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Reducing cow herd ‘last resort’ in tackling carbon emissions, says Varadkar

The Taoiseach said the way emissions are categorised will have to be changed.

REDUCING THE COUNTRY’S cow herd will be the “last resort” in tackling carbon emissions, the Taoiseach has said.

In 2018, agricultural emissions went above 1990 levels for the first time in 18 years.

Ireland’s agricultural sector has consistently been the largest emitter of greenhouse gas, and it saw a 1.9% rise in 2018, driven by an increase in dairy cows, whose herd numbers have gone up 27% in the past five years.

Leo Varadkar said: “In the plan that we set out, we believe we can reduce agricultural emissions without having to reduce the herd, with that means doing a lot around forestry, things like bio gas, around slurry, around use of fertilisers and so on.”

We’re going to still continue to eat, that’s a certainty. So food is different.

At the launch of the Government’s Climate Action Plan, he added: “Reducing the herd will be the last resort and we believe we can achieve reductions emissions without having to do that.”

Varadkar added that the way emissions are categorised will have to be changed, as Ireland mass-produces food for other countries.

“I think as we move beyond 2030, something we’re going to have to look at internationally when we set our climate action targets is, we treat food production just as the same as electricity or transport or buildings, but I think food production is actually different.

“We do need to produce food, and all forms of agriculture, even tillage, produce CO2 emissions and cause climate change.

“And I think as we get beyond 2030 and we get into much more ambitious targets than we currently have, I think, on an international level, we’re going to have to consider whether we treat food differently because we are a country that exports 90% of the food that we produce.

“We’re a country of five million people that feeds 50 (million) and yet all that food production gets accounted for in Ireland as a contribution to global warming, but that food production is going to have to happen, it’s going to have to happen somewhere.

“We’re going to need to look at that on an international level and see if we need to treat food production differently to the way we treat transport or electricity and that we can actually move fully over to the renewables and away from fossil fuels.”

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    Mute Caoimhín O Neill
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:17 PM

    O gosh, a 1.9% rise. That makes this countries total emissions now 0.000000001% of the global average.
    Very concerning
    Questions will be asked
    Taxes will be made

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    Mute Seamus Hughes
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:26 PM

    @Caoimhín O Neill: Becaise we produce milk with the lowest carbon footprint in Europe, we should be maximizing the production of Irish grass fed milk.
    https://www.teagasc.ie/news–events/news/2011/ireland-carbon-footprint.php

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    Mute Felicity Hensen
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:59 PM

    @Caoimhín O Neill: Citation please.

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    Mute Paraic
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    Oct 31st 2019, 11:44 PM

    @Caoimhín O Neill: So you just make up figures of the top of your head? Here’s some actual figures: Methane is 23 times more destructive than CO2. Therefore the release of about 100 kg Methane per year for each cow is equivalent to 2,300 kg CO2 per year. With a car using 8 liters of petrol per 100 km, you could drive 12,500 km per year (7,800 miles per year) to generate the same greenhouse effect as a cow. Agriculture is responsible for 18% of the total release of greenhouse gases world-wide. The figure is higher than average for Ireland at 23%. (So not 0.0000000001%). Livestock now use 30 percent of the earth’s entire land surface, mostly permanent pasture but also including 33 percent of the global arable land. 1Kg of beef production produces 8 times the CO2 as 1Kg of chicken.

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    Mute leeser
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:19 PM

    In other words they won’t try and cripple farmers finacially, we’ll pass more carbon taxes onto ordinary consumers who drive to work etc..

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    Mute Ole dan tucker
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:01 PM

    @leeser: or we won’t sacrifice our sustainable model of production and instead consume food with a higher carbon footprint than we can produce for 50m people annually

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    Mute thesaltyurchin
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    Nov 1st 2019, 1:16 PM

    @leeser: Helping out the ‘early risers’ no doubt! Ha!…

    1
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    Mute MunsterPI
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:30 PM

    The vast green fields the cows are in, more than offsets the methane cows emit. (Photosynthesis anyone?)

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    Mute Edmund Murphy
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:38 PM

    @MunsterPI: It does when the fields are perminant pasture. But we have slowly been moving away from that since the 60s to perennial rye grass which requires tillage and reseeding every few years. The disturbing of the soil releases a lot of that stored up carbon. There are good solutions already online though using stitching in drilling and slurry injection and a more diverse grass and clover sward. They just haven’t become main stream yet.

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    Mute Seamus Murphy
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:21 PM

    @Edmund Murphy: most farmers use the stitching method for reseeding these days.

