Department of the Environment, Climate & Communications
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Department of the Environment, Climate & Communications Annual Report 2020 Prepared by the Department of the Environment, Climate & Communications gov.ie/decc Table of Contents Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................ i Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... 2 GOAL 1: Climate Leadership ..................................................................................................... 7 GOAL 2: Connectivity and Communications ........................................................................... 21 GOAL 3: Environment and Sustainable Resource Use .......................................................... 33 GOAL 4: Governance and Regulation ..................................................................................... 48 Appendix I: Legislation ............................................................................................................. 60 Appendix II: 2020 Green Procurement .................................................................................... 63 Appendix III: Petroleum Authorisations ................................................................................... 64 Appendix IV: Bodies under the aegis of the Department ........................................................ 64 i Executive Summary Overview of Department The Department’s remit at the time the Statement of Strategy 2019-2021 was published covered telecommunications; broadcasting; postal; energy; climate action; waste management and resource efficiency; environmental policy and air quality; noise and radiation protection policy and natural resources. Following the formation of a new Government in June 2020 the broadcasting functions of the Department were transferred to the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media with effect from 23 September 2020 (SI 372 of 2020). The name of the Department changed from the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment to the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications with effect from 24 September 2020 (SI 373 of 2020). COVID-19 The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 resulted in some changes to the working environment of the Department. From early March the Department prioritised its work to support the whole of Government response to the pandemic. In line with Government advice, the Department operated remotely with limited attendance in our offices. Many of the Department’s functions were involved in ensuring the security and continuity of critical infrastructure throughout the period of the pandemic. Working with our stakeholders, the Department played a central role in ensuring the continuity of electricity, gas and fuel supplies; the maintenance of waste management services; and the functioning of the telecommunications networks. A range of measures were introduced to support businesses operating online. Statement of Strategy 2019–20211 The Department’s vision under the Statement of Strategy 2019–2021 was for Ireland to become a leader in delivering climate action, achieving environmental sustainability and bringing the opportunities offered by digital communications to all citizens. This long-term vision is focused upon transitioning to a prosperous, modern, competitive and carbon neutral economy, underpinned by flexible well-regulated markets. 1 In accordance with the Public Service Management Act 1997, a new Statement of Strategy was in preparation at end 2020 which would reflect the commitments in the 2020 Programme for Government – Our Shared Future. 2 The Department’s mission was to develop across Government policies which power economic and social progress, while at the same time improving the environment in a lasting way for future generations. The Department delivered on its vision and mission by focusing on four key goals: Goal 1 - Climate Leadership Ireland will deliver a coherent and effective response to climate disruption and seize the enterprise opportunities in a low carbon economy. Goal 2 - Connectivity and Communications Provide access to a world class communications network with high quality services, supporting connected communities and enabling citizens to embrace digital opportunities in a safe environment. Goal 3 - Environment and Sustainable Resource Use Use resources with care and responsibility minimising the generation of waste and consistently enhancing our environment in all its dimensions. Goal 4 - Governance and Regulation Be best in class in creating the policy direction and the regulatory environment for our sectors, so as to ensure good governance, competitive markets, diversity, innovation and sustainable practices. The Department made significant progress on achieving the goals in the Statement of Strategy 2019-2021 and this Annual Report outlines the main achievements and developments during the year. 3 Key Achievements in 2020: Climate/Environment • Draft text for the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill was published in early October 2020 and underwent pre-legislative scrutiny by the Joint Oireachtas Committee. The Committee’s report was published on 18 December 2020 and informed the finalised text adopted by Government in 2021. • The Climate Action Fund was established on a statutory basis on 1 August 2020, through the early enactment of the National Oil Reserves Agency Bill. • The first progress report of the Just Transition Commissioner was published in May 2020 and a second report was published in November 2020, providing a further update on progress on just transition in the Midlands. • The Department opened a call for applications to the Just Transition Fund in June 2020 and provisional funding offers were announced in November 2020, totalling almost €30m to over 60 projects throughout the region for projects from the private sector, local authorities and communities. • Government approval was granted in November 2020 for the Bord na Móna Enhanced Decommissioning, Rehabilitation and Restoration Scheme (EDRRS) on 33,000 hectares of decommissioned Bord na Móna peatlands including the provision of funding of up to €108 million from the Climate Action Fund. • Regulations were finalised for additional 13 towns under the Smoky Coal ban. Energy • The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) was designated the National Retrofitting Delivery Body and sanction for additional staff was approved. • €78.7 million was spent in 2020 on energy efficiency measures through grants to over 17,600 homes (includes Solar PV schemes), 39 community based projects and 4 1,615 households at risk of energy poverty. These measures delivered energy savings of 138.7 GWh, reduced CO₂ emissions by 35,200 tonnes and lowered energy bills by €9.2 million. • 68 new renewable energy projects, equating to approximately 1,088MW of new renewable generation, were awarded a letter of offer under the first Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS) auction. This includes seven community projects comprising five solar and two wind projects. The RESS scheme will support an investment in Ireland of over €1.4 billion and support the recovery by creating roughly 1,000 jobs. • Support was provided to 59 beneficiaries through the Excellence in Energy Efficient Design (EXEED) programme in 2020, granting over €3.2 million. Communications • National Broadband Ireland (NBI) made significant progress on the rollout of the National Broadband Plan in 2020. Design work was completed in target townlands across every county in Ireland with over 153,000 premises surveyed by the end of 2020. This survey work fed into detailed designs for each deployment area and fibre deployment commenced in late 2020 with the first fibre to the home connection made in Carrigaline, Co. Cork in January 2021. • The ongoing investment in the National Broadband Plan continues to create employment opportunities with over 700 people directly and indirectly employed in 2020. • During 2020, 241 Broadband Connections Points (BCP) sites in total were installed by NBI, 170 publicly available and 71 primary schools. The high speed broadband service was switched on for 126 public sites by Vodafone and 31 primary schools by various retail service providers. • In 2020, over 3,000 people received free digital skills training under the Digital Skills for Citizens Scheme. The School Digital Champion Programme continued to drive digital adoption and provide a platform for greater integration of ICT in second level schools through valuable project-based learning. Circular Economy, Waste Policy and Natural Resources • A Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy, Ireland’s new roadmap for waste planning and management, was launched in September 2020. • €32.9 million was provided to Inland Fisheries Ireland to support the protection, conservation and development of Ireland’s inland fisheries resource in 2020. • The Department provided over €11.7 million to Local Authorities to support remediation work on 76 landfill sites around the country in 2020. €6.1 million was allocated from the Environment Fund to Local Authorities to support waste enforcement services and the Anti-Dumping Initiative. • In 2020, the INFOMAR programme completed 9,406 km² of seabed mapping to reach 62% completion, which is ahead of the targeted 58%. 5 • Cabinet approval was obtained to introduce legislation to ban licences for new oil and natural gas exploration. The legislation