223 / 234
219
Chapter 13: Environmental Challenges and Emerging Issues for Ireland
its generation and prevention are linked to a variety of
human activities and policy areas, such as waste and waste
water management, product design, shipping, fisheries
policies, consumption and behavioural patterns. Successful
implementation of a comprehensive targeted waste policy
is a prerequisite to avoid plastic litter entering the marine
environment. We place a high value on our beaches in
Ireland and it is unacceptable that some of our beaches
and coastlines are still being polluted by sewage and other
sources of material discarded by people.
The sustainability of fish catches continues to be an issue
with 26% of commercial fish stocks overfished (Marine
Institute, 2015). Out of 72 commercial stocks, 36% are
considered to be sustainably fished. Overfished stocks have
declined to 26%, and 38% remain at an unknown status.
Nineteen per cent of commercial species are considered to
have been depleted.
Other stresses on our coastal environment are wider and
link to the impacts of climate change. From a climate
perspective, rising sea temperature, ocean deoxygenation,
rising sea levels and ocean acidification (the effects of
which are being seen in Irish waters) are major causes of
concern worldwide. The rich coastal marine grasses (i.e.
Zostera
spp.) and kelp forests are significant carbon sinks
(as well as important biodiversity reservoirs) that need
protection and enhancement.
One of the key aspects of many of the environmental
challenges facing our estuaries and coasts is that they
cut across many sectors, environmental themes and
organisations. Issues covered in this report on the
marine area point towards the need to protect coastal,
estuarine and marine areas through better integration
of the actions required under the Water Framework
Directive, Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC), Urban
Waste Water Directive, Marine Strategy Framework
Directive (2008/56/EC), Maritime Spatial Planning
Directive (2014/89/EU) and Nature Directives
(2009/147/EC and 92/43/EEC).
Key Action 5:
Sustainable Economic
Activities
Integrating Resource Efficiency, Sustainability
Ideas and Performance Accounting across
Economic Sectors
Resource Management and the Circular
Economy
We must move our material flow economy from a
linear to a circular one in which materials are captured
for reuse at the end of a product’s productive life.
In a world of finite resources and a growing population it has
never been more important to evolve our national economy
and society to become sustainably competitive. This requires
us to become resource efficient and sustainable in how we
produce and consume. Ireland has in recent years dramatically
reduced the waste consigned to landfill (1 Mt less municipal
waste to landfill in the last 5 years) and produced less
household waste per capita than the European average.
We could and need to be doing better. CSO data
published in 2016 would suggest that 500,000 national
households do not implement waste prevention in the
operation of their homes, and 51,000 households do not
participate in legal waste management practices.
The use of Green Public Procurement to drive a market
response to resource efficiency and the green economy, as
articulated in national policy, has been largely unsuccessful
to date, principally due to implementation weaknesses
across all government and public body procurement units
(Irl Gov, 2013).
A positive national response to the EU Circular Economy
package would be to articulate a national resource
efficiency plan that draws together the different
stakeholders, integrates the elements currently ongoing,
identifies investment needs, and sets policy objectives.
As economic prosperity returns we must work harder to
ensure our unsustainable consumption patterns of the
past do not return. We must move our material flow
economy from a linear to a circular one in which materials
are captured for reuse at the end of a product’s productive
life. This evolution will create opportunity in the green
economy and ensure that Ireland can move towards
sustainable and competitive prosperity. Many good things
happen at local level and these need to be normalised
across society.