sustainable-Employment report. The Environmental Pillar is an advocacy coalition of 27 […]

The Environmental Pillar sent this letter to all TDs on 5 November 2013, asking them to support the inclusion of this definition of ‘public authorities’ in the Freedom of Information Bill   Dear Deputy, The new Freedom of Information Bill is a step forward in many ways, but at present it is missing one opportunity. […]

On Thursday 17 October 2013, the Environmental Pillar sent the following letter to Minister Coveney:   Dear Minister Coveney, Your intention, as we understand the reporting of it, is not to extend support for farmers coming out of REP4 or AEOS in to 2014. This is part of an attempt to save money and will […]

In just 2 days time, the Plenary Assembly of the European Parliament will make its final vote on the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive. This is a crucial opportunity to convince our MEPs to support proposed amendments that will make environmental impact assessments mandatory for proposed fracking operations across the EU. Earlier this year, the Parliament’s Environment, […]

On 25 July 2013 the Environmental Pillar sent this letter to Minister Deenihan in response to shocking comments made by Councillor Sheahan as reported in the Limerick Leader. There is no longer an online version of the Limerick Leader’s article, however you can still see a scan of a printed version, and the text, on this […]

31 May 2013 Dear Minister Coveney, (cc. Minister Hogan) During the month of May you issued c.35 Aquaculture licences for the Castlemaine Harbour in Co Kerry. As you know, under  S.I. No. 309/2003 — Sea-Fishing Boat Licensing Appeals (Fees) Regulations 2003, anyone other than the applicant wishing to appeal against the issuing of these licences […]

Re: Upcoming discussion on “air quality and urban environment” during the meeting of the Informal Council of European Union’s (EU) Environment Ministers of Monday 22 April 2013 9th April 2013 Dear Minister Hogan We are writing to you in view of the upcoming Informal Council of EU Environment Ministers of Monday 22 April to ask […]

To An Taoiseach, The Minister for the Environment and the Government of Ireland The Access Initiative – National Coalition for Ireland Further to our letter of 28 February 2012, we, the Environmental Pillar, plus the undersigned environmental organisations, are writing to you as The Access Initiative’s (TAI) national coalition for Ireland.  TAI is the world’s […]

Open Letter to the Secretary General for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD), Co-Chairs of the Bureau for Rio+20 and Member-States of the United Nations RIGHTS AT RISK AT THE UNITED NATIONS We – the civil society organizations and social movements who have responded to the call of the United Nations General Assembly […]

We the undersigned representatives of civil society organizations and social movements, Seeking to protect the United Nations historic recognition of the Human Right to water and Sanitation by the General Assembly and Human Rights Council through resolutions A/Res/64/292  and A/HRC/15/L/14 respectively, Concerned by European Union amendments to the UNCSD Zero Draft text which seeks to […]

 Towards a Pan-European Whale and Dolphin Sanctuary The Environmental Pillar calls upon the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Members States to work together to establish a European Whale and Dolphin Sanctuary throughout European waters.  In this regard the Environmental Pillar calls upon the Irish Government to highlight the 21 year success story that […]

To the government of Ireland The Access Initiative – National Coalition for Ireland We, [the Environmental Pillar, plus the undersigned environmental organisations], are writing to you as The Access Initiative’s (TAI) national coalition for Ireland.  TAI is the world’s largest network of civil society organisations and activists working to ensure that people have the right […]

Full text of letter to An Taoiseach Ref: Proposed incorporation of the Heritage Council with the Department of Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht cc. Minister Phil Hogan, Minister Jimmy Deenihan Dear Taoiseach, The Environmental Pillar, whilst realising the necessity of cost savings across government, is very concerned at proposals to incorporate the Heritage Council into the […]

Full text of letter to Minister Hogan Ref: Levy on Incineration Dear Minister Hogan, It must be stated from the outset that the Environmental Pillar is opposed to the use of mass burn incineration as a part of the waste management strategy.  This opposition is based on the many impacts that incineration will have on […]