An all-party Oireachtas Committee has identified 30 separate barriers to the State meeting its legally binding emissions targets for 2030, most of them due to failures in planning, infrastructure, governance and political resolve. In a trenchantly worded report, the Joint Committee on Climate, Environment and Energy bluntly criticises the Government for insufficient effort, delayed implementation, lack of clarity, and planning deficits across the breadth of the Coalition’s climate change policies. The first of 30 barriers identified is what the committee regards as an overreliance on “unallocated savings” in official emissions projections for each sector between 2026 and 2030. The committee also noted that without timely ceilings and credible delivery pathways, Ireland risks missing its binding 2030 emissions targets,” it states. It notes that landowners seeking to move towards native woodland, rewetting or rewilding often face penalties rather than incentives.

Source: The Irish Times February 07, 2026 16:31 UTC