Call for Climate Change / M3 motorway summit

national | environment | news report Tuesday October 31, 2006 16:35 by TaraWatch info at tarawatch dot org

Public meeting to be held to discuss the M3 in terms of climate change

This is a proposal for a public conversation and public meeting, dedicated to examining the economic arguments for and against the M3 motorway. It is vital that this conversation occur, in the wake of the EU reports, criticizing Ireland's record on carbon emissions and Stern report which warns of the threat to the world economy if radical action is not taken.

The M3 motorway will damage the environment and the economy

As much as people in County Meath want an instant solution to the traffic on the N3, the inconvenient truth about the M3 motorway is that it is not just bad for the heritage of Tara, it is bad for the people of Meath and Ireland, economically, environmentally, legally, politically and morally. And what's more, it won't solve the traffic problems for commuters traveling to and from Dublin. It will only get them to Blanchardstown and the M50 a few minutes quicker. Are there better options?

The M3 is symptomatic of current Irish economic policy which involves spending inordinate amounts of public and private capital on motorways, to the cataclysmic exclusion of public transport, not to mention education and health. Transport is Ireland’s fastest growing contributor to carbon buildup. |How will we meet Kyoto targets? Does putting two toll booths on the M3 for 40 years make it a good investment? Short term, it may get Fianna Fail elected. But what of the long-term effects?

Online Summit

TaraWatch is considering hosting an online climate change/transport summit with all interested parties. It is hoped that economic grounds for Transport 21, and indeed the M3, will be properly exposed, and positive alternatives put forward. Having gathered the people and resources together, a public meeting can evolve out of this initiative, where representatives of various political groups and NGOs can join the public in open debate, and put forward a cohesive argument for scrapping the current M3 plan and putting forward positive alternatives.

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European Commission Criticises Ireland over carbon record

The European Commission has criticised Ireland for not being on target to reduce carbon emissions. It says Ireland ranks amongst the worst performers in the EU, at fourth from the bottom in terms of cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Under the Kyoto Protocols, Ireland is committed to reducing the rise in carbon emissions to 13% by 2010. However, the Commission says that without additional measures, Ireland’s carbon usage will increase by closer to 30%.