SDG 13.1.1 Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population currently has no available national source.
The CSO Environment and Climate division began working with Met Eireann in 2018 on a historical data rescue project of daily meteorological data for Ireland. The CSO has keyed daily data from 1880-1959 for seven stations. The extended daily time series will have many uses, including an analysis of exceptional weather events in Ireland e.g. droughts, storms, very wet periods. In conjunction with this work, CSO Environment and Climate division has compiled an initial inventory of exceptional events using internet searches and media sources. This work has been informed through participation in a UNECE Task Force on Measuring Hazardous Events and Disasters. When the inventory has been checked and completed, the next stage will be to attempt to calculate the costs of each event by analysing media and insurance reports. This bottom-up approach will result in nationally compiled estimates of the financial impact of events caused by exceptional weather patterns.
These data are regarded as Tier 2 in the UNSDG Indicators Tier Classification (See Background Notes). Data in Tier 2 indicate data which are not regularly produced by countries.
The following information is provided in the UN SDG 13.1.1 metadata document:
This indicator measures the number of people who died, went missing or were directly affected by disasters per 100,000 population.
Death: The number of people who died during the disaster, or directly after, as a direct result of the hazardous event.
Missing: The number of people whose whereabouts is unknown since the hazardous event. It includes people who are presumed dead, for whom there is no physical evidence such as a body, and for which an official/legal report has been filed with competent authorities.
Directly affected: The number of people who have suffered injury, illness or other health effects; who were evacuated, displaced, relocated or have suffered direct damage to their livelihoods, economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets.
Indirectly affected are people who have suffered consequences, other than or in addition to direct effects, over time, due to disruption or changes in economy, critical infrastructure, basic services, commerce or work, or social, health and psychological consequences.
The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 was adopted by UN member states in March 2015 as a global policy of disaster risk reduction. Among the global targets, “Target A: Substantially reduce global disaster mortality by 2030, aiming to lower the average per 100,000 global mortality between 2020-2030 compared with 2005-2015” and “Target B: Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally by 2030, aiming to lower the average global figure per 100,000 between 2020-2030 compared with 2005-2015” will contribute to sustainable development and strengthen economic, social, health and environmental resilience. The economic, environmental and social perspectives would include poverty eradication, urban resilience, and climate change adaptation.
The open-ended intergovernmental expert working group (OIEWG) on indicators and terminology relating to disaster risk reduction established by the General Assembly (resolution 69/284) has developed a set of indicators to measure global progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework, which was endorsed by the UNGA (OIEWG report A/71/644). The relevant global indicators for the Sendai Framework will be used to report for this indicator.
Disaster loss data is greatly influenced by large-scale catastrophic events, which represent important outliers. UNISDR recommends countries report the data by event, so that complementary analysis can be undertaken to obtain trends and patterns in which such catastrophic events (that can represent outliers) can be included or excluded.
The Sendai Framework data readiness review - Global summary report reviews the availability of data in Ireland to report against the indicators recommended to measure the global targets of the Sendai Framework, and identify current gaps.
SDG 13.1.2 Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 currently has no available national source.
The UN SDG metadata repository gives information in the SDG 13.1.2 metadata document as follows:
An open-ended intergovernmental expert working group on indicators and terminology relating to disaster risk reduction established by the General Assembly (resolution 69/284) is developing a set of indicators to measure global progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework. These indicators will eventually reflect the agreements on the Sendai Framework indicators.
The indicator will build a bridge between the SDGs and the Sendai Framework for DRR. Increasing number of national governments that adopt and implement national and local DRR strategies, which the Sendai Framework calls for, will contribute to sustainable development from economic, environmental and social perspectives.
The National Adaptation Framework (NAF) sets out the national strategy to reduce the vulnerability of Ireland to the negative effects of climate change and to avail of positive impacts.
The NAF builds on the work already carried out under the National Climate Change Adaptation Framework (NCCAF, 2012). The NAF outlines a whole of government and society approach to climate adaptation in Ireland. Under the NAF a number of Government Departments will be required to prepare sectoral adaptation plans in relation to a priority area that they are responsible for. Work on these plans began in 2018. Local authorities are required to prepare local adaptation strategies. The NAF will be reviewed at least once every five years. The NAF also aims to improve the enabling environment for adaptation through ongoing engagement with civil society, the private sector and the research community.
To prepare for the impacts of climate change, the 2018 NAF required 12 priority sectors to prepare five year sectoral adaptation plans and each local authority is required to have a local adaptation strategy in place. Sectoral Planning Guidelines for Climate Change Adaptation (DCCAE, 2018b) and Local Authority Adaptation Strategy Development Guidelines (DCCAE, 2018c) were published by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment (DECC) to guide the development of these plans and strategies. Nine sectoral adaptation plans for 12 priority sectors were published in 2019.
On the 19 January 2018 The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Denis Naughten T.D. published Ireland’s first statutory NAF and announced funding of €10m to establish local authority regional climate action offices, see press release.
The CAROs are a new and important layer in the climate governance structure. The offices support local authorities as they prepare their local climate adaptation strategies and they will be a key structure in furthering their implementation, as well as in local adaptation and mitigation research, communications and behavioural change, training and education.
