Economics - Reports
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Item EU ETS and competitiveness of Irish industry(Environmental Protection Agency, 2019) McInerney, Celine; O'Connor, Ellen; Power, Bernadette; Deane, Paul; McDermot, Tom; Environmental Protection AgencyIrish electricity generators and energy-intensive industry are obliged to participate in the EU emissions trading system and this may lead to an increase in production costs for these companies. Reform of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) has seen significant price increases and may lead to further volatility in prices for emissions allowances. There are concerns that increased costs of compliance will have a negative impact on business competitiveness in Ireland. This project aims to investigate the effects of the EU ETS on competitiveness by (i) reviewing the literature on regulation and firm competitiveness, (ii) analysing firm-level data to determine the impact of the EU ETS and green investment on the competitiveness of Irish industry thus far, (iii) using a survey to find the opinions of stakeholders regarding the EU ETS and emission reduction projects and (iv) estimating the effect on future electricity prices if Ireland were to participate in a carbon price floor.Item Environmental outcomes from licence enforcement activity(Environmental Protection Agency, 2020) Power, Bernadette; O'Connor, Ellen; Eakins, John; McInerney, Celine; Hellebust, Stig; Sullivan, Timothy; Environmental Protection AgencyThe ultimate objective of environmental regulation is the prevention and reduction of environmental harm from pollution, habitat loss and resource depletion. This desk study reviewed the development of environmental performance measures for the promotion of compliance and the measurement of the impact of and outcomes from enforcement activity. The research also reviewed types of metrics of environmental outcomes available in Ireland and gaps in these metrics. The review examined new approaches that are more collaborative, as well as trends in environmental enforcement activities, coupled with recent developments in the environmental enforcement methods of enforcement agencies in Scotland, England and Wales, and Canada. The findings from this research provide an update of current practices and recent changes introduced in some jurisdictions, with the target audience being the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), industrial environmental managers and compliance officers, researchers and policymakers.Item Residential solid fuel use in Ireland and the transition away from solid fuels(Environmental Protection Agency, 2022) Eakins, John; Power, Bernadette; Dunphy, Niall P.; Sirr, Gordon; Environmental Protection Agency; Sustainable Energy Authority of IrelandThe Environmental Protection Agency has highlighted air quality issues in urban centres in Ireland in recent years. Emissions of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), attributable to the burning of solid fuels, such as coal, peat and wood, are a particular cause of concern. The complexity of the residential solid fuel sector, due to the heterogeneity of fuels being used and the lack of reliable and periodic data sources, hampers the task of developing effective policy solutions to support the continued transition away from the use of solid fuels for residential home heating. This research project aims to provide a deeper understanding of the sector using existing and new sources of data on solid fuel use. Some of the aims of the project include a more detailed examination of individual solid fuels; identification of the factors that determine the use of solid fuels, including the use of solid fuels as a “supplementary” fuel; and a quantification of the use of non-traded solid fuels, i.e. purchases made through informal markets or the own production and use of harvested peat, wind-blown trees or foraged wood.Item Micro-businesses in Ireland: From ambition to innovation(Cork University Business School, University College Cork, 2019-04) Bourke, Jane; Roper, Stephen; Economic and Social Research CouncilThis report describes new and unique survey data on established micro-businesses with 1-9 employees in Ireland. The report focuses on the ambitions - business and personal - of the owners; as well as innovative activity and the uptake of digital technology within micro-businesses.Item Innovating in Ireland: Can we fail better?(University College Cork, 2022-06) Bourke, Jane; O'Driscoll, Conor; O'Driscoll, Josh; O'Reilly, Paidi; Irish Research CouncilThis report explores the extent to which the Irish innovation ecosystem allows space to fail at innovation and to learn from such failures.