Dail gives unanimous backing to bill to ban fracking

Dáil gives unanimous backing to Bill to ban fracking
Hailed as historic first step to fossil free future

Friends of the Earth has hailed the passing of a Bill to ban fracking in the Dáil tonight as "an historic first step towards a fossil free future". At 7.20pm the Ceann Comhairle noted that the Dáil had "unanimously" agreed the second stage of Tony McLoughlin's private members bill and referred it to a select committee for detailed scrutiny. The decision came on the same day the Dáil voted to ratify the Paris Agreement which comes into force next week.

Commenting, Deputy Director of Friends of the Earth, Kate Ruddock said:

"This isn't just a crucial step towards banning fracking, it is an historic first step towards a fossil free future for Ireland.

"It's a tribute to the local campaigners who have worked long and hard to raise concerns about fracking, to their democratic representatives who have responded to those concerns, and to the 2,500 people who emailed their local TDs in the last week asking them to #BackTheBill.

"On the day the Dáil voted to ratify the Paris Agreement Ireland has, for the first time, decided to leave some fossil fuels in the ground unburned.

"We can only hope that today marks a turning point for Ireland towards sustained action to reduce climate pollution and secure a safe and healthy future for us all.

"We look forward to working with everyone who wants to make that vision a reality."

The Government had proposed an amendment to effectively delay the Bill by a year or more, but they withdrew that motion in the face of a unified support for the Bill from all sides of the house.

When it becomes law Tony McLoughlin's Bill will prohibit the extraction of oil and gas from areas where in Ireland where it would need to be fracked to be taken out of the ground such as the shale deposits across Sligo, Leitrim, Roscommon, Donegal, Cavan, Monaghan, Clare, Limerick, Cork and Kerry.

ENDS

You can download the Stop Climate Chaos briefing on what the Paris Agreement means for Ireland here: http://bit.ly/SCCParisR