Vote “No” – reject the abolition of the Seanad, demand reform

29 September 2013: The Environmental Pillar calls for a “No” vote in the Seanad referendum, and demands the reform of the Seanad rather than its abolition. “Abolishing the Seanad leaves us to the mercy of professional politicians and uncontrollable Government majorities. The Government’s promised political reforms are far from clear or assured. We are being […]

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Press Release: Reject the Abolition of the Seanad, Demand Reform

The Environmental Pillar calls for a “No” vote in the Seanad referendum, and demands the reform of the Seanad rather than its abolition. “Abolishing the Seanad leaves us to the mercy of professional politicians and uncontrollable Government majorities. The Government’s promised political reforms are far from clear or assured. We are being forced to “buy […]

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IPCC's Fifth Assessment Report is a bleak reminder of Government's inaction on climate change

27 September 2013: In light of the shocking Fifth Assessment Report released by the IPCC today, the Environmental Pillar is demanding that the government take urgent action to meet the biggest challenge of our time. Environmental Pillar spokesperson Michael Ewing said: “Ireland and other high-income OECD countries must take responsibility for ambitious emissions reductions by […]

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Your future, your environment, your health, your decision – what the Aarhus Convention means for you

Environmental Pillar press release, 24 September 2013 Every person has the right to a healthy environment, and the right to protect it – rights that have recently been recognised by Irish and international law. That’s the Environmental Pillar’s message at the National Ploughing Championships this week. ‘Members of the public now have their human rights […]

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Environmental Pillar questions credibility of sustainability report on Food Harvest 2020

16 September 2013: The Environmental Pillar, a coalition of 26 national environmental groups, is casting serious doubts on the findings of a report commissioned by the Minister for Agriculture on the environmental impacts of Food Harvest 2020. The Environmental Pillar is calling for a commitment from government to re-assess its Food Harvest 2020 policy which […]

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No basis for Minister’s decision to get rid of packaging levy and container deposit return scheme

12 September 2013: The Environmental Pillar is extremely disappointed at Environment Minister Phil Hogan’s announcement today that he will not go ahead with either a packaging levy or a container deposit and return scheme. ‘We’re very disappointed at the Minister’s decision,’ said Mindy O’Brien, spokesperson for the Environmental Pillar. ‘A properly constructed packaging levy won’t […]

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Urgent action: ask our MEPs to support mandatory environmental impact assessments for fracking

In just 2 days time, the Plenary Assembly of the European Parliament will make its final vote on the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive. This is a crucial opportunity to convince our MEPs to support proposed amendments that will make environmental impact assessments mandatory for proposed fracking operations across the EU. Earlier this year, the Parliament’s Environment, […]

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Submission on National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development

The Environmental Pillar welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Development of a National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development in Ireland. We offer the following comments which we believe will be helpful in developing an holistic National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development. The incorporation of sustainability into all aspects of life is essential, […]

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Local environmantal reps meet to discuss Local Government Realignment

The Environmental Pillar held a meeting of its Local Environmental Representatives in Dublin on Saturday to discuss the proposed Local Government realignment. The well attended meeting was opened by Michael Ewing, Co-ordinator of the Environmental Pillar. Maura Walsh, CEO of IRD Duhallow also addressed the meeting and gave a presentation on the work of IRD […]

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