Storm Éowyn wreaked havoc for the hundreds of thousands of people left without power, but it has also raised fundamental questions about how we build resilience for our energy, telecommunications and forestry systems in a climate-changing world.
Some commentators are using the prospect of future big storms as an argument for doubling down on the use of fossil fuels to secure our energy needs. That would be a terrible mistake, not just because they are the cause of the problem but because it will not work. It does make sense, especially in rural Ireland, to have a stove or fire which can heat the home during blackouts when no oil or gas or back boiler will run. But the real problem is how we can keep the power on when the lines go down.
One of the best solutions, especially in rural Ireland, is to support the widespread deployment of electric vehicles (EVs) as a backup power for our homes. Vehicles would need to be fully electric rather than plug-in hybrid so the battery is big enough to charge essential equipment for several days. In most EVs the “vehicle-to-load” or V2L technology – which allows it to send electricity from its battery to power items in the home – is already available.
The policy direction requiring countries to promote this sort of smart charging system is set out in the European Alternative Fuels Regulation, which we are bound to implement.
The ESB now needs to work with the Government and regulators to ensure every new charging point comes with an isolating switch which allows power from the vehicle to run back into the home. They also need to develop the capability of tying in domestic solar power and battery packs, and to make sure every new EV can also export power back to the grid. That way we can cut household bills and also reduce the amount of investment the ESB needs to make in upgrading our distribution grid.
Some say the power cuts make them question buying an electric vehicle, but the opposite should be the case. In rural Ireland – where home-charging points are more easily installed, the cost saving from using EVs is even greater because of the longer distances driven, and where the risk of power cuts are higher – you would be mad now not to think of making your next car purchase a fully electric one.
There have been suggestions that we should explore putting most power lines underground, but that would cost a fortune and would divert funding from what we need to do, which is to deliver better balancing and storage capabilities through investing in a smarter grid.
The other big realisation in the aftermath of Storm Éowyn is that we are going to have to investigate why so many power and phone lines were taken down by falling trees. That will involve a forestry sector that is only coming to terms with the scale of damage caused by the storm. The impact is greater than anything seen before. Great swathes of forest plantations were flattened like toothpicks on a table, and it is going to be difficult and expensive to harvest those trees from the ground.
We have only a limited harvesting capacity and if they are not removed quickly the trees will spoil and lose their value. The sheer volume of timber going to the saw mills is likely to depress the price of lumber and increase the losses that will arise.
The windblown conditions will also leave forests more susceptible to the spread of disease and pests, which thrive in such stressed conditions. It is not an exaggeration to say that the majority of our national forest estate, which is concentrated on one fast-growing but shallow-rooted species, may be at risk.
No doubt the private forestry sector will be looking for more support to replant these forests. To do so using the same old model of monoculture Sitka spruce plantations would be the worst option. It makes no sense to put public money into a forest that is going to be blown down again in 10, 20 or 30 years’ time. An alternative planting system, using a variety of species and age of trees, will see forests stand up better to the storms and environmental threats to come.
This new approach was included in the forestry programme agreed by the government last year. The research has been done and the expertise exists to show how a more sustainable and native forestry model can flourish. Michael Healy-Rae the new Minister for Forestry, not previously known as a climate champion, is now being put to the climate test. Will he ignore what has just happened and plough on with an unviable business model, or will he use this opportunity to change tack so our forests can survive in the stormy world ahead?
Eamon Ryan is a former Green Party politician who served as minister for the environment, climate and communications and as minister for transport
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