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    Mute Paraic
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    Nov 1st 2019, 12:05 AM

    @MunsterPI: Ye guys are just assuming stuff. Methane is 23 times worse than CO2 as a greenhouse gas. Grass and other greenery only remove CO2 in sunlight which is offset by its release back into the atmosphere at night, more again in winter and when passed through cattle. It contributes a net zero removal of CO2. Cattle then add methane and CO2 to the atmosphere. Additionally grass needs water, but we will have only droughts. On top of that, grass will be less nutritious when grown with higher CO2 concentrations (and less water).
    https://tinyurl.com/y2p6rqkb

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    Mute david hynes
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:15 PM

    Using manures, foodwaste, energy crops to produce biomethane is the only way forward. The methane can be used in the national gas grid without the requirement of overhead power lines. The renewable methane can then be used anywhere in Ireland for electricity, thermal or transport requirements. On top of that Co2 can be captured and reused or stored. It’s perfect and across the EU this is normal

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    Mute Edmund Murphy
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:35 PM

    @david hynes: Great point. They are doing a great job doing just that in Germany with farmer led bioreactor co-operatives.

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    Mute WoodlandBard
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:49 PM

    @david hynes: perfect, exceptional, joint thinking, no brainer once up and running, and a great industry for unemployed to get jobs and be paid ok …. but, sadly, applying more carbon taxes is a bit less effort.

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    Mute Thomas Sheridan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:08 PM

    @david hynes: excellent idea. Now how do capture the methane belched from the cow’s mouth and how do we get it into the gas grid??

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    Mute WoodlandBard
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:50 PM

    Designer socks probably set off more methane than cows.

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    Mute Conor Noonan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:34 PM

    Greta won’t be happy

    47
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    Mute dB O'Neill
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:03 PM

    No need to cull the heard, adding seaweed to their feed reduces methane production in the bowels by 90%.
    This has been proven by tests but wint be implemented any time soon.
    Also America & China are the two biggest culprits and neither are doing anything about it.

    37
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    Mute Rob Porter
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:35 PM

    @dB O’Neill: indeed! China is now the world’s largest emitter of CO2. It emits more than the EU and US combined and enjoys carte-blanche to continue emitting as much CO2 as it likes with no penalties or emissions’ caps until 2030.

    On an annual basis it adds +6% to its total which is equivalent to > 10 times Ireland’s total emissions.

    Another way to think about it is that 10 times Ireland’s annual emissions is equivalent to the UK’s total annual emissions. So for the next ten years China will increase its emission by ballpark a G7 economy every year while Ireland flagellates itself over trivial emissions by comparison.

    Once the cows are gone maybe we can export bananas instead as there will no doubt be a plentiful supply.

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    Mute @mdmak33
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:45 PM

    Mr Murphy recatorgorised homeless figures and has just over 10,000 people homeless, the true figure is there is over 13,000 homeless, FG should never be let near figures.

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    Mute Nicholas Grubb
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:57 PM

    All this talk of our agriculture is nonsense. Perhaps we should do no farming here and instead all our food needs and that of our 50 million customers can be met by cutting down some more rain forest ten thousand miles away and growing the food there instead, as it is not on the same planet as us. Indeed it also means we have wood biomass to import for keeping the old peat stations going at 30% efficiency, the real bottom line reason for being so far behind on our CO2 obligations.
    No, lets get real. A native sustainable, cyclical biomass scheme, for powering local CHP at 80% efficiency to cover some of our base loading. Massive environmental and rural economic advantages.
    Then a move a.s.a.p. into Generation 4 nuclear. Four for Moneypoint for starters.
    No, we are going to have 70% wind and solar blighting the landscape at a load factor of 20% and for the rest of time, import nuclear power from France. Problem though is France, with the cheapest power in Europe, is only 80% nuclear, not 800%, as they must also when the wind isn’t blowing, supply Germany and God knows who else.
    Trouble is when nuclear is mentioned, everyone thinks of Homer Simpson, Chernobyl and all that and not of Gen 4 molten salt, which is a completely different kettle of fish. Far, far safer and more efficient.

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    Mute Pat Patovic
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    Oct 31st 2019, 11:01 PM

    @Nicholas Grubb: “Far, far safer and more efficient.”
    aaaand pretty much non existent.

    You talk about implementing experimental technology which is still only being tested. The soonest they are expected to enter in existence other than experimental is estimated between 2020-2030.

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    Mute Edmund Murphy
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:33 PM

    In some ways he has a point as we all need food but we also ship in 3.4 million tons of animal feed to support those cattle. Ireland is not just producing that food in abstract. By all means we should be producing quality dairy and cattle and when our system is mostly grass based we do it with a lower carbon food print than most. We should aim to have the herd at an internally sustainable level with our own tillage producing what additional feed that’s required. Or course if we are importing grain at a lower carbon footprint that we product it I would be totally wrong. Haven’t been able to find figures on it yet.