Easy access to the most up-to-date data, information and tools is essential for effective adaptation planning. Climate Ireland is the national web-based resource of up-to-date and fit-for-purpose climate and adaptation information and tools. Climate Ireland provides this service for local, regional and sectoral decisionmakers in line with the published adaptation strategy development guidelines.
Climate Ireland also plays a key role in increasing awareness of and building capacity for adaptation planning through one-to-one support and the provision of tailored adaptation planning workshops, training and seminars.
Initiatives such as Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly climate module and the National Dialogue on Climate Action highlight the benefits of citizen engagement and collaborative approaches to developing recommendations and solutions to the national climate emergency.
This report reviews the availability of data in Ireland to report against the indicators recommended to measure the global targets of the Sendai Framework, and identify current gaps.
SDG 13.1.3 Proportion of Local Governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies, was 100% for Ireland, according to data published on the UN SDG Global database for 2017. More information for SDG 13.1.3 is on the UN SDG Global database.
SDG 13.2.1 Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, is reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The UN SDG metadata repository gives information in the SDG 13.2.1 metadata document as follows:
The Paris Agreement requires each party to prepare, communicate and maintain successive nationally determined contributions (NDCs) including mitigation, adaptation and support measures. The Paris Agreement (Article 4, paragraph 2) requires each party to prepare, communicate and maintain successive nationally determined contributions (NDCs) that it intends to achieve. Parties shall pursue domestic mitigation measures, with the aim of achieving the objectives of such contributions.
Starting in 2023 and then every five years, governments will take stock of the implementation of the agreement to assess the collective progress towards achieving the purpose of the agreement and its long-term goals. The outcome of the global stocktake (GST) will inform the preparation of subsequent NDCs, in order to allow for increased ambition and climate action to achieve the purpose of the Paris Agreement and its long-term goals.
Official documents and registries, as reported by Parties to the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement, together with long term strategies and NAPS received by the UNFCCC secretariat, are published on NDC interim registry.
Adaptation communications will be recorded in the future in a public registry maintained by the secretariat. Until the finalization of the design of the registry, the adaptation communications received so far are available on the United Nations Climate Change website.
Ireland's first statutory National Adaptation Framework (NAF) was published on 19 January 2018. The NAF sets out the national strategy to reduce the vulnerability of the country to the negative effects of climate change and to avail of positive impacts. The NAF was developed under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015.
The NAF builds on the work already carried out under the National Climate Change Adaptation Framework (NCCAF, 2012). The NAF outlines a whole of government and society approach to climate adaptation in Ireland. It also aims to improve the enabling environment for adaptation through ongoing engagement with civil society, the private sector, and the research community.
SDG 13.2.2 Total greenhouse gas emissions per year is published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The European Environment Agency (EEA) publishes data for all countries in the EU.
The EPA published its provisional greenhouse gas emissions for Ireland for 2021 on 20 July, 2022.
The figures show an increase in emissions of 4.7% in 2021 compared to 2020 when COVID-19 restrictions had led to a significant lowering of emissions. In total in 2021, 61.53 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (Mt CO2eq) were emitted, with emissions 1.1% above 2019 pre COVID-19 restriction levels. The increase is mostly due to a significant increase in emissions from the energy industries sector due to a tripling of coal and oil use in electricity generation in 2021, with increases also seen in the agriculture and transport sectors.
The data show the scale of change needed within and across all sectors of Ireland’s economy to make sustained progress in reversing this trend and to meet our EU commitments and national greenhouse gas emission reduction targets.
Greenhouse gas emissions by sector are shown in Table 4.1 and Figure 4.1.
| % Share in 2021 | |
| Manufacturing | 7.47 |
| Industrial | 4 |
| Commercial | 1.33 |
| Agriculture | 37.54 |
| F-Gases | 1.2 |
| Residential | 11.44 |
| Transport | 17.73 |
| Energy Industries | 16.7 |
| Public Services | 1.08 |
| Waste | 1.52 |
Energy Industries: Sectoral emissions in the energy industries sector showed an increase of 17.6% in 2021, attributable to a tripling of both coal and fuel oil use in electricity generation. The consumption of peat has continued to decline, by 67% in 2021, and is currently at an all-time low within the power generation sector. There was also a reduction in natural gas use by 8.9% as some plants were offline for a time in 2021. Electricity generated from renewables fell from 42% in 2020 to 35%, due to low rainfall and less wind. This resulted in an increase in the emissions intensity of power generation by 11.9% in 2021 to 331g CO2/kWh compared with 296g CO2/kWh in 2020.
Agriculture: Agriculture emissions in 2021 were 23.1 Mt CO2eq, an increase of 3% on 2020. Agricultural emissions did not reduce during COVID-19 restrictions. The most significant drivers for the rise in emissions in 2021 were increased use of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser use of 5.2% and higher dairy cow numbers of 2.8% with an increase in milk production of 5.5%.
This is the 11th consecutive year that dairy cow numbers rose. Milk output per cow also increased (by 2.5%), therefore increased production was driven by a rise in livestock numbers in conjunction with an increase in milk yield per cow. In 2021, total cattle numbers increased by 0.8%.
