Bord na Móna has been criticised by An Taisce for importing woodchip for power generation.
As RTÉ News reports, a cargo ship which left Brazil on November 24th, docked in Foynes, Co Limerick on the Shannon Estuary last week with a cargo of woodchip.
The imports were for Bord na Móna's power-generating station in Edenderry, Co Offaly. The company says a combination of biomass materials is required for the correct fuel mix for power generation.
"To achieve the required biomass mix, Bord na Móna sources the vast majority of sustainable residual material from indigenous suppliers in Ireland,” the company said in a statement to RTÉ News.
"When the remaining biomass required cannot be acquired locally due to volume and suitability constraints, it is supplemented with material sourced internationally as a result,”it confirmed.
Bord na Móna said it works with an international non-profit organisation which supports better land management and business practices at locations where biomass material is sourced, and the organisation conducts sustainability audits.
An Taisce head of advocacy Ian Lumley said that the importation and burning of woodchip from South America to generate energy here is "illogical".
"We should not be bringing biomass from South America so we ourselves can feel virtuous in terms of reducing our carbon emissions,”he said.
Read the RTÉ News report here
