Report cites rise in car numbers and economic expansion as key factors....
Air
It is now becoming clear that Ireland will have great difficulty in meeting the 2010 limit for Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) emissions, set out in the EU's National Emission Ceilings Directive, primarily due to the increase in energy consumption, particularly related to transport.
Minister for the Environment Dick Roche has held out the prospect of reform of motor taxation to reward drivers of cars that produce less harmful emissions. However, this is not going to be a quick fix, and any changes in the generation of tax revenue are principally a matter for the Department of Finance.
Even if approved, such a measure is unlikely to impact significantly on NOx emissions by 2010, when the State is supposed to meet EU targets.
Global climate change remains the main environmental challenge of this century. Greenhouse gas emissions were 23.1 per cent above 1990 levels in 2004 and this figure must be reduced to just 13 per cent above 1990 levels over the 2008 to 2012 period if Ireland is to meet its Kyoto obligations.
Dr Mary Kelly said: "The post-Kyoto scenario is likely to involve deeper cuts, so we need to prepare now to meet more of these targets domestically and break our dependence on fossil fuels. Of course, the shortfall can be met by buying emission credits from abroad, a measure which we will have to rely on in the short term."
Current analysis of the changes in climate indicate that some impacts of climate change are unavoidable. Investment in flood-prevention schemes, sea walls, water management and irrigation schemes is recommended.
Waste management
Waste recycling facilities have improved dramatically. In 1998 there were just 837 bring banks but by 2004 that figure had risen to almost 2,000.
This resulted in lower levels of waste that are going to landfill.
An estimated 851 tonnes of packaging waste were generated in 2004, more than 50 per cent of which was recovered for recycling through environmental schemes such as Repak.
The report shows, however, that the amount of waste being produced continues to increase. This means that, in an expanding market, bodies such as Repak would have to work harder each year just to maintain the same percentages.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency the way to combat this should be to reverse the amount of waste generated in the first place.
The report calls for "imaginative policy intervention" to adopt an attitude of waste prevention.
Dr Kelly commented, "The area of waste management has been transformed and, because of improvements in waste infrastructure, we have had a very good record in meeting our national recycling targets."
But she acknowledged that much of the recyclable material was exported and the creation of an indigenous recycling industry where technically and economically feasible had merits including job creation.
The EPA said local and regional authorities should "anticipate proactively" the need for additional waste management facilities.
Agriculture
"The misapplication and the excessive application of nutrients to lands are significant factors in the pollution of rivers, lakes and groundwaters," according to the EPA report.
The implementation of the Nitrates Directive, which Minister for the Environment Dick Roche yesterday said was virtually agreed, coupled with the Water Framework Directive, will put agriculture under increasing pressure to modify nutrient application processes.
Almost half of the slight and moderate pollution of Irish rivers is due to agricultural sources.
However, the EPA report found that membership of the Rural Environmental Protection Scheme can mitigate the effects of environmentally-damaging activities.
Local authorities also have the power to require a farmer to compile a nutrient management plan where this is considered necessary to prevent, eliminate or minimise pollution.
Commenting on this sector, the EPA's director-general, Dr Mary Kelly, said: "There is much change in the agriculture sector with the advent of decoupling and the introduction of the single farm payment scheme.
"The impact of decoupling within Irish agriculture is as yet unclear: it may lead to more intensive farming or even land abandonment. The requirements of the Nitrates Directive will also change the sector over the coming years."
In conclusion, Dr Kelly stated: "Much work has to be done if we are to continue to make progress in the key areas."
Industry
A recent European study on energy consumption ranked Ireland third best when evaluating energy consumption per GDP.
Changes in the composition of Ireland's industry base, in particular the loss of heavy energy-intensive industry such as steel and fertilizer production, has seen the industry sector become more efficient and productive in the past decade.
Industrial growth has been achieved in the absence of increased waste-generation. Figures for waste have dropped since 1998, alongside minimal increases in energy consumption.
Increased energy costs and the introduction of energy audits as part of the integrated pollution-control process have contributed to the closure of less-efficient industries, according to the EPA report. These included fertilizer and steel plants. The report went on to note that their absence had enhanced the energy efficiency of industry overall.
The report also suggested that the recent trend in outsourcing materials for manufacture to low-cost economies may have a beneficial impact on the Irish environment.
The challenge now was for industry to tackle the efficiency of freight transport by improving logistics management, the report noted.
The EPA's director -general, Dr Mary Kelly, commented: "It may well be the case that industrial policy is working successfully in tandem with environmental policy, and some of those successes could be transferred to other policy areas."
Water
While river water quality has improved marginally, as indicated in recent EPA reports, yesterday's analysis suggested the rate of improvement would need to be significantly increased.
The requirements of the Water Framework Directive are "significant and looming", according to the EPA, and the State must achieve "good" status for all our water bodies by 2015.
Almost 30 per cent of our river length still remains slightly or moderately polluted, yesterday's analysis suggested.
Improvements are difficult given that four years ago the figure was much the same. However, the EPA yesterday claimed that in an expanding economy, achieving a similar figure was in itself progress.
Significant improvements are also required for lakes, estuarine and coastal waters and ground-waters in order to comply with this directive.
Commenting on this sector, EPA director general Dr Mary Kelly said: "Implementing the Water Framework Directive is a policy measure that will deliver better water quality.
"Further improvements in municipal sewage treatment are needed, especially on inland waters across the country, and these need to be provided for now in the preparation of the National Development Plan," Dr Kelly added.
"We would expect to be reporting improvements in this area in the next 'Environment in Focus' report in four years' time."