Engagement with the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to healthy environment

Even as weather warnings and floods have been at the forefront of public consciousness of late, where is the Irish Government’s political will and sense of urgency to address the climate emergency? Why is our economic model extractive and favourable to corporate powers and not public needs? These are the key themes that emerged from the roundtable discussion that Friends of the Earth and a range of civil society organisations had with Astrid Puentes Riaño, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. 

We were delighted to host Astrid, alongside civil society partners, at the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission on February 10th. Her visit is a timely reminder that climate change is not abstract, it affects daily lives, health, and livelihoods, and disproportionately impacts those already experiencing poverty. 

Friends of the Earth & other CSOs meeting the UN Special Rapporteur on February 10

 

A Special Rapporteur is an independent expert appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to examine and report back on a country situation or a specific human rights theme. During her country visit to Ireland, Astrid heard from multiple civil society organisations (CSOs), met with Government officials and academics, as well as made relevant site visits. 

Astrid identified best practices and challenges relating to the mandate of the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. In addition to an exit statement she presented at a recent press conference in Dublin, Astrid will also be presenting a report on her visit to Ireland to the UN Human Rights Council in March 2027. 

Read the UN Special Rapporteur’s end of mission statement at the conclusion of her Ireland visit 

The roundtable discussion on February 10th was a central opportunity for CSOs to share key testimonies, insights and challenges pertaining to pressing climate justice issues in Ireland with the UN Special Rapporteur. A major cross-cutting theme that emerged during the discussion was the issue of corporate capture in Ireland, and how the Irish Government prioritises big businesses and private profits over public needs, at the expense of climate obligations. 

Friends of the Earth’s campaign calling on the Government to place a moratorium on new data centre developments is interlinked with this overarching issue, as it’s about ensuring that the Government prioritises fossil fuel phaseout and public good over corporate profit. Data centres already consume more than 20% of Ireland’s electricity - they consume a whopping 50% of electricity in the Dublin and Meath regions - with forecasts suggesting this could rise to 30% by 2030. The diversion of energy resources into the energy-intensive corporate infrastructure without a clearly articulated public good raises serious questions of energy justice—about the Government prioritising Big Tech over people. 

An interlinked theme that was discussed was that of the obscured and outsized role Ireland plays in enabling fossil fuel investments that fuels the climate crisis and deepens human rights violations across the globe. Irish-based subsidiaries of investment companies held €31.76 billion in fossil fuel investments as of June 2024, putting Ireland 14th globally in terms of fossil fuel investment by manager location. In 2023, such investments generated roughly 73 million tons of CO2.

Another key issue linked to corporate capture in Ireland is the Government’s plans to approve legislation that would prevent any limits to passenger numbers at the Dublin Airport. CSOs pointed out that aviation is not included in carbon law and carbon budgets, and that there is no ‘polluter pays’ condition in Ireland. This also brings into question the obligation of the Government to protect the welfare and rights of children and future generations as the scrapping of the airport passenger caps enables more aviation pollution to be produced, at a time when rapid and effective emissions reductions are essential to limit climate harms.

The Government's planned legislation on Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), which will allow a €900 million LNG reserve to be built in Clare, is another key issue that was highlighted by the CSOs. The Government’s proposed LNG Bill risks locking Ireland into dirty fracked gas from the United States for years to come. While Ireland banned fracking in 2017 due to the dire impact fracking has on the environment and health, it’s now essentially allowing fracking to happen elsewhere and import the same into the country. 

The manner in which Darragh O’Brien, Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, attempted to rush through approval for this gas reserve, as well as the lack of sufficient public consultation on this legislation, are reflective of wider concerns around the expediting and skipping of pre-legislative scrutiny of other critical pieces of legislation, CSOs shared. 

There was no public consultation ahead of the site in Clare being selected for the proposed state-led LNG development, also referred to as the ‘Strategic Gas Emergency Reserve’. A public information event was announced after the site announcement was made, and this gave the public less than 24 hours’ notice ahead of the information event.

Concerns were raised by CSOs that introducing LNG and expanding fossil fuels in Ireland are at odds with our climate and human rights obligations, especially at a time when Ireland is set to miss its legally binding emissions-cut target by half. This failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 will mean Ireland will be liable for fines as high as €28 billion. 

Some of the other issues and concerns that were raised by CSOs at the roundtable include:

• Ireland turning away from the carbon budgets in the Paris agreement towards a temperature neutrality measurement, which would push Ireland further into taking more of its fair share of carbon budgets. 
• Tax justice in Ireland. 
• Corporate capture being institutionalised through EU level, giving the private sector a veto power over legislation. 
• Threats to access to justice - such as through the proposals for a cap on judicial review payments which might cause significant legal fees to applicants (which is not reflected in the same way with the Government's legal costs). The other proposal is for judicial reviews to be reduced to eight weeks from the current 12 weeks. The fear is that there will be fewer challenges to unlawful decisions. 
• Mineral extraction and mining. 
• Energy poverty. 
• Irish aid actively considering carbon markets.

CSOs pointed out that these issues, as well as the reality of Ireland’s extractive and corporate friendly economic model, are in flagrant contradiction of the narratives espoused by the Irish Government being a global actor on solidarity and climate change. CSOs raised that the Government needs to be challenged on this discordance between Ireland’s extractive, corporate friendly economic model and its position on human rights and solidarity in the global stage. A consensus emerged that there is a need to transform our economic systems so that they are compatible with planetary boundaries, as well as conducive to a fairer world. 

We're grateful that Astrid took the time to listen to our concerns and engage in conversations around these key issues. The Special Rapporteur’s mandate on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, and her visit to Ireland, provided an unparalleled opportunity to explore environmental issues within a human rights and justice framework.

The roundtable was also a reminder that the climate movement is expanding beyond traditional environmental activism. Organisations representing people with disabilities, women, children, community groups etc. came together to highlight shared experiences and the impact of climate change, particularly on the most vulnerable. This was especially powerful for us, as it showed the growing solidarity across Ireland and reinforced the urgent need for inclusive, people-centred climate action.

Friends of the Earth had also made a submission in advance of Astrid’s visit wherein we focused on four key environmental and climate challenges: Ireland’s emissions trajectory, fossil fuel phaseout, data centres and energy poverty. 

Read our submission to the UN Special Rapporteur