EPA - Ireland's Environment 2016 - An Assessment

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Ireland’s Environment – An Assessment 2016 158
reflects this broad approach and highlights the key role
for the programme in delivering on national priorities
on competitiveness and green growth. Over the years,
through successive annual reports,17 the EPA has
demonstrated that businesses, the public sector and
households can achieve significant financial benefits,
and, in case of businesses, competitive advantage, by
implementing resource-efficient practices, with participant
enterprises achieving average savings of more than
€12 million per annum.18 An EPA research report published
in 2013 identified that a modest national target of 2%
efficiency in material consumption has the potential to
yield a saving to the national economy of approximately €1
billion (EPA, 2013).
Green Procurement
Green procurement can deliver more sustainable and
more competitive goods and services.
The Irish Government, through its policy on green
procurement, and the subsequent national guidance
published by the EPA, set out to push the delivery of more
sustainable goods and services through public tendering
contracts (DPER, 2012; EPA, 2014b). The purchasing power
of the State (10–12% of Ireland’s GDP; approximately
€25 billion) and of large businesses (through their supply
chain) can be used very effectively to deliver more
sustainable and more competitive goods and services.
Economic Value of the Environment
We need a better appreciation of the economic value
of a protected environment and its wider services to
society.
Not only is there evidence of decarbonisation, resource
efficiency and green growth, but there is also evidence
that the economic contribution of a valued and protected
environment (and its services) is becoming widely
appreciated at business and policy level (e.g. Origin Green,
eco-labelling, green tourism). This realisation is strong at
the general public level, also, as indicated by the results of
a 2014 EU survey of environmental attitudes, which found
that Irish people’s appreciation of the economic value
of the environment significantly exceeds the EU average
(Figure 9.9).
From a national growth perspective the coming years will
need to see a broader range of metrics and indicators
developed for national economic performance that take
into account matters such as wellbeing, environmental
health, ecosystem services and natural capital.
17
18
Figure 9.9 Environment and Economic Growth
Survey 2014 (Source: Eurostat)
Totally agree 41%
Tend to agree 42%
Tend to disagree 7%
Totally disagree 2%
Don’t know 8%
Totally agree 29%
Tend to agree 45%
Tend to disagree 13%
Totally disagree 3%
Don’t know 10%
Ireland
EU
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
The protection of the environment can boost economic growth
in the EU
Ecosystem Services – The Value of Being
Clean and Green
The rapid growth in economic valuation activity in the
field of ecosystem services also attests to this realisation
(e.g. DECLG, 2008; Bullock and Hawe, 2014; EPA, 2014c);
this includes the establishment of a national working
forum. This commitment to valuing our natural capital
is also reflected in the government policy Delivering our
Green Potential, in which it is stated that we must “ensure
that the value of ecosystem services and biodiversity
to the economy is captured and monitored so as to
ensure sustainable drawdown and protection of (our)
natural assets. The protection of the environment and
the development of the green economy are integrally
connected” (DJEI, 2012). Tourism was worth in excess
of €6.5 billion to the Irish economy in 2014, and
Ireland hosted over seven million international visitors. 19
Environmental attributes were two of the top five reasons
cited for successful tourism visits (i.e. scenery and nature),
and this is expected to grow with the success of the
marketing of the Wild Atlantic Way. 20 Irish food and drink
exports are worth €10.6 billion to the Irish economy 21
and the Origin Green dimension of marketing for these
19
20 Wild Atlantic Way Operational Programme 2015
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