The Minister for the Environment, Dick Roche, was due to introduce a bill in the Dáil today which he says will allow Ireland meet its Kyoto Protocol targets without hurting the economy.
However, the Opposition claims the Carbon Fund Bill is proof that the Government has failed to deal with greenhouse gas emissions.
Ireland is currently ten points above the greenhouse gas limit specified by the Kyoto Protocol, and statistics this week suggest the problem is getting worse.
The new bill will enable Ireland to buy credits for this over-production.
Mr Roche maintains that the Carbon Fund Bill, coupled with a €250m provision in the Budget, will help Ireland meet its Kyoto targets.
And he argues it is in line with the Kyoto principles, as the Irish money used to buy credits will assist developing countries to invest in clean technology.
But the Opposition claims taxpayers are going to have to fork out hundreds of millions of euro for the Government's failure to keep Ireland's emissions inside the Kyoto limit.
The environmental group GRIAN also claimed the bill has insufficient standards to ensure environmental integrity as well as corporate and social responsibility.
