Climate Action Act, 2015 (No. XVII of 2015)

This Act provides for action in order to contribute to the mitigation of climate change by limiting anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases and protecting and enhancing greenhouse gas sinks and reservoirs, and to contribute to the prevention, avoidance and reduction of the adverse impacts of climate change and the reduction of vulnerability, enhancement of resilience, and adaptation to the adverse effects of climate change. The Act establishes the duty of every person to take climate action. Moreover it stipulates that it shall be the duty of every person together with the Government to protect the climate and to assist in the taking of preventive and remedial measures to protect the climate. Further duties of the Government are laid down under regulation 5, which include the following: (a) to develop, periodically update and publish national inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of greenhouse gases in order to monitor progress towards achieving its quantified emission limitation or reduction commitments pursuant to international treaties and its obligations as a Member State of the European Union; (b) to formulate, implement, publish and update policies regarding measures to mitigate climate change by limiting, and, to the extent possible, reducing anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions by sources, and by enhancing removals of greenhouse gases by sinks; (c) to promote sustainable management of sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases including all terrestrial, coastal and marine ecosystems and promote and cooperate in the conservation and enhancement of sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases including all terrestrial, coastal and marine ecosystems.