Category Archives: Energy

Making the Transition to a Low Carbon Society in the Western Region— Key issues for rural dwellers.

Posted on August 5, 2020 by WDC Insights

The transition to a low carbon economy is one of many challenges facing the Western Region and Ireland at this point in time.  Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, today launched the Western Development Commission (WDC) report … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Energy, low carbon, Rural Development, Rural Transport | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Challenges and interventions for transitioning to renewable heat in rural homes

Posted on February 27, 2020 by WDC Insights

To reduce the carbon footprint of our rural homes, the decarbonisation of the energy used for heat is essential. We have to switch to renewable energy, either electrical (generated from wind, solar or in future ocean energy) or bioenergy (e.g. … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, low carbon, renewable, Rural Development, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Changes in electricity generation and supply—some impacts for rural dwellers

Posted on January 17, 2020 by WDC Insights

As we move towards a lower carbon society one of the key trends will be increased electrification and using renewable electricity to fuel our heat and transport.  This will involve very significant changes in how we consume and are supplied … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Electricity, renewable, Rural Development | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

What do we know about electricity consumption in rural households?

Posted on January 13, 2020 by WDC Insights

The way we use electricity in our rural homes, and the opportunities for change, are important considerations for how we to transition to low carbon living.   Unlike heat and transport, there are few significant differences between urban and rural dwellers … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Electricity, low carbon, renewable, Rural Development | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Rural Journeys and Travel: what do we know about the Western Region?

Posted on December 19, 2019 by WDC Insights

Rural people are more reliant on car based transport, they have less available public transport and tend to travel greater distances.  Rural dwellers’ transport and travel patterns need to be central to our climate action planning. There must be detailed … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, renewable, Transport | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Energy efficient homes in the Western Region: some thoughts on retrofit.

Posted on November 8, 2019 by WDC Insights

The government target of improving home energy efficiency through the retrofitting of 500,000 buildings by 2030 (see the Climate Action Plan 2019) is ambitious.  It is therefore useful to look at the retrofits in more depth, and consider the target … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Economy, Electricity, Energy, renewable, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Low carbon transition for Western Region homes- what’s the base line?

Posted on October 24, 2019 by WDC Insights

One of the most important elements of the transition to a low carbon rural region will be emissions reduction from homes in the Western Region by improving energy efficiency and switching to renewable energy sources for heating in particular (as … Continue reading →

Posted in Carbon Tax, Climate Action, Economic Sectors, Energy, Regional Statistics, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Climate Action and Rural Dwellers- What’s happening?

Posted on October 11, 2019 by WDC Insights

There is no significant body of work (internationally or nationally) on climate change and emissions issues for rural areas and yet there are important differences in energy use patterns and emissions (read more discussion on this here). This post gives … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Energy, Regional policy | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Carbon Tax: Use of revenue to address climate action issues in rural areas

Posted on July 2, 2019 by WDC Insights

The WDC made a submission to the Department of Finance Consultation on the options for the use of revenues raised from increases in carbon tax. A detailed consultation paper was prepared by the Tax Division of the Department of Finance … Continue reading →

Posted in Carbon Tax, Climate Action, Energy, Regional policy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Energy and Climate Action- the WDC View of the Draft National Plan

Posted on February 19, 2019 by WDC Insights

The Western Development Commission (WDC) has just made a submission to DCCAE on the Draft National Energy and Climate Plan 2012-2030 (NECP).  The development of clear energy and climate action to 2030 is essential to achieving the national goal of … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Action, Energy, Regional policy, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment