Date: 25 Jun 2021
Update on National Demonstration Project for Decarbonisation Zones.
Action 165 of the National Climate Action Plan also identified Portlaoise as a National Demonstration Project for Decarbonisation Zones.
The Climate Section of Laois County Council are responsible for developing this project. Initial work focussed on the establishment of baseline emissions which was completed with consultancy support and established that emissions from the town amounted to 100,000 tonnes per annum.
To advance the concept of a Low Carbon Town, the Council established a Low Carbon Implementation Group to address implementation challenges and opportunities in Portlaoise. The establishment of the group provides an opportunity to promote and demonstrate the ongoing work of individual stakeholders at a local level and to show how the partners working together can deliver on existing and proposed targets.
The group is comprised of representatives from the public and private sector including academia, energy, health, retail, transport and functions as a delivery and implementation network with agreed actions showing leadership at a local level. The Council is also creating a culture of change through community engagement and community activation with various groups such as Portlaoise Sustainable Energy Community, Laois Partnership, Tidy Towns, Portlaoise Town Team, Laois CLG, & Portlaoise RFC.
Projects will be delivered by the team to deliver the vision for Portlaoise in terms of reducing the impacts of car use on the public realm, improving overall air and environmental quality, encouraging more walking and cycling improvements and studies, and providing a better quality environment for leisure and social use.
The Council will be carrying out improvements to the Farmers Market and laneways within Portlaoise to make a shift to a more pedestrian-friendly access to the town centre. According to Donal Brennan, Director of Services at Laois County Council ‘reducing Carbon Footprint will require a series of interlinked actions involving the public sector, the private and commercial sector along with homeowners”.
For further information on this project, please contact Tadhg Madden at tmadden@laoiscoco.ie or https://laois.ie/about-the-council/climate-action/