Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

484 Chapter 17: Conclusions 4. Concluding statement The immense value of Ireland’s environment cannot be taken for granted, and societal progress will be severely hampered if our actions damage this essential asset on which we all depend for our air, water and resources. There is only one environment, and this integrated assessment of the state of Ireland’s environment shows that the challenges facing it are closely linked and interrelated. Our understanding of these issues is greater than ever before and underpinned by comprehensive monitoring systems and research. Some progress is being made. Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 were at their lowest level in over three decades, signalling the impact of climate action across Ireland’s economy and society. While this is positive, we are still well off track in meeting our climate 2030 targets (EPA, 2024b). Critically, this positive delivery is not evident across other areas of the environment, and we need to build momentum to deliver not only on our climate goals but also on our biodiversity, circular economy and pollution reduction goals. Delivering on these goals will require transformational change in many of the core systems of our society and, consequently, will involve everyone in providing a healthy environment for future generations. Sweden has a goal of passing on to the next generation a society in which the major environmental problems have been solved. In Ireland, we also need to seek to be a generation that changes the path we are on and delivers an Ireland where our major environmental challenges have been solved.