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€ 108 MILLION State funding for a rehabilitation plan for the Bord na Móna peatlands in the Midlands was approved by the Cabinet today.
The large restoration project will focus on 80,000 acres of BnM peatlands.
Its goal is to protect the 109 million tons of carbon stored in these peatlands and sequester another 3.2 million tons of carbon.
The government funding will come from the Climate Action Fund, which was created to finance projects that will help Ireland achieve its climate and energy goals.
Bord na Móna will also invest another 18 million euros in the project. The plan will immediately create 310 engineering, technical and operational jobs.
Many of the people employed as part of this will be former BnM peat collectors.
- Our colleagues at Noteworthy want to know why the authorities have not addressed unlicensed industrial peat extraction. See how you can support this project here.
Environment and Climate Minister Eamon Ryan described the funding as an “important milestone.”
“Wetland rehabilitation and remediation is a wonderful example of Just Transition in action, where workers who previously harvested peat for power generation will now be custodians of our wetlands,” he said.
This project will turn carbon sources into sinks, restore biodiversity, and help us meet our climate goals.
Bórd na Móna CEO Tom Donnellan said it was a “great victory for Ireland’s progress on climate action.”
Large-scale operations are to start from April next year as part of the plan.
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Peat harvesting stopped in the Bórd na Móna peatlands in June this year when the company moved towards its rehabilitation plan.
Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice said today that farmers in neighboring peatlands should be consulted “to ensure there are no negative impacts on their land as a result of the rehabilitation process.”
He said the funding announcement is “very welcome” but added that this “common sense approach” to consulting farmers could “avoid any potential problems that arise in the future.”
Financing offers for a total value of € 27.8 million were also made today for 47 projects in the Midlands under the Just Transition Fund.
The offers were made to companies, local authorities and communities in the region that are focused on creating a green economy.
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