I want to raise the issue of wind farms and the proposals to build them across rural Ireland. It has come to County Galway, where, right now, surrounding Tuam, there are four proposed wind farms. There are lots of issues with the wind farms. The turbines have become larger and higher. When the guidelines were introduced in 2006, the span of the blades was 50 m; now it is 186 m, and we still have the same distance from a house for the same type of turbine. Draft guidelines are in place but they do not have to be adhered to.

Second, let us take the places where they are being proposed, such as Belclare, in my area. It is right beside Knockma. A total of 120,000 to 130,000 people visit it every year and walk that hill and view the surrounding visual amenity that is there out onto Galway Bay. They will see these turbines facing them. In another place they are going into a bog, peatland. We cannot even cut the turf there, yet the proposal is to take out 14,000 cu. m of bog and put in 140 loads for every one turbine to set them up and to keep them structurally sound. There is something called the wake effect, which effectively means that wind comes back from the propellers. It is part of the whole system and it cools down the earth's surface such that grass will not be able to grow as well as it would normally for approximately 10 miles.

The other issue that is very worrying is that sulphur hexafluoride is being used in the turbines. The European Commission plans to ban that substance. It is so lethal that if it goes on fire, no fire brigade can go near it. If it spills out onto the ground, it will destroy the ground for thousands of years. It is a very small amount but all we need is one of the turbines to go on fire at any particular time. The EU recognises that this is a serious problem. It is bringing in new regulations that will commence sometime between 2026 and 2040 but in the meantime the turbines will keep using this gas.

The guidelines have been completely out of date since 2006. We have talked about new guidelines coming into being. The most significant issue, which the Tánaiste will recognise, is that communities are divided and up in arms as they are kept in the dark by the developers as to what is happening. This needs to be looked at. Can the Government not suspend the implementation of these wind farms until we get things right?

I appreciate the Deputy raising an important issue. More broadly, though, I have often reflected on how society has looked at these issues over the past 50 to 100 years. I recall the big protests about nuclear energy back in the 1970s-----

Dead right.

Dead right, but in the 1970s or 1980s there was never the same level of campaigning on fossil fuels. In fact, I can recall headlines in the 1970s and 1980s that we had struck oil as if it was a great panacea or achievement. We now know fossil fuels have been destroying the planet and have created an existential threat to the very survival of humankind. Yet, there was never the same agitation about that as there is about other aspects of renewables or even nuclear power. My problem with nuclear power is what to do with the waste. Over a 100-year lifespan, it has not been anywhere near as damaging as fossil fuels have been, not just in terms of climate but human health, what we breathe in, air quality and so on.

The move to renewables in Ireland has been very successful and effective in terms of the big picture and has led to a healthier atmosphere while also addressing the existential issue of climate change. It is an existential issue for us as humans and we should not understate that. We now have about 4.8 GW of onshore wind. We are a world leader in the levels of installed wind energy capacity per capita, as well as in the integration of variable renewable electricity onto the grid. Significant progress was made last year on a major programme to accelerate offshore and onshore renewable energy. The future is offshore energy. We had the first auction, the offshore renewable electricity support scheme, in May last year. A further round of auctions is due later this year. There will be a phased approach to offshore wind development. A task force has been established to drive that delivery.

I do not believe we should stall the development of onshore energy, but in time offshore will overtake onshore energy provision. The Deputy is correct on the guidelines. I acknowledge that the review has been ongoing for a number of years. It will address a number of key aspects, including noise, setback distance, shadow flicker, community obligation, community dividend and grid connections. The aim of the review is to strike an appropriate balance between the concerns of local communities while maintaining Ireland's ability to provide investment certainty. That includes bogland, biodiversity and walking areas. There are already requirements in terms of planning permissions around applications for wind farms and so on.

Nobody can deny that we need to move away from fossil fuels. We have the opportunity to do so by using solar on our roofs, which is less obtrusive and does not affect communities at large. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, described it as a roof revolution which would meet many of our targets.

Offshore energy is another area where we are lagging behind. We have the potential to become the new sheikhs of energy in the world by using the Atlantic, but we are lagging behind in trying to do that. Setting up task forces and all of that kind of thing is grand, but in the meantime I know of parents whose children will not look for or get planning permission near wind farms if they go ahead. We will do enormous damage to our communities. When I was in the Department, when we discussed the transition to greener energy we always spoke about the just transition. If the transition is not just, it should not happen. There is a huge onus on all of us to make sure that whatever innovation or new things come into play, they are tried and trusted and communities are not the people who suffer.

I thank the Deputy. I do not disagree with much of what he has said. The Climate Action Plan 2024 has set a revised timeline of quarter 4 of this year for the publication of the final wind guidelines and the Department is working towards meeting this commitment. It has to align with the new Planning and Development Bill 2023, which is currently undergoing the Oireachtas legislative process, and the ongoing review of the national planning framework. There will be a draft report, submissions will be sought from the public and so on.

In the first six months of 2023, emissions from electricity fell by 17% because of our renewables. In recent days, two thirds of our electricity was provided by renewable sources. It has been a success and very effective in transforming the situation. The Deputy is correct about the emphasis in the future being on offshore and solar energy. There will be some onshore. Some projects have been with An Bord Pleanála for the past two years and are awaiting decisions. I accept that the scale of the technology has escalated exponentially, which has impacts and will limit onshore development.