Immense damage is being done to Ireland’s international reputation, “especially among developing countries and the more progressive European countries following its identification as a climate laggard”, according to climatologist Prof John Sweeney. Commenting on the outcome of UN climate talks in Bonn, he said Ireland had become the worst performing country in Europe on the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), “largely because of its impending failure to meet its international obligations and the lack of compatibility of its efforts with the Paris [agreement on climate change] targets”. “Increasingly Irish people are being asked by developing countries, some of which have been ravaged by cyclone damage in recent months, why is Ireland not pulling its weight in tackling its emissions responsibilities?” said Prof Sweeney, a member of An Taisce’s climate change committee. He was one of 10 representatives of Irish NGOs, including development agencies, environmental organisations and representatives of civil society, who attended the COP23 conference which concluded at the weekend.
Irish Times 20th Nov 2017 read more »
