Mark Ruffalo calls on Ireland's Greens to stop LNG in Planning Bill ...

Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo has rowed in on Irish politics, saying the Green Party is “about to do something really terrible to the environment”.

In a social media post the US actor and activist called on the public to sign a petition calling on the Green Party to “stop LNG”.

“Hey, I need your help. You know, the Irish Green party’s about to do something really terrible to the environment and our climate. They’re trying to jam through a bill to fast track building liquid natural gas terminals that would import fracked gas from the United States and I need you to help me tell the Irish people all about it.

“They need to remove the LNG fast tracking and prioritisation as a strategic infrastructure from the Planning Bill and permanently just ban LNG.

“What’s worse is that the Green Party, which promised the voters that they would stop the import of frack gas and LNG when they joined the Coalition Government in 2020 but since then, they’ve been opening the door for the Irish Government to build an LNG terminal in the Shannon estuary of all places.”

Responding to Ruffalo’s post, a spokesperson for the Green Party said: “The Green Party remains fully opposed to a commercial LNG facility and is proud that no such facility has proceeded during our time in Government. Mark Ruffalo’s video gives a very misleading account of what is envisaged in the amendment to the Planning Bill.”

The party said that while Ireland’s long-term energy future is in renewable energy, “we may need a strategic gas reserve as a back-up in case supply is interrupted for any reason through the existing pipeline from the UK that supplies the majority of our gas”.

Ruffalo’s comments were made ahead of a Dáil debate on the Planning and Development Bill 2023, which aims to reform Ireland’s planning system. The Bill allows for planning applications to be made for Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) terminals.

[ Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo enlisted by Green Party in bid for government supportOpens in new window ]

In the Dáil, Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys defended the amendment on LNG, following trenchant criticism from Labour leader Ivana Bacik. Ms Bacik backed Mr Ruffalo’s stance and said the “mammoth legislation” is about “embedding harmful fossil fuels long term into our energy system”.

She said the Government has insisted that “existing policy amounts to an LNG moratorium, but that argument has never held water and especially not since last week’s High Court decision that there’s no way of enforcing that moratorium. So there isn’t a ban.”

She added that Minister for Climate Eamon Ryan “has said that he doesn’t think that commercial terminals would be installed in Ireland, but respectfully, we do not legislate based on a vibe or a ministerial whim”. The Green Party had been responsible for great progress on climate action but “I am so concerned now to see that you might be at the 11th hour on the verge of undoing that work”.

The Minister insisted however that “this amendment is to ensure if there is a mass of energy crisis we would have storage facilities for LNG if that is required. And I’m talking about a massive energy crisis. It has nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing to do with fracking, and this Government is opposed to fracking.”

Ms Bacik asked “if your Government isn’t trying to bring an energy by the back door, then why are you legislating for fast tracked LNG planning?”

She also hit out at the three hours of debate before the Bill is guillotined on Wednesday evening. The legislation is the third largest in the history of Bills through the Oireachtas with more than 700 pages and with more than six hundred amendments listed for the final debate, most of which will not be dealt with.

Meanwhile CEO of Friends of the Earth Oisin Coughlan said he would feel “really let down” if the Green Party was to “leave the door open to LNG on their way out the door. That would not be a good legacy.”

All the Green Party’s “good words” on the phasing out of fossil fuel would be undermined by the Planning Bill and the recent High Court judgment, he told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

Mr Coughlan said that Government policy was “really confused.”

“The Greens went into Government saying they would stand firmly against the importation of fracked gas and they have made some progress in that with their other Government Coalition partners. But this Bill tonight seems set to undermine that significantly and risks putting their legacy and Government in grave risk and in tatters.”

When asked if Friends of the Earth would be urging the Green Party to vote against the Planning Bill, Mr Coughlan said they would be calling on all parties “to vote against LNG tonight.”

Mr Coughlan also pointed out that “the company that has currently applied to build a terminal on the Shannon Estuary Shannon LNG is controlled by New Fortress Energy, one of the biggest exporters and producers of fracked gas in Pennsylvania, which is why Mark Ruffalo is interested.

“And they want to export gas as much as they can and to drive as much use of gas as possible with the gas that is fuelling those hurricanes in Florida that we’re hearing about.

“We’re asking all TDs at the very least to strip out all reference to LNG here.”

Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phoneJoin The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to dateListen to our Inside Politics podcast for the best political chat and analysis