Businesses and organisations in Co Galway are being encouraged by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to join more than 300 businesses throughout Ireland in using the recently developed Change.ie The carbon management tool will assist them in managing carbon, cutting costs and improving competitiveness.
The tool is a free online application, developed by the Change campaign as part of the Government’s commitment to tackling climate change and lowering carbon emissions. The Change.ie Carbon Management Tool will benefit all organisations, from corner shops, offices, and SMEs, to large manufacturing plants, all of whom can make considerable cost savings from a few hundred to thousands of euro.
Minister Gormley said “While the economic situation dominates most people’s thoughts these days, climate change is an issue which cannot and will not remain far from the agenda of government or business. Our economy is moving in a greener direction, the smart economy is a green economy.
“The Carbon Management Tool will provide the knowledge and the resources that can help businesses and organisations in Ireland learn that when you cut carbon, you cut costs. The tool demonstrates that taking measures to reduce your environmental impact need no longer be seen as a burden to business, but can be viewed as an opportunity to reduce operating costs and increase competitiveness while contributing to the challenge of tackling climate change.”
The biggest contributor to climate change is carbon dioxide, which mostly comes from burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas and peat ). Much of what we do involves the use of energy generated through burning these fossil fuels, so the way we live, work and travel has a huge bearing on climate change.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, industrial and commercial activity in 2007 accounted for 17.9 per cent of total greenhouse gas emission, indicating the important role Irish business has in Ireland’s impact on climate change. As part of our commitment to the Kyoto Protocol Ireland must reduce emissions to 13 per cent of 1990 levels by 2012 and must also contribute to an overall reduction of 20 per cent within the EU by 2020.
Signing up to using the Change.ie Carbon Management Tool is a first step for businesses and organisations in Ireland to make a contribution to reaching these targets.
For more information visit www.Change.ie or lo-call 1890 242 643.
