Eco Evolution Blog

Seachtain Náisiúnta na gCrann 2010
7 – 13 Márta 2010

National Tree Week 2010
7 – 13 March 2010

‘Fiche is a Deich – Cuir Crainn Arís’
‘Twenty Ten – Plant Again’
National Tree Week will take place from 7-13 March. The theme is ‘Twenty Ten – Plant Again’. We are asking people to make a renewed effort to go out and plant more trees during the week.

The aim of National Tree Week is to raise awareness about trees and encourage local communities and local authorities to participate in over 300 events which will take place around the country during the week. Events are organised all over the country which include forest walks, tree planting ceremonies, workshops, talks, competitions and even tree plantathons!

This year 15,000 trees, sponsored by Coillte will be distributed to community groups by local authorities all over the country – contact your local council for a supply of trees.

Every year a poster competition is held, this year’s winner is Fiona Cooney as student of NCAD, Thomas Street. Posters for the competition will be presented on Wednesday 3 March at Charleville Mall Public Library, North Strand by Éanna Ní Lamhna.

Despite the great advances in the past 100 years, Ireland remains one of the least wooded countries in Europe with only 10% of our land planted with trees compared to the European average of 40%. approx. This initiative will provide thousands of new jobs build our forestry industry and help improve our environment.

Why plant more trees?
• The forest industry is worth €1.65 billion annually.
• It is estimated that more than 10,000 people are employed in the industry mainly in rural Ireland.
• More than 17,000 farmers own and manage farm woodlands.
• Forests absorb carbon dioxide and give us oxygen
• The non timber benefits of forestry include bio-diversity, carbon sequestration, wood biomass energy and recreation.
• Ireland’s forests provide an opportunity to conserve bio-diversity at local and national level.
• Ireland’s forests provide a potential for wood to displace fossil fuels.
• Over 20 million visits are made annually to Irish forests.
• Over 200,000 people use forest trails for exercise.
• Trekking through forests is an important aspect of ‘Walking Tourism’ which attracts 500,000 visitors who spend €138 million annually.
• Wood is uniquely renewable among building material.

Do not despair, even if you have very little space to plant. By doing something as simple as planting one tree, you can play your part in helping the environment.

By thinking locally, we can act globally!

All Tree Week events are free and everyone is welcome to attend.

Source: http://www.treecouncil.ie/tree_council_programmes.htm#National

Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) Press Release 21 February 2010

Figures released today (21 February 2010) from Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) reveal that
over 100,000 Irish homes have had Building Energy Ratings (BERs) completed to date, the
majority of which were completed since January 2009, the first year for full
implementation of the BER scheme. Introduced in 2007 as part of a European Directive to
improve the energy performance of homes, the rate of BER publications has steadily
increased in 2009 , averaging 300 per day, and indicating an increasing awareness of, and
compliance with, the legislation.
Initially the scheme only applied to new homes, but since 1 January 2009 all homes being
sold or rented are also required to have a BER certificate that shows prospective buyers or
tenants the energy performance of the home. Research shows that landlords are the
group most aware of the need for a BER certificate, with awareness now at 76%. While
awareness is improving in most quarters, tenants looking to rent are the least aware of
their entitlement to get a BER cert with awareness only at 38%.
Commenting on the BER programme, Minister for Communications, Energy, and Natural
Resources, Eamon Ryan TD said: “The BER Scheme is a practical scheme which helps
current and prospective homeowners make informed choices when selecting or upgrading
a property. The success of the scheme last year shows that the energy performance and
efficiency of a property is becoming increasingly important for Irish homeowners. ”
Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, John Gormley TD said: “The
systems now in place and the increasing consumer awareness will be important factors in
the continuous improvement of the energy performance of our building stock. This will
help underpin future Building Regulation changes and efforts to upgrade existing
buildings. ”
Professor Owen Lewis, Chief Executive SEI, said: “Putting aside the difficult economic
conditions in 2009, the first year of full operation of the BER scheme has been a successful
one. However, there are many homes for sale or rent out there that have not yet been
assessed, and need to be, if they are not to fall foul of the regulations. SEI is calling on
people who are looking to buy or rent homes to insist upon receiving a BER certificate as
their right, so they are fully informed of the energy performance before finalising any
property transactions. ”

