You may not yet be thinking of your next Christmas tree but some people believe that Christmas tree production may be at the heart of sustainable land management while others are concerned that the effects of climate change are starting to impact growing conditions and could cause shortage next year. Looking at trees more broadly, an article in The Irish Times describes the “lungs of Belfast”, noting how ‘having good woodlands around the city is vital’ and giving a good description of the work of a number of agencies in our locality. Writing in The Irish News, John Manley weighs the horticultural opportunities against the threats.
Our local experience of climate change is reflected in the current cold snap – quite in contrast to BBC’s report that Christmas Eve was the warmest on record in Northern Ireland. This was just one of the distinctions of 2024 – a year in which April rainfall 41% above average and sunshine at 80% of typical, according to the BelfastTelegraph. A thorough analysis of 2024’s weather can be found in MetÉireann’s Annual Climate Statement for 2024. BBC also published an end-of-year article with a grim summary of the extreme weather that challenged billions last year.
A recent projection of weather-patterns likely to be experienced in Ireland is summarised in a video and published as Research 472: Updated High-resolution Climate Projections for Ireland by the Environmental Protection Agency. Its findings indicate that temperatures are to increase by 3° in this century, with greatest increases in the east as Ireland has wetter winters and dryer summers. Some meteorologists anticipate that AI will contribute to forecasting, even if AI has to compute the effect of its own demand for energy.
Join the Dots Together’s September “Land and Lough” Forum and Louise Taylor’s address highlighted the critical condition of Lough Neagh. At the beginning of December, Spotlight – The Sewage Scandal portrayed the sad fate of our watercourses and, as the month went on, we read reports of NI Water’s being fined after being found guilty of pollution through breaches that NI Water admits happen “hundreds of times each year” and contribute to ‘unsafe’ bathing waters. Louise Cullen – who hosted our September forum wrote in December how the plight of loughs and rivers dominates environment news, her observations underlined when Gerry Darby, the manager of the Lough Neagh Partnership, raised again the question of water rates in Northern Ireland in an article in The Guardian. Dim prospects for 2025 are echoed as we read that Lough Neagh’s blue-green algae pollution could be “even more severe this summer”.
Aware of the care needed to preserve and enhance water quality, we realise how the quality of our air should also be a concern as the recently declassified files tell us that Kilroot power station was pumping out half a million kilos of deadly particulates each year. Thankfully, there is positive news in the air too, as our knowlege of how to avail of wind energy increases; we look forward to finding a site relating to Northern Ireland that presents data on wind energy – if you know of one, we will be glad to learn of it. Richard Murphy of Pinsent Masons tells The Belfast Telegraph that we are halfway to our 2030 energy-from-renewables target.
Some companies report positive developments such as the completion of a feasibility study for cutting-edge magnet rare earth recycling facility in Belfast and Magherafelt-based Henry Brothers being recognised for its commitment to sustainability. The Irish News describes how sustainability has taken centre stage at Vyta, a company that has collected, recycled and processed over 738,000 devices, preventing the release of almost 16,300 tonnes of Co2 emissions.
It sometimes takes resolve and committment to continue to try to join the dots by living in a way that remains engaged and connected; we don’t often see the effects of our actions. It is heartening to read Peter Heaney, who heads up Trócaire in NI, write that Trócaire says support from the people of Belfast has saved countless lives.