The Government has proposed the establishment of an independent commission to monitor Ireland's record on meeting greenhouse gas reduction targets as part of its revised climate change strategy.
The strategy, unveiled yesterday at Government Buildings, is also promising a €15 million publicity campaign over the next five years to raise awareness about the issue.
The new commission will include a small number of experts, and will report annually to Government.
A phased tax is also to be introduced on traditional incandescent bulbs in the run-up to an outright ban which is to be introduced across Europe.
The new strategy says existing and proposed measures account for effective emission reductions of more than 13 million tonnes of greenhouse gas.
The Government also used the launch of the strategy to attack critics who have claimed the current administration has failed to take adequate measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, now among the highest per capita in Europe.
Minister for the Environment Dick Roche accused critics of creating a "false" impression that the Government's proposed purchase of €270 million of carbon credits was an attempt to "buy our way out of our commitments".
He said the purchase of the credits, required if Ireland is to meet its Kyoto commitments, accounted for just a fifth of all of the reductions, and was the most "cost-effective" way of meeting Ireland's obligations.
Under the Kyoto agreement, Ireland is legally bound to keep emissions to 63 million tonnes a year between 2008 and 2012.
Tánaiste and Progressive Democrats leader Michael McDowell defended the Government's decision to abandon its proposed carbon tax, saying to bring it in would have jeopardised the competitiveness of the economy.
He defended the current strategy as a "realistic pathway" to meeting the Kyoto protocol.
"There are no frills to it, no spin to it. It just simply saying what is happening, and what will happen."
The bulk of the measures unveiled yesterday had already been announced by the Government in the last 12 months.
According to the strategy, if the Government took no action emissions would be at 79 million tonnes.The single largest element in terms of its contribution to meeting the Kyoto target is the plan to buy carbon credits from other countries. This will allow the Government to claim a 3.6 million tonne a year reduction in emissions domestically.
The second largest reduction will come through the emissions trading scheme, where large Irish industries will, either through reductions or purchases, account for a 2.42 million tonne reduction.
The single largest reduction domestically will be through the agriculture sector, where a smaller national herd and the use of lower amounts of fertiliser will account for a reduction of 2.4 million tonnes.
The Government will also be unveiling plans for a new Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT) and motor tax system which will be based on CO2 emissions of vehicles. However, Sustainable Energy Ireland, which advises the Government on energy issues, has warned that the current options being considered by the Government for the VRT system will be insufficient to encourage people away from higher emission vehicles.