GREENHOUSE gas emissions from industry, transportation and agriculture have played a major role in global warming in recent years, something that has become even more topical since Europe experienced a major drop in snow levels this winter. Under the Kyoto protocol, an agreement made in 1997, more than 160 countries have pledged to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide.

Because Ireland was considered a developing country in 1997, it was agreed that instead of reducing our limits (Britain and Germany were told to reduce by 20%, for example) we should just attempt to limit our pollution rise to 13% between 1990 and 2012.

This is something we have entirely failed to do, as a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency is due to reveal this week. Currently, Irish pollution levels are at 25%, nearly double what they are supposed to be, and the last four years have seen a steep rise in greenhouse emissions.

As of now, Ireland has one of the highest rates of emissions per head of population in the developed world, and the Department of Environment has admitted that the rise is expected to continue.

How badly is Ireland really doing?

The government says it can get Ireland's levels back down to the required 13% by buying carbon credits overseas. As the term suggests, this involves trading pollution levels with countries who are on target - something that is allowed under the Kyoto agreement.

However, given the new pollution levels, the government is already facing a bill in excess of the Euro270m that was set aside to make up for the shortfall. And according to the opposition, this bill is only going to get bigger.

"The European Commission is taking a number of steps to drive up the price of carbon, which means the cost in finance terms is going to be huge, " said Eamon Gilmore, Labour's environment spokesman.

"We have estimated that by 2012, it will be in the region of Euro750m. That aside, it is an incredibly irresponsible approach to this problem."

Oisin Coghlan of Friends of the Earth agreed. "The reality is there have been no plans and no policies to reverse the massive pollution problem we are currently facing, " he said. "The government wants to buy carbon credits overseas instead of looking at how they can tackle the problem here. It's only a waste of taxpayers' money, and the point is, if we don't cut our emissions now, we're going to have to cut them later."

Where have we gone wrong?

Six years ago, the government-funded National Climate Change Strategy found that a carbon tax should be imposed on industrial polluters, and that the National Car Test (NCT) should impose a tax on cars that were not environmentally friendly.

It found that the Moneypoint electricity generating station should be changed from coal-burning to natural gas to reduce greenhouse emissions. However, the government not only failed to implement any of this plan; they also actively went against their own recommendations.

The EPA report is expected to find that one element of the rise in greenhouse emissions is due to the two new peat-fired stations that were opened in Lanesborough and Shannonbridge in 2005. Meanwhile, Moneypoint is still burning coal.

"A peat-fire power station is the most carbon-intensive? the dirtiest way of generating electricity, " said Coghlan. "The government knew this from their own plan, which they then ditched."

The government has recently announced that they intend to publish a revised climate change strategy in the coming months.

This will include a new system of vehicle registration tax (VRT) and motor tax, which will apply to vehicles with higher emissions.

Should we blame SUV culture?

The EPA report is expected to find that emissions from our cars and other modes of transport have been the fastest growing contribution to Ireland's pollution problem in the last four years.

This is hardly surprising, given that the number of cars in Ireland with engine sizes above 1.9 litres has almost doubled since 1990. Last year, drivers in the country bought 10,519 new private cars with an engine capacity of 2.4 litres or more, compared to just 1,895 in 1996.

But while it may be easy to blame SUV drivers for our growing pollution levels, Coghlan argues that this is just the tip of the iceberg. "It's not just that there are more cars, but that people are driving more as well, " he argued.

"And this is to do with bad planning and urban sprawl as well as a bad public transport system, particularly on the outskirts of cities. It's about people having to drive more these days, as well as recent prosperity and the desire for bigger vehicles."

Where do we go from here?

Friends of the Earth believe that the longterm plans the government laid out in the past should be ditched. Because the government is continually changing, these plans are in danger of being changed by subsequent leaders in the run up to 2012.

Instead, they have called on all political parties to come together before the general election and agree to put a climate law into legislation. This law will state that Ireland must reduce its emissions by an average of 3% every year, regardless of who is in government.

"This is not something that can be done overnight, but it's not something that can be left until the last minute either, " said Coghlan. "The next Dáil that is elected is the Dáil that is going to see us through the next five years of the Kyoto agreement, and they are the ones that can bring our emissions under control."

With the current situation as it is, they are facing a real challenge. Ireland's pollution levels are already up 25% since 1990.

The EU envisages that between now and 2020, our pollution levels should be 20-30 per cent below what they were in 1990 and 60-80 per cent below by 2050.

"These targets show exactly how out of kilter we are with the situation, " said Coghlan. "Action needs to be taken now."