Sinn Féin local election candidate Conor D. McGuinness has said that Waterford Council is falling far short of its Energy Efficiency targets and that the local authority is on course to miss its commitment of an energy saving of 33 percent by 2020.
McGuinness said
“This report, compiled from the Council’s own data, is a wake up call. The report, which is presented by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), ranks Waterford in 25th position out of 29 when it comes to energy efficiency. Waterford is fifth from the bottom and is not yet on course to achieve its 2020 energy savings of 33 percent target.
“The report shows that only 2.7 percent of the energy used by the local authority comes from renewable sources, which means that Waterford City and County Council has achieved less than 10 percent of the EU goal for the use of renewable energy by public bodies.
“The SEAI acknowledged that some progress has taken place but warns that any apparent drop in consumption over recent years is due in large part to the transfer of water services and assets to Irish Water. According to the report there is insufficient investment in renewable energy and in energy efficient technology by the Council .
“Fossil fuels and grid electricity generated from fossil fuels are the prevalent energy sources utilised by the council and account for CO2 emissions of 8,865,944 kg in 2017.
“Making our Council more energy efficient must be a central plank of local action to combat climate change. As climate emergencies are declared in parliaments and councils across the world every agency and institution has to take responsibility for its energy use and emissions. Treading water is no longer good enough, we need decisive and determined action on climate change at every level.”
Cllr. Conor D. McGuinness 