Sir, – Since the COP21 global summit in Paris started, some of the coverage amounts to little more than laying most of the blame on the farmers. If they got rid of their belching cows everything would be all right, or so the argument goes. Surely there is more to the debate than that.
The agri-food sector in this country involves over 230,000 jobs. It includes approximately 600 food and drinks firms throughout the country that export 85 per cent of our food and seafood to more than 160 countries worldwide. Those exports are worth €10 billion or more to the citizens of this country.
If we are to curtail that industry in order to meet our global targets, as advocated by many non-agrifood lobbies, then the consequences in terms of the economics, the employment and the social infrastructure of many areas in this country need to be examined. – Yours, etc,
A LEAVY,
Dublin 13.
Sir, – In his article "COP21: Five technologies that could help – and five that will not", December 9th), Paddy Woodworth rightly says that "if ecology teaches us one lesson, it is that everything in our world is connected to everything else".
However, Paddy’s list of technologies leaves out the use of microbes to convert biomass, like sewage, energy crops or waste food, into biofuels, like biogas.
Microbes are what connects “everything” to, well, everything else in ecology.
Understanding, and harnessing, the microbial world is a critical component in addressing our energy and climate problems (“Human waste biogas could power millions of homes, says UN study”, November 3rd), but they are rarely mentioned in the climate debate. – Yours, etc,
Dr GAVIN COLLINS,
School of Natural Sciences,
NUI Galway.
Sir, – I agree wholeheartedly regarding the need for a genuine effort by Ireland to decarbonise our society. Indeed we have practical examples to follow in the cases of France, Sweden and Ontario. All of the above decarbonised their energy systems by scaling up nuclear power for electricity production. No examples exist where renewables have achieved the same outcome .
Dr James Hansen, formerly chief climatologist with the Nasa Goddard Institute, has made a submission with other climate experts at Paris for the adoption of a strongly pro-nuclear policy in our battle with climate change and ocean acidification. In fact at this point it is fair to say that an anti-nuclear environmentalist is an oxymoron. – Yours, etc,
Dr PAT MORRISSEY,
Adare,
Co Limerick .
