What changes are politicians making to be more sustainable?

The issues of climate change, biodiversity loss, and the pressure being put on our planet are often viewed through the narrow prism of cataclysmic weather events, which can turn people off by either being too overwhelming to contemplate or too difficult to understand.

To mark the beginning of the Irish Examiner’s sustainability month, we asked our politicians — the people responsible for setting policy to allow us to hit our emission-reduction targets — about the measures they are taking in their own lives.

TDs and senators have revealed that they are doing everything from letting their garden grow wild to opting for an electric car or cycling to the Dáil, turning heating off at home, cutting down on meat, adopting a Japanese food composting system, buying secondhand clothes for their children, as well as installing insulation and solar panels.

“Sustainability is a lot of things,” said Environment Minister Eamon Ryan. “It’s about climate, obviously, and that poses a huge challenge. Huge change needs to take place. But, also, there’s a sustainable issue around our protection of nature.

We need to stop pollution, we need to restore nature, and we need to meet our climate ambitions.”

However, the Green Party leader is optimistic and believes the climate-change ship can be turned.

He points to home retrofits which have “taken off” in the first quarter of this year, with a 200% increase in the number of homeowners investing in upgrades to make their houses more energy-efficient.

“Similarly, the number of solar panels is increasing, they have been put in in around 50,000 houses now, but they are going in at a scale that no one expected,” he said.

The Government has reduced the Vat rate to zero for homeowners installing solar panels in private dwellings as of this week, which is expected to further increase uptake.

While our politicians will be responsible for ensuring that each sector, from agriculture to transport, electricity, and construction, meets the 2030 emissions targets that have been set down, TDs and senators have also been making their own efforts when it comes to sustainability.

Eating less meat was a top answer put forward by many of our politicians, but Clare TD and farmer Cathal Crowe is keeping his beef, though he has changed to organic production.

A number of politicians including Sinn Féin’s Eoin Ó Broin and Green Party TD Brian Leddin have gone car-free, while others say they try to take public transport or walk where possible.

However, as pointed out by Fine Gael senator Garret Ahearn, opting for public transport “can be difficult sometimes when living in rural Tipperary”.

Having a child changed Arts Minister Catherine Martin’s view of the world, and she became much more concerned about what the decisions of today would mean for their future.

"We have ensured our children are brought up thinking they should use public transport first when travelling,” said Ms Martin.

The family also chose sustainable building material, a timber frame, for refurbishment works in their home, reducing the carbon released from using cement instead. Insulation and energy conservation are also helped by triple-glazed windows as well as solar panelling.

“We did avail of an SEAI grant to help fund the solar panelling and the purchase of an electric car and our home car charging point," she said.

“Demand-controlled ventilation was also installed in our home.”

Annual family holidays have changed for Social Democrats climate and biodiversity spokeswoman Jennifer Whitmore.

“I haven’t flown for five years,” said Ms Whitmore. 

I have four children, any overseas family holiday would have a large carbon footprint so I am very conscious of that."

The next generation also plays heavily on the decisions made by People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith.

“I buy and eat very little meat and am mostly inspired by the young people in my family and also the understanding I have gained around the sustainability issues,” said Ms Smith.

Labour leader Ivana Bacik, who is often seen cycling into Leinster House, has taken a prudent approach by only turning on the heating where necessary and reducing the temperature at which her laundry is washed.

“I have also been holding the Government to account because, while individual action can make a difference, it falls to our Government to make sure that Ireland plays its part in keeping global warming below 1.5C this century,” said Ms Bacik.

Fine Gael TD Richard Bruton agrees that ensuring a greater awareness of sustainability issues will be key.

“About 50% of our waste is put into the wrong bin by people, so contamination is a big issue,” said Mr Bruton.

“I think you can get people thinking about these issues in a way that’s not as divisive, as sometimes climate change is where you tend to be pointing your fingers at farmers or data centres. 

"I think the reality is we’re in this boat [together] and have to make better choices.”

Mr Ryan agrees that governments across the world will have a responsibility, and the burden cannot simply be put on families and individuals to do what is right.

“It particularly won’t work if we do it with finger-pointing, blaming, shaming,” said Mr Ryan.

It will only work if we switch to a better system."

He said consumers do have a role, but governments and international bodies will have to set strong guidelines and laws around environmental standards.

