Ireland could meet 42 percent of its energy needs with renewable power, delegates at a conference for the whole island heard.

Two fifths of farmers who have applied for Farm Waste Management Scheme (FWMS) grants have not completed development work yet, according to a survey.

Excessive levels of lead contamination have been found in 23 water supplies around Ireland, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The European Union has banned the export of mercury in an effort to reduce the global supply of the highly toxic heavy metal.

A tax of EUR20 per tonne of carbon dioxide should be introduced to boost the economy and advance development of a low carbon economy, according to the Irish sustainable development council Comhar.

Ireland will have to take drastic steps in order to meet EU greenhouse gas emissions targets, according to a major report.

Wexford county council not only charges the most for water services in Ireland but could also face problems with wastewater treatment within five years.

More than 20 times the amount of land currently growing bio- energy crops will have to be dedicated to the plants if Ireland is to meet its 2015 renewable heat and electricity targets, according to advisory body Teagasc.

A bio-energy park billed as the most advanced in the world is to be built in the south-east of Ireland.

No new coal-fired power stations should be built in the UK unless they can capture and store carbon emissions, a Government agency has told ministers.

Building developments on floodplains could come to an end if draft planning guidelines published today are approved.

High levels of lead have been found in the water supply of some areas of Galway in the second drinking water alert in the city in less than 18 months.

Government could lobby the EU for permission to trade up to half of its carbon reduction targets, according to leaked documents.

Transport and agriculture are two of the areas where carbon emissions are rising rapidly, a report which highlights the difficulties in meeting Ireland's carbon emissions targets is to show.

Algae has been successfully used as a feedstock - or raw material - for creating biofuel.