News

Irish cattle less climate-efficient than European average and emissions per head up from 1990 The Environmental Pillar and Stop Climate Chaos and have published a new report titled “Not So Green: Debunking the Myths around Irish Agriculture”. Drawing heavily on scientific evidence, the report challenges government and industry claims and shows that Ireland’s current agriculture and […]

The Environmental Pillar welcomed the proposals by officials in the Department of the Environment to Minister Coveney, to take measures to tackle the twin issues of litter and waste while also providing some extra revenue for the Environment Fund.
“By placing a cost on single use items we can encourage consumers and vendors to think about what will happen to the item when they are finished using it.” “We need to change the way that people think about ‘disposable’ packaging.” said Mindy O’Brien of VOICE, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Pillar.

Representatives of the Environmental Pillar will speak at the National Economic Dialogue about their vision for a resilient circular economy, based on Sustainable Development Goals – which can bring a strong buoyant economy with fairness and benefits for all. “We have to build our economy on solid foundations. This means reducing and ultimately eliminating the […]

Speaking at the opening session of the National Economic Dialogue, Cillian Lohan of the Environmental Pillar spoke about reducing and ultimately eliminating the concept of waste from all sectors. He said: “Almost all materials can be reused or remanufactured, which not only is beneficial for our environment but also creates jobs and wealth amongst communities […]

The Environmental Pillar welcomes the decision to include environment in the title of Minister Denis Naughton’s Department.   However the decision to leave National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) in another department could lead to the conservation of wildlife and habitats falling off the political agenda.   The title of the new department will now […]

Today the Government have failed to restore the Department of the Environment despite public outcry over its abolition. Taoiseach Enda Kenny has announced the new Junior Ministers but did not take the opportunity to address the problem of splitting up the functions of the Department of the Environment. The Environmental Pillar, an advocacy coalition of […]

The Programme for Government lacks the key clear goals we need to move our people and economy forward into a post carbon future.   The Environmental Pillar, an advocacy coalition of 28 Irish national environmental NGOs, does not believe that the Programme for Government goes far enough in tackling climate change and will force increasingly […]

The loss of a department responsible for the ‘Environment’ will damage Ireland’s natural environment. A healthy environment is essential to the well-being of the people of Ireland and to a thriving economy.   In the last 20 years Ireland has seen severe biodiversity loss, pressure on and pollution of water resources, and devastating impacts of severe […]

The Environmental Pillar today publish a series of twenty measures which if implemented could help prevent the worst effects of flooding. As communities around Ireland continue to deal with the aftermath of this winter’s devastating floods, the Environmental Pillar is calling for immediate measures to be taken to protect communities now and into the future. […]

The Environmental Pillar welcome the introduction of a bill today to ban fracking in Ireland. The Environmental Pillar, which is made up of 28 national environmental NGOs, are calling on TDs to support the proposed law which will prohibit the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the exploration or extraction of oil and gas in […]

The Environmental Pillar welcome the publication today of the Energy White Paper which outlines a vision for an emission free future. The Environmental Pillar, which is made up of 28 national environmental groups, welcomes this as a first step in a road towards the end of the use of fossil fuels. With over 90 actions […]

The Environmental Pillar is calling on the government to bring in substantive land use changes to protect communities from increasingly frequent high rainfall events.

The Environmental Pillar are calling on the Taoiseach Enda Kenny to retract his statement that ‘climate change is not a priority’ and start to build a country and economy fit for the 21st century. The Environmental Pillar, an advocacy coalition made up of 28 national environmental NGOs, want the Taoiseach to accept that failing to […]

The Environmental Pillar welcome calls for the use of forestry on farms to balance carbon emissions from agriculture, in an effort to increase sustainability and protect livelihoods.

The Environmental Pillar welcome the decision of An Taisce to challenge the High Court ruling on the N86 road as it could have a substantial knock on impact. Today An Taisce – the National Trust for Ireland – announced that it intends to pursue its case regarding the N86 Dingle road to the Court of […]

The Environmental Pillar welcome Budget 2016 but warn that a number of measures do not effectively prepare the country for a low carbon future. The Environmental Pillar, a coalition of 28 Irish national environmental NGOs, is now calling on the government to support the measures announced in the budget with a robust plan to help […]

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 […]

The Environmental Pillar welcomes the opportunity to respond to the consultation on Consultation by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on the “Principles to Guide Public Engagement on Policy and Services Development” [button href=”https://environmentalpillar.ie/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Environmental-Pillar-response-to-Draft-DPER-Consultation-Guidlines-1.pdf” title=”Title” target=”blank” shape=”square, rounded, pill” size=”mini, small, regular, large, x-large, jumbo”  icon_only=”true” info=”popover, tooltip” info_place=”top, right, bottom, left” info_trigger=”hover, click, focus” […]

The Environmental Pillar welcomes the passing of the Climate Bill but warns that we need a solid emissions reduction plan in place now. Today the Climate Action and Low Carbon Bill 2015 passed Dáil Éireann. This is the culmination of many years of campaigning from Irish environmental groups. The Environmental Pillar, an advocacy coalition of […]

For immediate release  The Environmental Pillar welcomes Minister Alan Kelly’s announcement that the ban on smoky coal is to be extended nationwide. The Environmental Pillar has long campaigned for the nationwide implementation of this ban. Charles Stanley Smith, speaking for The Environmental Pillar said: “So far approximately 8,000 lives have been saved in Dublin since the introduction […]

NGOs urge the Taoiseach to commit to a national action plan –  to overcome Irish “implementation deficit disorder” Friday 25th September – New York Ireland can be proud of the role our diplomats played in developing the UN’s new Global Goals for Sustainable Development, according to the Environmental Pillar. Along with Kenya, Ireland co-chaired the […]

The Environmental Pillar welcomes the opportunity to input into the draft National Mitigation Plan and looks forward to further input as the plan evolves. The Environmental Pillar strongly welcomes and supports the Ministers commitment to transition to a low carbon future. We anticipate that this will be implemented in a clear, directional robust national mitigation […]

This submission recommends ways of broadening the tax base and using the limited financial resources in a way that focuses on long term sustainability, whilst creating employment and stimulating the economy in the short term. Broadening the tax base can also reduce the complexity of the tax system, compliance costs and the costs of tax […]

Coillte is coming under increasing pressure to phase out the use of Cypermethrin in Irish forests, Irish Examiner reports.Coillte recently made an application for a 5-year derogation of the pesticide, used to prevent or control pine weevil attacks on non-native spruce and pine trees.  In recent days, Coillte have been meeting with groups including the Environmental […]