“There are huge numbers of European laws coming because the centre of the whole European strategy is going green," he said.

"I’m involved in about 20 pieces of legislation in the European Council; they range from how often we have a charging network for cars on motorways, how we switch to sustainable aviation fuels, the standard of buildings so that you store carbon and embodied energy, I could go on.”

Ireland has signed up to 17 sustainable goals — including on poverty, infrastructure development, health and wellbeing, and education — that are being implemented on a whole-of-Government basis but which are part of a wider global movement for sustainable economic and social development.

However, achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Agenda Goals by 2030 will be a huge challenge. 

Politicians ‘walking the walk’ on sustainability can show leadership, but action is urgently required to ensure Ireland meets its goals and can call itself truly sustainable.

We asked all TDs and senators about the sustainable changes they have made to their homes, the way they travel, what they eat, and the clothes they buy. Here are some of the responses:

Alan Farrell, Fine Gael: “I take the issue of climate change very seriously and have made many changes to my lifestyle and that of my family to achieve carbon neutrality, a goal which I have yet to reach. I have also used my office to inform my constituents as to State supports available to them, should they themselves choose to go down the recommended route of retrofitting their homes and businesses. Your other questions do not relate to my role as a public representative, are an intrusion into my private life, and are frankly none of your business.”

Eoin Ó Broin, Sinn Féin: “I have a heavily fish-based diet and don’t consume much dairy. We have less than a decade to get our emissions under control. Tackling climate change requires system change, not guilt-tripping people into lifestyle change, which ultimately is only really possible for those with the economic means to do so.”

Marc MacSharry, Independent: “Encourage Brazil, Argentina, USA, Canada, Nigeria, China, India, Russia, and Australia to get with the programme or it doesn’t matter how much we do, given our size and output.”

Pippa Hackett, Green Party: “Almost every item I wear from clothes to accessories is secondhand. Obviously some items like my running gear is bought new, but otherwise I really enjoy finding treasures in charity shops. Of course, I also donate items to the same shops to keep it circular.”

Barry Ward, Fine Gael: “In order to reduce clothes going to landfill, we now buy mostly 'pre-loved' clothes, particularly kids’ clothes from a local supplier and local charity shops. We get our clothes repaired locally as well to make them last longer. We have not bought clothes online or from fast-fashion retailers for over two years now.”

Bríd Smith, People Before Profit: “I buy and eat very little meat and am mostly inspired by the young people in my family. I have seriously cut back on foreign travel that involves flying. In the main, I spend my vacation periods at home in Ireland rather than flying abroad.”

Robert Troy, Fianna Fáil: “Changed consumption as my wife is a vegetarian, so out of convenience I eat less meat and have come to enjoy vegetarian dishes.”

Cathal Crowe, Fianna Fáil: “Since January of this year I have switched to organic farming; meaning I no longer chemically fertilise my land or spray herbicides on pasture. I have also recently completed a Teagasc course on organic principles so that my conversion to organic farming can be more successful.”

Ivana Bacik, Labour Party: “I ensure I use a bicycle or public transport where possible when travelling, and have also taken a range of small steps within the household, such as only turning on the heating when absolutely necessary and reducing the temperature at which laundry is washed.”

James Lawless, Fianna Fáil: “I purchase locally sourced and/or organic food by preference where possible. I shop at local butchers, vegetable shops, grocers, and farmers’ markets. I grow my own vegetables also. For years I have been conscious of the ‘five-mile rule’ where we should aim to place locally-grown food on our plates.”

Pauline O’Reilly, Green Party: “I mainly wear secondhand clothing and keep clothing in use for as long as possible due to my concerns over the environmental and human rights impacts of the fashion industry.”

Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne: “I am very conscious of checking the origin and traceability of all foods. I am also inclined to support food producers that promote sustainability.”

Emer Currie, Fine Gael: “We’ve cut back on red meat, which we try to eat once a week. We try to add pulses to dinners to replace meat and have increased fish consumption.”

Christopher O’Sullivan, Fianna Fáil: “I’m very concerned about climate change. I’m not just seeing the impacts globally, but I’m seeing the impacts here in Ireland. Even some of our own West Cork towns have experienced extreme flooding events and we have coastal erosion happening at an alarming rate.”