Eamon Ryan has insisted it was ‘absolutely right’ for his advisors to contact the SEAI about a disputed report on carbon emissions.

The Irish Independent reports that the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) rewrote part of a report on Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions following complaints from Minister Ryan’s former advisor.

The report originally said a reduction in Ireland’s electricity emissions was linked to the fact that Ireland was importing more power from abroad.

It was later changed to note that increases in wind and solar generation also contributed to the reduction.

The report notes: “It is important to acknowledge that the reduction in electricity emissions and carbon intensity of electricity have come about predominately through an increase in imported electricity – with increases in wind and solar generation also contributing.”

The SEAI has said rejected claims it changed the text due to pressure from Government officials - insisting it did so because the report was being “misinterpreted”.

However, documents obtained by the Irish Independent reveal that Minister Ryan’s former advisor Paul Kenny demanded a meeting with SEAI officials about “poor press” surrounding the original report.

On Newstalk Breakfast, Minister Ryan said it is "absolutely right" for party advisors to contact the SEAI.

When asked if the contact counted as "political interference," he said: "[The SEAI is] independent but they're also an agency of the Department, so it was absolutely right for my advisors or officials to be in contact with them.”

He also said he has "no evidence" to suggest the report was rewritten to make the Green Party look better.

Offshoring emissions

Minister Ryan said the Green Party has "always said" the reason Ireland's emissions are reducing is due to offshoring and increased renewables.

"When you go in this direction with renewables, you have to balance the power, so being able to switch when the wind isn't blowing to import power is exactly the right thing to do," he said.

"It's due to both, and we've always said it's due to both."

COP 29

As COP 29 kicks off today in Azerbaijan, Minister Ryan said the world has "seen progress" on climate action through the conference.

"What other choice do you have? You have to get 194 countries around the room and get agreement," he said.

He said the Paris Agreement is an example of this progress, as it gives countries "the legal construct" to take action.

He also said "change for the better is happening" every day in Ireland.

"There are solar panels going up in Irish houses every day, there's 1,000 Irish houses getting retro-fitted every day. There are now 1 million Irish people taking public transport every day," Minister Ryan said.

The Minister said Ireland is starting to "show leadership" in taking climate action.

In a statement issued to Newstalk, the SEAI said:

"SEAI is a state agency whose responsibilities include a statutory function to prepare and publish Ireland’s energy statistics and model Ireland’s energy projections. All SEAI data and analysis reports are independent, transparent and wholly based on evidence.

"SEAI reports are compiled based on independent, objective, robust and high quality-data and evidence. At all times, the facts and data are authoritatively reported by SEAI. This is evidenced by our long and highly respected track record of published reports.

"To ensure absolute clarity in the subject report, SEAI data analysts refined the text of three (3) paragraphs in the 170-page Energy in Ireland 2023 Report, as the original text was being misinterpreted by some. This action was taken without any request or direction from the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications or Ministerial advisors.

"Specifically, the Report was interpreted by some to suggest that offshoring of CO2 emissions, due to interconnection, was a policy strategy. The factual position is that the reduced emissions were a consequence of a properly functioning, interconnected, transnational electricity grid.

"For the avoidance of doubt, there were no changes to the factual data on the emissions reductions reported in Energy in Ireland 2023. As stated above, the only changes were to the narrative text in three paragraphs, and only done to avoid continued misinterpretation."

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