Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

12 Executive Summary Key messages for Ireland on the state of the environment in 2024 This report shows not only that there is a need for urgent interventions to address climate change and biodiversity decline but also that there are other environmental priorities for Ireland. These include tackling water pollution, investing in critical water services, improving waste segregation and recycling rates, continuing to improve our air quality and mitigating radiological risks. In addition, this assessment indicates that how we use our land is a significant contributor to the climate, biodiversity and water quality challenges. To protect the environment, we need to look at multifunctional approaches to land management, which will require extensive engagement with landowners. More urgent system-wide change is needed across the energy, transport, industrial and food sectors and in the built environment to improve sustainability and reduce emissions that are damaging to our environment, our climate and our health. The overall key priorities identified for Ireland’s environment are summarised below. Further details about these priorities can be found in Chapter 17. Figure 1  Five key priorities from the State of the Environment Report 2024 Delivering a national policy position on the environment We urgently need to have a national policy position on the environment to address the complex interactions, synergies and trade-offs across environmental policy areas and to deal with its interactions with other policy domains. Driving policy implementation We must rigorously implement existing environmental plans and programmes to achieve the benefits that they were developed to deliver. Transforming our systems Transformation of our energy, transport, food and industrial sectors is critical to achieving a sustainable future. Scaling up investment in infrastructure Investment in water, energy, transport and waste management infrastructure is essential to protect the environment now and into the future. Protecting the environment to protect our health Protecting the environment is key to protecting our health and we must act to reduce the modifiable risks to our health from environmental exposures.