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The Green Party welcomed today's news
that Richard Branson and Al Gore have launched a competition to
remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but cautioned against
relying solely on technology and other people to solve the problem
of climate change. The proposed competition will award a cash prize
of $25m – just over €19m – to the first person to come up with the
most innovative solution for absorbing and storing CO2.
Green Party Environment
spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe TD said: "We welcome any initiative
aimed at tackling climate change, particularly one that has the
backing of Al Gore and Richard Branson, but this should not lead to
complacency. There is a danger that people might assume that the
critical problem of climate change can be solved with a quick-fix
solution that is just around the corner.
"This competition should not
distract people from the immediate need to reduce emissions, both in
Ireland and globally. We must look at this as one aspect of tackling
climate change, rather than as a possible cure-all solution.
"It is of the utmost important that governments, individuals and the
private sector play their part in the emissions challenge. This
means promoting cleaner fuels and renewable energy, investing in
clean, efficient transports solutions and improving the energy
efficiency of the buildings we live and work in.
"We welcome technological solutions
to reducing carbon emissions already in our atmosphere, but we
believe our main policy focus should rest firmly on reducing
Ireland's current rate of emissions and breaking our economy's
reliance on fossil fuels," Deputy Cuffe concluded. |
CiaranCuffe.com,
or Text Ciaran on 087 265 2075.