Source: http://www.sei.ie/News_Events/Press_Releases/100,000_BERs_issued.html

University College Cork (UCC) today(February 19th, 2010) became the first 3rd level educational institution in the world to be accredited with the prestigious international ‘Green Flag’ award. The award, presented by Minister John Gormley, on behalf of An Taisce, to UCC President Dr Michael Murphy, is a direct result of the Green-Campus programme, a student-led initiative undertaken by UCC students and staff over the last 3 years.

The Green-Campus programme, operated in Ireland by An Taisce, has seen the University save €300,000 in waste management costs, reduce waste to landfill by nearly 400 tonnes and improve recycling from 21% to 60%. Furthermore, UCC has conserved almost enough water this year to fill the equivalent of the Lough of Cork.

The first step was for the students to establish a Green-Campus Committee, in conjunction with the Buildings & Estates Department and academic staff. An environmental review followed. “There were absolutely no recycling facilities for students walking on the campus”, recalls Maria Kirrane, a student representative on the committee. “In fact, our very first action was to put on overalls and literally dive into the skips to see exactly what types of waste were being disposed of!”

In addition to staff recycling systems that previously existed, new recycling facilities for students are now available in front of the lecture halls, and in the canteens, where the staff is trained in minimising waste. Students in lecture theatres and laboratories are alerted to turn off lights and electrical equipment. College maintenance vehicles are now running on biodiesel. Carpooling has been introduced to facilitate lifts to and from campus. Enhanced Park & Ride and bike parking areas are designed to encourage more sustainable travel. Each year the Students Union holds a Green Awareness Week on campus, where real actions are supplemented by academic talks on environmental sustainability.

“It is quite a leap, transforming the Green-Schools programme, geared for the typical school of a few hundred students, to a complex campus of 130 acres, 16,000 students and almost 3,000 staff,” explained Dr Michael John O’Mahony of An Taisce. “In population terms UCC is bigger than your average Irish town, so bringing together all the necessary parties and practices to develop it into a sustainable Green-Campus was a real challenge.”

UCC President, Dr Michael Murphy said it is a source of great pride to the university, its staff and its students, that UCC has become the first third level institution in the world to be awarded the designation. “It is a wonderful achievement to have innovative thinkers among the staff and students in UCC all working towards the same objective.

“It was these students, who had been part of the Green Flag programme at secondary school level, who believed from the outset that the concept could be transferred successfully to an institution of UCC’s size and that by raising awareness throughout the university, we could, together, make a real difference.”

Mark Poland, Director of Building and Estates, added: “This initiative has provided a great forum for environmentally-conscious members of staff and students to assist in how we tackle our environmental responsibilities as a university community.”

An Taisce, on behalf of the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), granted the international accreditation after a rigorous assessment by an expert panel. UCC is now looking to build on the award. “We’d like to make it easier for students to cycle to college, possibly through a bike purchase scheme”, says Maria Kirrane. “Also, while UCC is a beautiful campus, many of the plants here are non-native. We’re looking to address biodiversity on campus.” In addition a programme to convert the college food waste into compost has commenced.

“There is a wide of range of environmental management programmes that a third level college could undertake. However, the Green Campus programme is unique because it is student-led and they are the key decision makers,” says Jan Eriksen, President of FEE. A number of other 3rd level institutions in Ireland will be applying for a Green-Flag shortly.

“This is about more than making a campus green”, continues Michael John. “Over the past 14 years, hundreds of thousands of students in Ireland have been brought up with Green-Schools, sometimes starting at pre-school, through primary schools and then second level. It is critical that the chain not be broken once they complete the Leaving Cert. It needs to continue into 3rd level, and from there into their professional as well as their personal lives so that they become life-long educators and ambassadors of sustainable living.”

