Scientist claims plans for 'hi-tech trees' in Cork city is a waste of money
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An atmospheric scientist has branded plans to spend up to €380,000 on hi-tech 'city tree' devices to improve air quality in Cork as a “waste of taxpayers’ money”.
Dean Venables, a researcher at the Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry (CRAC) at University College Cork (UCC), said the devices are “a costly and ineffectual gimmick” and will have no meaningful impact on the city’s air quality.
He said the argument seems to be that the money is there and that this is an easy project to roll out.
“But that’s not the same thing as doing things that are effective,” he said.
"We have to stop this stuff from getting into the air in the first place."
The project is one of over 500 in 11 counties which are being funded as part of a €55m National Transport Authority (NTA) funding package announced under the July stimulus plan, in response to the Covid-19 crisis.
Authorities in Cork are considering deploying up to four ‘city trees’, which its manufacturers claim filter the air and remove pollutants, in a pilot project.
The Green Party has backed the proposal, insisting that it is not a replacement for real trees, that it is a pilot project and just one part of the jigsaw, and that record investment in bus and bike infrastructure is on the way.
But Mr Venables said the focus and investment should be on reducing emissions from getting into the air in the first place.
“You can’t effectively clean the air once pollutants are there with expensive gadgetry. The first priority must always be to stop/reduce emissions,” he said.
He suggested a raft of interventions to shift the priority from vehicle-based transport to more sustainable modes, as well as suggesting;
- - the removal of all chimneys from council housing, and replacing them with heat pumps;
- - supporting the permanent blocking of chimneys in private dwellings;
- - and a mass planting of 210,000 trees, one for every person in the city.
“Cork City Council is doing great work on monitoring air quality. It’s because of the readings from its network of Purple Air monitors, that we are aware of high levels of pollution around the city," he said.
“But the problem is simple. It’s solid-fuel burning and too many cars. The solution is to reduce emissions.
"The city should be doing everything it can to get people out of their cars and on to buses, onto bikes or walking."
It is estimated there are around 1,300 premature deaths in Ireland annually attributed to air pollution.