Taoiseach Micheál Martin warned that time is running out to act on climate change and that the fulfilment of commitments must be accelerated.
Speaking after arriving at the COP27 climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Martin said that for Ireland this would mean handing over offshore wind targets.
He added that other measures include biodiversity, environmentally friendly agriculture and the rehabilitation of homes and buildings.
There has been a massive increase in grant adjustment requests in Ireland and this shows a change in people’s behaviour, he said.
The Taoiseach also said that Ireland will commit €225 million by 2025 to support the most vulnerable countries.
He said that developing countries need other countries to keep their promises and Ireland will do so.
Mr Martin will outline Ireland’s climate priorities over the next two days when he attends the summit.
Priorities include a commitment to strengthen the country’s contribution to international climate finance, as well as determined support to advance compensation for loss and damage caused by climate change to vulnerable countries.
Martin said events like COP27 help focus governments’ attention.
Writing on social media after his arrival, Martin said the days ahead were important, adding that many countries that contribute less to climate change are feeling the impact.
The UN’s COP27 climate summit began yesterday with warnings against efforts to cut emissions and calls on rich nations to compensate poor countries after a year of extreme weather disasters.
Martin was expected to attend a working lunch on “Global Shield Against Climate Risks” with Ghanaian President Nana Akufo Addo and German Chancellor Olaf Schulz.
Mr. Martin will also attend high-level events and meetings on food security and the impact of climate change on the sustainability of the poorest communities.
Tomorrow afternoon he will deliver Ireland’s formal statement to COP27.
The conference in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh comes in a difficult year marked by Russia’s war against Ukraine, the energy crisis, skyrocketing inflation and the lingering effects of the covid pandemic.
But Simon Stiell, the UN executive secretary on climate change, said he would not be a “custodian of backsliding” on the goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030 to cap global warming at 1.5C above late-19th-century levels.
“We will be holding people to account, be they presidents, prime ministers, CEOs. The heart of implementation is everybody everywhere in the world every single day doing everything they possibly can to address the climate crisis,” Mr Stiell said as the 13-day summit opened, reported RTE.
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