An Energy 2019 event , point at horticultural growers , took seat Wednesday 3 April at Teagasc Ashtown , Dublin . The well attended seminar , which attracted bad-tempered - sectoral reenforcement from the industriousness , was design to inform , enlighten and encourage growers and stakeholder to improve Energy Department efficiency on their property . Developing an discernment of renewable energy technologies and how they mold up as sustainable suggestion were the main topics of the seminar .
photograph of some of the speakers at the case in Ashtown . L - R Stephen Alexander , Teagasc ; Paddy Phelan , 3CEA ; Annabel Finnegan , DAFM ; Dermot Callaghan , Teagasc ; Michelle Kearney , DAFM ; Barry Caslin , Teagasc ; Tommy O’Shea ( O’Shea Farms ) .
Michelle Kearney from the Department of Agriculture , Food and the Marine ( DAFM ) emphasised that increase on - farm energy efficiency was part of the climate change challenge . Ireland has set itself the target of 16 % of energy need fall from renewables by 2020 . Her Department is anxious to help the industry play its part in achieving this , by incentivising growers to invest in Energy Department saving devises via the Grant Aid Scheme .
Paddy Phelan of the 3 Counties Energy Agency outlined the welfare of installing solar panels and point out that the Government are keen to encourage householder and farmers with recently annunciate subsidisation schemes . However connecting to the grid is more problematic and may require legislation to be changed .
The virtues of the presently to be announced SSRH Renewable Heating Scheme were explicate by Barry Caslin , the Energy Specialist in Teagasc . This is a authorities system dispense by the SEAI and is to boost existing oil and gas fired boilers to be switched over to a renewable fuel rootage such as woodchip . New investment will also be eligible for assignment aid . Both solid biomass boiler and heat ticker are covered by the scheme .
Tommy O’Shea of O’Shea Farms explain to the hearing the quantity take on the farm to amend its environmental footprint by establishing reed beds and the footstep taken to reduce wasteland and increase recycling . A major energy rescue investing was begin in October 2015 with the installation of 960 solar panel on their packhouse roofs . The electrical energy bring forth avail to power their refrigerate building block with the surplus sold to the gridiron . The panels return about 208,000 kw annually – enough to power up to 40 homes .
Speaking at the event , Dermot Callaghan , Head of Teagasc Horticulture Development stated that “ when plan for this event , we need to make for together all the info source which are relevant today for those who are look at renewable energy investments . The gardening sphere stakeholder have a long history of being former adoptive parent in green technologies and they persist in to have an appetite for technologies which confer economic and environmental sustainability to their businesses . ”
For more information : TeagascTeagasc , Oak Park , Carlow R93 XE12Tel : +353 59 917 0200Fax : +353 59 918 2097[email protected]www.teagasc.ie
