Greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 were 7.8% lower than 2018. The National Climate Ambition is for 2030 emissions to be 51% lower than 2018.
The Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing sector was the source of 37.8% of national greenhouse gas emissions in 2023. The Transport sector was responsible for 21.4% of the total while the Energy sector emitted a further 14.3%.
Data from 2024 shows that of the non-domestic buildings audited for a Building Energy Rating (BER) since 2009, 3% received an A rating, 14% a B rating, and 33% a C rating.
The use of renewable energy in kilotonnes purchased directly by enterprises increased by 59% between 2012 and 2021.
The percentage of metered electricity consumed by data centres was 5% in 2015, 14% in 2021, and 18% in 2022.
The share of renewable energy in primary energy production rose from 5% in 1990 to 54% in 2022.
In 2022, the gender pay gap for Ireland was 9.6%. Mean earnings for females were €25.06 while mean earnings for males were €27.73.
In 2023, one in four members of Boards of Directors in Ireland were female, up from almost 22% in 2021.
ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. ESG refers to how enterprises perform responsibly and sustainably in these areas. Environmental criteria gauge how a company safeguards the environment. Social criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, customers, and communities. Governance measures a company’s leadership, gender balance etc.
This publication does not set or define specific ESG metrics and standards, instead it compiles a number of preexisting high level sectoral data sources together in one space under the ESG banner.
Enterprises within the scope of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will now be required to report on sustainability. The first companies will have to apply the new rules for the first time in the 2024 financial year, for reports published in 2025, with a view to mandatory requirements commencing for financial years on or after:
Companies subject to the CSRD will have to report according to European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).
The first set of ESRS was published in the Official Journal on 22 December 2023 under the form of a Delegated Regulation. These standards apply to companies
under the scope of the CSRD regardless of which sector they operate in. There are:
This report will focus on existing data that is readily available and has a quantitative element. Some of the measures proposed under regulation are more qualitative in nature, for example risk assessments by companies and the areas relating to workers in the value chain, affected communities and consumers and end users are not included in this report. The background notes section contains a list of the data tables included in this report and a link to the source publication, detailed technical notes and definitions are contained within the original publications.
The CSO is planning on developing a corporate responsibility/ESG dashboard in 2025. This will be an evolving and fluid space that will allow for additional quantitative and qualitative data sources to be added over time.
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (25 July 2024) published Environment, Social and Governance Reporting: Data for the Enterprise Economy 2024.
Commenting on the publication, James Hegarty, Statistician, said:
“This is the first time the CSO has published Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) information, and the CSO is one of the first European statistical offices to do so. The primary aim of this release, which is part of the CSO Frontier Series, is to raise awareness around ESG and corporate responsibility, and what it will increasingly mean for a range of Irish enterprises. This release leverages existing data sources, with additional data to be provided over time as the legislative and enterprise landscapes evolve over the coming years. There are chapters on climate change, pollution, the workforce, governance, and other relevant ESG topics.
ESG information aims to help investors and other stakeholders have access to the information they need to assess the impact of companies on people and the environment, and for investors to assess financial risks and opportunities arising from climate change and other sustainability issues. For example, the long-term sustainability of an enterprise in a zero/low carbon future. The broad policy context relates to national and EU climate action plans which state as their objective to be at “net zero” by 2050.
CSO Response to Data Demands
Due to the impact of climate change, a broader set of responsibilities, not just financial performance, are now increasingly expected of enterprises. These expectations cover environmental, social, and governance fields. Whether it is considering the transition to a low carbon economy or a more diverse workforce, shareholders and the wider community are looking beyond financial performance when assessing business performance. In a sense, “nature” is now increasingly being seen as an important stakeholder.
On 05 July 2024, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive was transposed into Irish law, and came into effect on 06 July 2024. It aims to modernise and strengthen the rules concerning the social and environmental information that companies report. A broader set of large companies, as well as listed small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), will now be required to report on sustainability.
This Frontier Series release presents a series of environmental, social, and governance data that bring a heightened awareness to the non-financial performance of the enterprise economy in light of these significant regulatory developments. This release will evolve over time as additional quantitative and qualitative data sources become available.
Emissions and Workforce Data
While Irish enterprises are making progress in terms of increasing the use of renewable energy and improving building energy ratings, there is still a significant journey to be travelled in terms of further reducing overall emissions. The most recent provisional 2023 emissions data, released by the Environmental Protection Agency on 08 July 2024, shows that greenhouse gas emissions (including Land Use, Land Use Change, and Forestry) were 7.8% lower than in 2018, with a distance to travel to the National Climate Ambition of a 51% reduction by 2030.
In terms of the workforce, Irish enterprises are performing well in terms of overall employment, but improvement is still needed in terms of reducing the gender pay gap and increasing female representation on boards.”