Taoiseach Micheál Martin has warned that time is running out to take action on climate change and that the delivery of pledges needs to be accelerated.
Speaking after arriving at the COP27 Climate Conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Mr Martin said that for Ireland, this would mean the delivery of offshore wind targets.
He added that other measures include biodiversity, environmentally friendly farming and the retrofitting of houses and buildings.
There has been a massive increase in applications for retrofitting grants in Ireland and this shows a change in people's behaviour, he said.
The Taoiseach also said that Ireland will commit to €225m by 2025 to support the most vulnerable countries.
He said developing countries need other countries to deliver on their promises and Ireland will do so.
The UN's COP27 climate summit got under way yesterday with warnings against backsliding on efforts to cut emissions and calls for rich nations to compensate poor countries after a year of extreme weather disasters.
Speaking this evening, Mr Martin said that Ireland has laid the foundations to tackle climate change but things need to be turned around quicker.
"Climate change impacts are accelerating, we need to move faster to change behaviour and in Ireland that means issues like offshore wind, more public transport, electric vehicles, greater retrofitting of housing and more environmentally friendly farming and we're doing all of that funded by the carbon tax," he said.
Mr Martin said that climate change targets have been set for every sector of the economy and Ireland is still on target to have 80% of electricity generated by wind by 2030.
Mr Martin is to outline Ireland's climate priorities over the next two days while attending the summit.
The priorities include a commitment to scale-up the country's contribution to international climate finance, as well as resolute support for progress to be made on compensation for loss and damage caused by climate change to vulnerable countries.
Mr Martin said events like COP27 help focus the minds of governments.
Writing on social media following his arrival, Mr Martin said the next few days were important, adding that many countries who contribute least to climate change are bearing the brunt of its impact.
"Leaders have a responsibility to drive climate delivery, and a sustainable future for our planet and people alike," he said.
Mr Martin attended a working breakfast on the "Global Shield Against Climate Risks" with the President of Ghana Nana Akufo Addo, and German Chancellor Olaf Schulz.
Mr Martin was also due to attend high-level events and meetings on food security and the impact climate change has on the sustainability of poorer communities.
Just arrived at #COP27 in Sharm El- Sheikh. Important few days ahead.
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) November 7, 2022
Many countries who contribute least to climate change are bearing the brunt of its impact.
Leaders have a responsibility to drive climate delivery - and a sustainable future for our planet and people alike. pic.twitter.com/zJfBZo9Dg1
He will deliver Ireland's formal statement to COP27 tomorrow afternoon.
The conference in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh comes in a fraught year marked by Russia's war on Ukraine, an energy crunch, soaring inflation and the lingering effects from the Covid pandemic.
Read more:
What is COP27 and what are the environmental aims?
What the latest IPCC science says about climate change
But Simon Stiell, the UN's climate change executive secretary, said he would not be a "custodian of backsliding" on the goal of slashing greenhouse emissions 45% by 2030 to cap global warming at 1.5C above late-19th-century levels.
"We will be holding people to account, be they presidents, prime ministers, CEOs," Mr Stiell said as the 13-day summit opened.
"The heart of implementation is everybody everywhere in the world every single day doing everything they possibly can to address the climate crisis," he said.
