The Labour Party has promised a dedicated department to help tackle climate change and meet Ireland's international commitments on energy issues if it gets into government.
Publishing its plan to meet targets on climate change, the party also said it would bring in legislation to legally underpin the State's carbon-reduction targets.
It would also set up a national forum on climate change to build the "national consensus" required to meet the targets, it said.
Green Party leader Trevor Sargent
Labour accused the Government of a "pollute now, pay later" policy, which it said was based on the assumption that Ireland can "relatively cheaply, buy its way out of its Kyoto commitments.
"This policy is economically short-sighted and environmentally irresponsible. If the supply of carbon decreases and the price of carbon increases, then Irish taxpayers could face an annual bill of €1 billion or more in the post 2012 period," Labour claimed.
"Ireland can not assume that the EU will agree to a burden sharing arrangement which will allow us to continue to increase our greenhouse gas emissions," the party said.
Labour's policy document sets down what it says are the further shifts in public policy that will be required to meet our obligations.
They include the production of 50 per cent of our energy requirement from renewable sources by 2020, a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the residential sector and a shift to public transport, including the addition of 500 buses to the Dublin fleet.
Elsewhere, the Green Party used Galway city to open its climate change campaign today.
"We are already close to a one degree increase in global temperatures. Beyond two degrees, the melting of the Greenland or Western Antarctic ice sheets could raise sea levels by six or seven metres, causing major flooding in Galway county and city," Green Party leader Trevor Sargent said.
The party asked people to send postcards to the Taoiseach calling for immediate action on climate change.