Source:UCC Media and Communications - http://www.ucc.ie/en/mandc/news/fullstory,95898,en.html

The award was presented for the Green Campus initiative which in the past three years has seen the university save €300,000 in waste management costs, by reducing waste to landfill by nearly 400 tonnes and improving recycling from 21% to 60%.

Furthermore, UCC has conserved almost enough water this year to fill the equivalent of the Lough in the city. The award was presented yesterday by Minister John Gormley, on behalf of An Taisce, to UCC president Dr Michael Murphy

In addition to staff recycling systems that previously existed, new recycling facilities for students are now available in front of the lecture halls, and in the canteens where staff are trained in minimising waste.

Students in lecture theatres and laboratories are alerted to turn off lights and electrical equipment.

College maintenance vehicles are now running on biodiesel and carpooling has been introduced to facilitate lifts to and from campus.

“It is quite a leap, transforming the Green Schools programme, geared for the typical school of a few hundred students, to a complex campus of 130 acres, 16,000 students and almost 3,000 staff,” Dr Michael John O’Mahony of An Taisce said.

Dr Murphy said it is a source of great pride to the university, its staff and its students, that UCC has become the first third-level institution in the world to be awarded the designation.

Source: Irish Examiner Saturday, February 20, 2010

Date released: Feb 18 2010, 12:05 PM

New research, published today by the EPA, shows how economic forecasts can be used to project waste generation and emissions of pollutants across Ireland.  The ISus (Irish Sustainable Development) Model is based on the work of a three-year study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), funded under the EPA STRIVE research programme.

Speaking about the findings of the research, Dr. Mary Kelly, Director General, EPA said:

“This model, developed by the ESRI, is very welcome. We are all aware of the use of GDP and other statistics to measure economic change. These, however, leave many things unmeasured, including the environment.
The ISus model provides a link between economic forecasting and potential environmental impacts.  This enables us to use the expertise of the ESRI, in relation to economic data, and link this with the environmental data produced by the EPA. The results will aid policy and decision makers to diagnose environmental problems, identify pressure points, target policy interventions and assess their success.
For example, projections on the generation of biodegradable waste – how much and where – could be a very useful tool for planning the location and required capacity for waste management infrastructure in the future.”

 ISus covers more than 25 potential pollutants (to air, water and waste) emanating from 20 economic sectors.

Some of the findings from the research:

• In relation to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions: Ireland faces a significant challenge in meeting its target for 2020.
• In relation to waste generation: projections from the model suggest that Ireland will also have great difficulty meeting EU limits on landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste.
• In relation to carbon tax: it illustrates the spatial distribution of households likely to pay the highest tax, with those in the commuter belts likely to pay most.
  The data show that in the period 1990 – 2006, while the economy was growing strongly, some emissions (sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds) have fallen, while others (carbon dioxide from fossil fuel combustion, dioxins)  have increased.  ISus is able to attribute these changes to economic growth, structural changes in the economy and technological and behavioural change.

“The EPA is very happy to be working in collaboration with ESRI on this project and hopes to be able to reap the benefits of the work in producing forecasts and projections for environmental impacts based on different scenarios in the future”said Dr Kelly.

 The report Ireland’s Sustainable Development Model  is available on the EPA website.

The findings from this research are being presented today at a seminar on Environmental Projections and Policy for Ireland in the Economic and Social Research Institute.

Editor’s Notes:
This work was funded through the EPA’s Science, Technology, Research and Innovation for the Environment Programme (STRIVE). The programme employs a strategic and targeted approach to protecting and improving the natural environment through the provision and accumulation of scientific research and knowledge. Funding for the EPA STRIVE Programme is provided through the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government and the programme is administered by the EPA on their behalf.

http://epa.ie/news/pr/2010/name,27794,en.html