People Before Profit have today announced that they will be bringing a motion to the Dáil calling on the government to oppose the EU Commission’s decision to include fossil gas and nuclear power projects into the Taxonomy Regulation as green or sustainable.
The motion also calls on the government to campaign at EU level to reverse the Commission’s decision.
52 TDs have signed the motion in support.
Speaking on the motion, Bríd Smith TD said: “We are tabling this motion in order to push the government to oppose this move by the EU Commission, which can only be described as climate sabotage and greenwashing.
“Gas is not a bridge or a transition fuel. It is a fossil fuel. The International Energy Agency has said that there can be no new gas fired energy plants from 2021 if we are to reach the Paris target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees. To label gas as green would be to lock us in to a carbon intense future and would be catastrophic for the planet.
“Nuclear is also not a solution to the climate crisis, leaving aside the environmental concerns. It would cost too much, take too long to set up and dealing with the waste and decommissioning of the plants means that it is not an option for this country.”
