The Government is looking at ways to cut the State’s dependency on diesel but is not looking to make diesel more expensive as a car fuel than petrol.
Minister for Environment Denis Naughten said air pollution in Ireland was costing the State €3,800 per minute in health costs and said the time had come to look at giving greater incentives for drivers to use electric vehicles.
Speaking at an Environmental conference in Croke Park in Dublin on Thursday he said lower carbon emitting modern diesel car engines, which prompted thousands of motorists to switch to diesel, had been seen as the “magic bullet” he said.
Mr Naughten said the use of diesel as in transport, energy, home heating and agriculture would be reviewed - but he said the Government was not thinking in terms of ways to make diesel more expensive as a car fuel than petrol. “No we are not looking at that at the moment” he said.
Instead Mr Naughten said the Government would set up a task force to “look at how we can encourage and incentivise greater use of electric vehicles”.
While he was not pre-empting the task force Mr Naughten, who has recently taken delivery of a Toyota Prius hybrid car, said his “own thoughts” included allowing electric cars to use bus lanes and to park for free in the city.
Mr Naughten said he was also interested in other ways to incentivise drivers towards better driver behaviour which could lower fuel consumption.
Mr Naughten admitted there were problems with the charging network for electric vehicles.
“One is the network, the other is the longevity of [electric vehicle] batteries,” he said.
Mr Naughten said the infrastructure around electric vehicles had not increased as quickly as expected as low oil prices meant the number of people buying an electric vehicle was lower than had been anticipated.
In relation to the batteries Mr Naughten said he hoped battery development to drive an electric vehicle “may make it feasible for someone like me [with a home in Roscommon and a job in Dublin] to drive an electric vehicle.
He said “within the hinterland of Dublin” and it is feasible to drive an electric vehicle.
Part of the task force’s remit will be to look at “some of those reservations or hesitancies or issues in relation to infrastructure”.
Environment Ireland 16, sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency, is continuing at Croke Park Conference Centre.
