Editorials

The Irish Times view on Ireland’s climate adaptation: failing to respond to risk

Investment in areas like flood relief remains far too slow

Flooding last January in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford where the River Slaney burst its banks. (Photograph: Patrick Browne)
Flooding last January in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford where the River Slaney burst its banks. (Photograph: Patrick Browne)
Wed Sept 30 2026 - 20:33 • 2 MIN READ

The old adage “ fail to prepare, prepare to fail” applies clearly to the Government’s approach to the accelerating climate crisis. That is the essence of the deeply troubling 2026 review entitled “Preparedness for Ireland’s Changing Climate”, just published by the Climate Change Advisory Council, the independent advisory body to the Government.

Given the past year, which has seen very serious flooding, wildfires and drought in unprecedented succession, the council says the Government “must stop reacting to individual events and instead start preparing systematically for a climate of greater extremes”.

The review says bluntly that we are failing to do this: “Ireland’s climate resilience planning and preparation does not match the scale or urgency of the risks the country now faces.”

Eight years after they were prioritised in the national flood risk assessment, 30 of 54 major flood relief schemes remain at the preliminary stage, and yet these schemes take a minimum of 11 years to complete. The fate of Enniscorthy and other areas this year spells out the cost of such delays, and the council advocates building in the cost of inaction against the benefit of action in budgetary planning.

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Many flood relief schemes still rely far too heavily on expensive and often ineffective engineering solutions, while cheaper and more effective nature-based solutions, like restoring denuded uplands, are often ignored. And the review reveals that, far from demonstrating awareness of climate impacts, some local authorities continue to behave as though they were not happening. Under the pressure of the housing crisis, no less than 288 flood-prone sites have been proposed for rezoning by councillors over the last six years, just as flood exposure is rapidly expanding.

The council’s review is focused on climate adaptation, but in conclusion its chair, Professor Peter Thorne, warns that “adaptation is not an alternative to getting off our addiction to fossil fuels” The Government must respond to both these imperatives with the urgency they deserve.