Energy infrastructure

U should see the damage wind farms have done to peatlands around the country and other sensitive habitats, plus rare earth mining for turbine components is at least as bad if not worse than coal mining . Blade erosion also sheds vast amounts of microplastics into the environment.

Yep - the concern with bogland ecology is completely insincere.

For example, the EPA has identified 40 substantial bog sites where illegal industrial scale harvesting of peat is still occurring - completely sterilizing and destroying habitats.

Compared to this and the decades of commercial bog strip mining operations, the idea that wind turbine foundations are destroying bogs is laughable.

Look at this oddball - creating new accounts every few weeks - to spout Trumpian anti-wind turbine silliness. This bizarre behavior driven by hatred of new energy technologies is a mental derangement.

It's laughable to suggest that gouging out vast amounts of peat and permanently destroying the natural hydrology of these areas leading to peat silt pollution and flooding of downstream lands etc. to build windfarms and their sprawling service road network etc. is somehow better🙄

delete

The 80% renewables target for 2030. Data centres have sent Ireland's denominator beyond sustainable reach, consuming our recent renewable onboardings to the point they're now looking to fossil fuels as long as they can show 50% of their energy comes from associated renewables (which the insincere operators will argue in bad faith, along with everything else in their EIARs).

As the poster said, our DC usage is completely out of line with Europe and that margin is projected to increase. We got into this mess by letting DC's ride roughshod over the country in the past 10 years and now Collison (along with every pseudo-intellectual Irish Times reader on twitter) tells me we need to cut the red tape.

Find me a renewables project in the media that is honest about where it's electricty is going, and doesn't mislead with the PR line: "enough to power X homes". Let's see some "enough to power our data centres for X% of the year".

Your the moron on this - I suggest you consult the National Biodiversity Data Base as to the species that are found on recovering peatlands across the midlands. I would also suggest you educate yourself on the growing number of community based bog rehabilitation projects in and around same.

I'm sure slashing/burning Amazonian rain forest increases the variety of grasses in the area. I don't think you really get this "natural environment" idea.

Great stuff. When the new interconnector to Spain is built we will be sucking in a significant amount of renewable energy. We should be in a position to drastically reduce our reliance on gas in the early 30's. It would be great to see more of that forward thinking here.

If we were able to build large scale BESS farms tied to 200-300+ turbines* from north Antrim down to Dungarvan bay we'd be well on the way to self-sufficiency - with interconnectors providing supplementing when needed.

*I know there's plans for east coast offshore wind farms but the legal headwinds (pun intended) are significant at this present time.

Each county should only consume electricity produced within its borders? 🙄

You're also against Leitrim people consuming electricity produced in Moneypoint, Whitegate, Poolbeg, Huntstown or Great Island, I take it? Otherwise, I could easily get the impression that you're a selfish, self-entitled, NIBMY, sponger who is happy to "suck" from the Irish t*t but throws tantrums when ask to give anything back.

Just to be clear, I'm not saying that you're all those things, just that one could get that impression 😉

If you don't want to be part of the Irish nation or be part of wider Irish society (except as a leech and sponger), would you ever just f*ck off to a deserted island somewhere? That way no "outsiders" will be able to "suck you dry" and you can live the perfect dog-in-a-manger solitary life.