Sir, – The stark reality that global warming, a catastrophic man-made phenomenon, will, unless checked, result in the total destruction of our planet should be enough to ensure that we all reduce our greenhouse gas emissions before it is too late.
However despite all the scientific warnings, there is ongoing debate and indeed reluctance from some industries that contend they are too important to the economy to make any significant reductions in their carbon emissions.
Of course this posturing is at a time when old-age pensioners are expected not to burn the fossil fuels they need to heat their homes in winter.
Unless there is a level playing field, the Government has no chance of getting all carbon polluters to adopt their policy of making our country green.
Air travel is set to double over the next 10 years, and 4,000 new hotel bedrooms are coming into service in Dublin alone this year, so how, for example, can dairy farmers be expected to lower their methane-producing stock numbers?
Or, indeed, how can the ordinary rural citizen, who has not the luxury of public transport on his doorstep, be expected to buy a prohibitively expensive electric car?
Unless all of these inequities are addressed and until the heavy lifting is seen to be shared by all members of our society, we have absolutely no hope of meeting our carbon targets anytime soon .
– Yours, etc,
CHARLES SMYTH,
Kells,
Co Meath.