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    Mute Tommy Byrne
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:27 PM

    Introduce hydrogen refuelling stations and hydrogen cars… cars take minutes to refuel and produce drinkable water as their exhaust. They are also a good back up power supply for the home. Toyota run a factory on 2 of their car hydrogen fuel cells

    21
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    Mute Thomas Sheridan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:06 PM

    @Tommy Byrne: and how do we produce hydrogen. Gas turbine generators?

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    Mute Tommy Byrne
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:27 PM

    @Thomas Sheridan: if you like… but it can even be produced from your rubbish

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    Mute Thomas Sheridan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:55 PM

    @Tommy Byrne: I would have thought that a legitimate question deserved a civil answer not an ignorant outburst.

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    Mute Willy Mc Bride
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:39 PM

    All about the money

    32
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    Mute Aire Dezamba
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:58 PM

    Population is increasing. More people need more food….thus more cows are needed. That’s how it is….

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    Mute Fifty Shades of Sé
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:02 PM

    @Aire Dezamba: People don’t need to eat meat. That’s how it is.

    16
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    Mute Aire Dezamba
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:23 PM

    @Fifty Shades of Sé: Milk?? Cheese?? Yogurt?? etc

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:38 AM

    @Aire Dezamba: lmao you don’t need cows milk for those either, unless…. Are you a calf??

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    Mute Micheal S. O' Ceilleachair
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:49 PM

    Better still issue all cows with methane absorbent nappies coupled with similar to reduce politicians emissions!!!!!

    20
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    Mute Conoroconnor
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:37 PM

    @Micheal S. O’ Ceilleachair: methan emissions in cattle actually come out the front end.

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    Mute Jim Sullivan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:15 PM

    There are not many ways to reduce the production of methane by both cattle and ourselves unless stoppers are used to prevent the gas escaping.

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:39 AM

    @Jim Sullivan: how about I put a gas stopper in your arse, see how you like it

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    Mute Mister H
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:50 PM

    It’s very unfortunate that the leaders of our country have only a minimum grasp of the facts and the way forward. It’s also unfortunate that the ordinary person is misinformed and doesn’t know where to look for more information. There is no silver bullet, it will be a combination of actions that will provide the solutions.

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    Mute Kevin Barry
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:09 PM

    Methane has a max life of 10 years, it breaks down to its constituent parts long before that.

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    Mute Brian Ó Dálaigh
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    Oct 31st 2019, 5:25 PM

    @Kevin Barry: cyanide has a max life of between 1 and 3 hours in humans before it starts to break down. I guess cyanide is safe, too. The problem with methane, as with cyanide, isn’t after it has begun to break down. Its problem is before it breaks down and the damage it can cause before it begins to do so.

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    Mute brendan H
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:43 PM

    @Brian Ó Dálaigh: There is about 1.4 billion head of cattle in the world today, there was way more wild animals on the planet before cattle became so numerous, thousands of land mammals and just 2 of those thousands were 80 million bison and 40 million elephants they are in the thousands now, overall there are less land mammals on the planet today including cattle. This man made climate change is a huge scam, its completely natural. We can change the environment around us not the climate.

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    Mute SJF
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    Nov 1st 2019, 12:37 AM

    So we’re being hit with a carbon tax and yet another rise in fuel prices because climate change is an “emergency” that “desperately” needs to be tackled and yet

    - Government continues to hand out contracts for oil and gas exploration
    - no move to curb the MASSIVE emissions from the agricultural industry
    - Agreeing to EU trade deals to import beef flown from Brazil and raised on burned down rainforest (remember that? It’s still on fire)
    – plans to introduce motor taxes for electric cars because of, get this, an increase in uptake…Ya know, because…climate..

    Be sure to vote FFG again next time round guys.

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    Mute Tom Goss
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    Nov 1st 2019, 1:27 PM

    @SJF: Agreed. None of the ‘emergency’ forecasts have manifested. Far more hurricanes, droughts, heatwaves and wildfires worldwide in the 20′s, 30′s and 40′s than we’ve had recently. Arctic ice was supposed to be nearly gone by now. They started alarmist global warming data from the 1970s cold spell…they’d have a very different picture if the previous 50 years data was included…and they STILL have had to massage recent data to keep the narrative going. Cold winters. Polar bears doing fine. No sea level rise (check out the Maldives….and Barak Obama’s recently purchased $14m beach property on Martha’s Vinyard, he’s obviously not worried…).