In 2021, liming on agricultural soils increased by 49.5%, a welcome measure in improving soil fertility, which should lead to a reduction in fertiliser nitrogen use in future years.
Residential: Greenhouse gas emissions in the residential sector were 7.04 Mt CO2eq in 2021 and decreased by 4.9% or 0.36 Mt CO2eq compared to 2020. However, emissions in 2020 had risen as a result of increased working from home. Emissions are now 2.8% above pre-pandemic levels in this sector. A combination of warmer weather, rising fuel prices towards the end of the year and an easing of COVID-19 restrictions contributed to substantial reductions in coal, peat and kerosene use for home heating. However, since 2014, fuel use per household has increased by 12% with CO2 emissions per household at 3.8t CO2 in 2021.
Transport: Increases in traffic volumes during 2021 as COVID-19 restrictions lifted resulted in a 6.1% rise in transport emissions. Emissions had fallen significantly in the transport sector in 2020 as a result of COVID-19 restrictions. Emissions in this sector remain 10.5% below pre-pandemic levels, and it is unclear if they will rebound fully to that level. Road transport emissions increased from 9.7 Mt CO2eq in 2020 to 10.3 Mt CO2eq in 2021. At the end of 2021, there were just under 47,000 battery electric (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric (PHEVs) vehicles in Ireland, approximately 24% of the Climate Action Plan target for 2025 of 195,300 and ahead of a linear uptake trajectory towards that target.
Land-Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULULCF): Comprising of six land use categories (forest land, cropland, grassland, wetlands, settlements and other land) and harvested wood products. When included in national total emissions this sector accounts for 11.2% of the total emissions in 2021. The sector is a net source of CO2 eq emissions in all years 1990-2021. The main source of emissions is the drainage of grasslands on organic soils and the exploitation of wetlands for peat extraction. Forest land and harvested wood products are a carbon sink (CO2 removal) for all years 1990-2021 although the carbon sink associated with forest land is on a declining trend due to the age profile of existing forests and a declining afforestation trend.
International Aviation: In 2021, total international aviation contributed 1.3 Mt CO2 from over 52,500 return flights from Irish airports, a significant reduction on recent trends, with international aviation emissions averaging over 3.0 Mt CO2eq per year prior to COVID-19 pandemic. Although not part of Ireland’s total greenhouse gas emissions by international agreement, this is a significant reduction in greenhouse gases being emitted into the atmosphere.
Full detail on the greenhouse gas emission inventory 1990 to 2021 is available on the EPA website and the EPA greenhouse gas web resource is also available online.
Provisional greenhouse gas emissions data from 2010 to 2021 are shown in Table 4.2 and Figure 4.2.
| Year | Energy Industries | Residential | Manufacturing Combustion | Transport | Industrial Processes | Agriculture |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 11952.7472805217 | 6688.71323083644 | 4309.62958444172 | 11810.5436378081 | 2007.47698679567 | 20925.1371489568 |
| 2016 | 12675.4123615655 | 6970.56291335985 | 4367.38547044239 | 12292.5618990823 | 2150.62323411482 | 21481.6372916767 |
| 2017 | 11907.5581126456 | 6592.22299098494 | 4503.76122481207 | 12013.6713265461 | 2238.59008692489 | 22195.5467175826 |
| 2018 | 10647.2506824834 | 7083.77981537266 | 4719.44597681779 | 12188.5369875186 | 2294.9132906102 | 23053.3724700889 |
| 2019 | 9437.34906552514 | 6845.96905125461 | 4624.79247251835 | 12196.072518186 | 2266.98598653841 | 22134.3089990191 |
| 2020 | 8737.64570094834 | 7400.44180722983 | 4551.96798715032 | 10285.228610621 | 2106.63970510499 | 22431.4905952475 |
| 2021 | 10272.1759866852 | 7039.63244227456 | 4593.44642972947 | 10911.5518828204 | 2459.84060261357 | 23096.8101812061 |
Further information on greenhouse gas emissions can be seen in the Environmental Accounts Air Emissions releases, which are published by the CSO, Environment and Climate division.
Data published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) is presented here. More detailed information is available on the EEA website.
In 2020, Ireland ranked the thirteenth highest out of the EU member states in terms of its total greenhouse gas emissions, at 57,716 kt CO2 equivalent. Malta had the lowest total greenhouse gas emissions at 2,122 kt CO2 equivalent, while Germany ranked the highest at 728,738 kt CO2 equivalent. See Table 4.3 and Map 4.1.
Ireland had the second highest emissions of greenhouse gases per capita in the EU in 2020, at 11.58 tonnes CO2 equivalent, behind Luxembourg at 14.38 tonnes CO2 equivalent.
The countries with the lowest greenhouse gas emissions per capita in the EU were Malta and Sweden with 4.12 and 4.47 tonnes CO2 equivalent, respectively. See Table 4.4 and Map 4.2.
Please note that on the 19th of October 2022 an error was identified and updated in Table 4.4, Map 4.2 and in the map of the infographic. The units are tonnes CO2 equivalent, not kilo tonnes CO2 equivalent.
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