Northern Ireland Water : The Power of Water Report

The Power of Water Report 4 Addressing climate change is the moral and practical challenge of our times. Not just for the health of our planet, but for the health of our children and grandchildren. As the beneficiaries of the fossil fuel era, coming generations will expect us not just to have dealt with the consequences of climate change, but also to have put in place a sustainable future, including here in Northern Ireland. Doing that, however, means being clear about three things: what needs to be done; the policy drivers required to make it happen; and the individual and collective role of organisations such as NI Water, in pursuing that net zero, sustainable future. First, what needs to be done. To build a zero-carbon economy there is a clear need to green both the generation of electricity and the way companies such as NI Water use it. The generation technologies - solar, wind, hydro, hydrogen - exist, as do the means to significantly increase the efficiency of power usage. The key is to find the way, collectively, to apply them. That includes de-carbonising the transport system, public and private. Mostly that will be by electrification, but for heavy transport, including buses, sustainable fuels such as green hydrogen offer a realistic alternative. And there is also a need to find the means to reduce industrial emissions in Introduction by Chairman and Chief Executive of NI Water production in areas such as cement, plastic and chemicals as well as re-imagining our agrifood sector. To achieve all this there needs to be a clear sense of direction in public policy, as well as a recognition of the need to fully embrace all the available economic, social and natural capital. No one sector can deliver the sheer scale of investment required. Public, private and third sectors all need to work together to create the level of innovation and investment required to build a sustainable future. And in Northern Ireland that is possible. We may be a small region on a small island, but we have at our fingertips the means to be an exemplar in the net zero world. We have a key natural resource - the wind. We have an all-island single electricity market committed to net zero. We have universities at the leading edge of enabling digital technology. What we now need to find is an agile way to harness administrative and governance systems designed for a different era to deliver the innovation, collaboration and urgency needed to make net zero a reality in Northern Ireland. Just as Climate Change does not respect institutional boundaries, neither should the response. And it is in that spirit that this report has been written. What it details is work in progress, a contribution to the conversation, not the final word.