    Solar output variations make more sense than CO2 in explaining past and present climate patterns.
    But they can’t tax sunlight and create a trillion dollar industry for themselves that way, can they?
    (And divert attention from their middle east wars for oil…which presumably will either be eventually burned or turned into more plastic…)

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    Mute J
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    Oct 31st 2019, 4:46 PM

    Methane absorbing cow nappies are what’s needed.

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    Mute Paul
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    Oct 31st 2019, 6:13 PM

    I’ve yet to see a ploughed grass field

    5
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    Mute tubbsyf
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    Oct 31st 2019, 8:09 PM

    we need to start eating less meat. The government will never touch the farmers so we need to act

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    Mute John Mc Donagh
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:02 PM

    @tubbsyf: Wrong my lad, we need to start eating timber ——Problem solved!!

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    Mute Ludie Creech
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    Nov 1st 2019, 9:00 AM

    @tubbsyf: work away. As for me and my house, we will serve the tenderloin.

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:42 AM

    @Ludie Creech: cheers for ensuring your children don’t have an inhospitable planet to live on mate! Enjoy your tenderloins, heartless nob

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:43 AM

    Obviously I meant they’ll have an inhospitable planet..

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    Mute Sean Thornton
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:24 PM

    if you put all humans and their domesticated animals on one side of a weighing scales and put all other wild animals on the other side of the weighing scales, what do you think the ratio would be? It is 96:4

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    Mute mike
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    Oct 31st 2019, 7:35 PM

    Why are they encouraging hybrid vehicles , yet keep upping petrol prices?

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    Mute Ludie Creech
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    Oct 31st 2019, 10:17 PM

    #fakenews

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    Mute Derek Walsh
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    Oct 31st 2019, 10:28 PM

    If only there were some way for us to get food that didn’t involve breeding cattle.

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    Mute Leo Lalor
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    Nov 1st 2019, 6:04 AM

    Even considering getting reducing the national herd underlines the insanity of this governments thinking. Stupidity on a grand scale.

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    Mute Graham Murphy Esq
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    Oct 31st 2019, 8:56 PM

    A moooosive mistake

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    Mute June Gelder
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    Nov 1st 2019, 1:02 PM

    Cow herds MUST BE REDUCED. I live near dairy farm it’s horrendous.250-300 cows leaving cow slurry over all the roads car up to the axles in cow dung,farmer does not care.Slurry spread all times of year despite closed seasons.i have private water well slurry within sprayed illegal limits.banned fertilizers sprayed all over borders,public roads. My animals vomiting with the poisons.spents hours complaining to Enviorment councils he has been warned does not stop waits till council is closed and does it all over again..THIS IS ONE FARMER .what about all the others who are doing the same.Sorry but this country’s screwed.You just do not care. Make excuses for everything ,mocking those who are concerned.This cannot be undone.

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:48 AM

    @June Gelder: I agree June. I live near one too. And let’s not forget the practise itself is disgusting and inhumane. Adult humans should not require the breast milk of another species. Titty suckin baby boys walking around going ‘I just love my cheese and steak’ while they ingest female hormones left right and center, thinking it makes them more masculine and forgetting the reason they like cheese is because cows milk is literally naturally addictive to encourage calves to drink it to grow big and strong.

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:49 AM

    And what happens after a few months if they were left to drink their mums milk? Their mum would wean them. They don’t even drink breast milk from their own species into adulthood and yet here we are, supposedly ADULT HUMANS destroying the planet for something disgusting and inhumane. Going against everything nature intends. Destorying our health. Putting animals through pain and suffering, pregnancy after pregnancy, calves taken away from them, and when they’ve gone through about 5 and aren’t profitable anymore, we slaughter them. Destorying the planet and our bodies in the process. We do this for cows milk for our tea and cheese

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    Mute Charles McCarthy
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    Nov 1st 2019, 10:24 AM

    How about reducing the wind eminating from Dail Eireann first.

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    Mute Andrew Lyons
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    Oct 31st 2019, 8:28 PM

    How many trees do you need to plant to offset one cow?

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Oct 31st 2019, 9:07 PM

    They can use olivine sand on sportgrounds.
    1000 kg takes out 1000 kg CO2.

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    Mute
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    Nov 2nd 2019, 9:36 AM

    Leo you weak dweeb

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    Mute Sean Callan
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    Oct 31st 2019, 8:51 PM

    seanbcallan@gmail.com. Introduce a CF tax,. Problem solved.

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    Mute acallkelly
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    Nov 1st 2019, 10:01 PM

    Apparently Toyota are developing a car that will run on hydrogen derived from cow manure, so the game will be reversed and cows be considered on the positive side of the balance sheet.

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