Draft policy statement on geothermal in Ireland open for consultation
Irish flag (source: flickr/ Iker Merodio, creative commons)
Carlo Cariaga
10 Jan 2022
The Government of Ireland is seeking public engagement and review of a Draft Policy Statement on the regulation and use of geothermal energy
The Department of the Environment, Climate, and Communications of Ireland has published a document called the “Draft Policy Statement on Geothermal Energy for a Circular Economy.” This documents aims to create a regulatory framework for the exploration and harnessing of geothermal energy in Ireland. Public consultation on these documents has been opened, and views and submissions will be accepted until 1 March 2022, 5:30 pm.
In compliance with EU Directives, the Draft Policy has undergone a Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment. This has yielded two more documents – the Environmental Report and Natura Impact Statement, accordingly. Both these documents are also open for public consultation.
Key stakeholders such as environmental groups, geoscientists, engineers, and potential sponsors and operators of geothermal energy projects are encouraged to participate.
The Draft Policy Statement is an important step in addressing the barriers of geothermal development in Ireland. It outlines the Department’s current thinking on principles that a future regulatory framework will need such as:
- Regulating the ownership of geothermal energy
- Creating a process for licensing the exploration for and harnessing of geothermal energy resources
- Creating a system of reporting on geothermal projects
- Integrating with existing environmental, health and safety, and planning regulatory frameworks
The final Policy Statement will followed a period of public consultation and set out a proposed regulatory framework informed by engagement with the public. All the documents open for public consultation are available thru this link.
Source: Government of Ireland
