Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 27 November 2025
181. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the progress in emission reduction targets in areas that are the responsibility of her Department; which measures are particularly successful and which measures are underperforming; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [67049/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraEnhancing the sustainability of our buildings, operations, systems and processes at headquarters and across the mission network is a key priority in the Department’s Statement of Strategy 2025-2028, through Goal 6, which states that the Department will “Implement the Department’s Climate Action Roadmap".
The Department has signed up to the SEAI’s Public Sector Partnership Programme and is working with our assigned Partnership Support Manager to reduce our energy-related emissions by 51% and increasing energy efficiency to 50% by 2030. Analysis of our energy data for 2024, carried out by the SEAI, has concluded that:
• The Department achieved a 57.9% increase in Energy Efficiency since the 2011 baseline and is on track to achieve the target of a 50% reduction by 2030;
• Fossil CO2 was 4.5% above the baseline of 349,980 kgCO2. To achieve this target, fossil CO2 must reduce by 53.1% from 2024 level within 6 years;
• The total CO2 was 21.7% below the baseline of 1,654,053 kgCO2, but to achieve the target, total CO2 must reduce by another 65.2% from 2024 level within 6 years.
The Department is aware of the need to focus its efforts in reducing our fossil CO2 emissions which remained above target throughout 2025. To do so:
• We are continuing to actively engage with the SEAI’s Reduce Your Use and the Office of Public Works (OPW) Optimising Power @Work campaigns to promote energy saving techniques to staff across the Department;
• Our Digital Transformation Strategic Framework 2022-2025 has seen the reduction in paper-based processes and has increased our use of cloud based services;
• We continue to engage with the OPW to request greater investment in addressing the high energy demands of our HQ buildings.
