The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications ( ga, An Roinn Comhshaoil, Aeráide agus Cumarsáide) is a

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The governm ...

that is responsible for the

telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

and broadcasting sectors and regulates, protects and develops the

natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The head of the department is the

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications The Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications ( ga, An tAire Comhshaoil, Aeráide agus Cumarsáide) is a senior minister in the Government of Ireland and leads the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. The c ...

who is assisted by two

Ministers of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ot ...

Departmental team

The official headquarters and ministerial offices of the department are at Adelaide Road, Dublin. The departmental team consists of the following: *

Eamon Ryan Eamon Michael Ryan (born 28 July 1963) is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and Minister for Transport since June 2020 and Leader of the Green Party since May 2011. He ha ...

, TD **

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications The Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications is a junior ministerial post in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications of the Government of Ireland who may perform functions delegated ...

, with special responsibility for Postal Policy and Eircodes:

Hildegarde Naughton Hildegarde Naughton (born 1 May 1977) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Health since December 2022. She has served as a Minister of State attending cabinet since ...

, TD **Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, with special responsibility for Communications and the Circular Economy:

Ossian Smyth Ossian Smyth is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as a Minister of State since July 2020. He has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dún Laoghaire constituency since 2020. Smyth holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from Trin ...

, TD *Secretary General of the Department: Mark Griffin

Structure

The Department of Environment, Climate and Communications is subdivided into the following divisions: *Climate – The Department has three major aims regarding climate change: To develop a competitive

energy supply Energy supply is the delivery of fuels or transformed fuels to point of consumption. It potentially encompasses the extraction, transmission, generation, distribution and storage of fuels. It is also sometimes called energy flow. This supply o ...

industry, to ensure security and reliability of energy supply, and to develop

energy conservation Energy conservation is the effort to reduce wasteful energy consumption by using fewer energy services. This can be done by using energy more effectively (using less energy for continuous service) or changing one's behavior to use less service (f ...

and end-use efficiency. *Communications – The core policy objective of the Communications Sector is to contribute to sustained macro-economic growth and competitiveness and ensure that the Republic of Ireland is best placed to avail of the emerging opportunities provided by the information and knowledge society, by promoting investment in state-of-the-art infrastructures, by providing a supportive legislative and regulatory environment and by developing a leading edge research and development reputation in the information, communications and digital technologies. *Natural Resources – This division is subdivided into three sectors: the Exploration and Mining Division, Petroleum Affairs Division, and the

Geological Survey of Ireland Geological Survey Ireland or Geological Survey of IrelandS.I. No. 300/2002 - Communications, Energy and Geological Survey of Ireland (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2002 ( ga, Suirbhéireacht Gheolaíochta ...

Affiliated bodies

Among the State Agencies and other bodies affiliated to the Department in some way are: *

Commission for Energy Regulation The Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU, ga, An Coimisiúin um Rialáil Fóntais), formerly known as the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER, ga, An Coimisiún um Rialáil Fuinnimh), is the Republic of Ireland's energy and water econ ...

Commission for Communications Regulation The Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) ( ga, An Coimisiún um Rialáil Cumarsáide) is the general communications regulator for Ireland, covering almost all possible types of communications. Founded on 1 December 2002, ComReg too ...

* National Cyber Security Centre * Digital Hub Development Agency * National Digital Research Centre *Geological Survey of Ireland *Mining Board *Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland *National Oil Reserves Agency *Central and Regional Fisheries Boards *Loughs Agency of the Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission ( North/South body) Among the

state-sponsored bodies of the Republic of Ireland A State-Sponsored Body is the name given in Ireland to a state-owned enterprise (a government-owned corporation), that is to say, a commercial business which is beneficially owned, either completely or majority, by the Irish Government. Each state-s ...

under the aegis of the Minister are: *

Electricity Supply Board The Electricity Supply Board (ESB; ga, Bord Soláthair an Leictreachais) is a state owned (95%; the rest are owned by employees) electricity company operating in the Republic of Ireland. While historically a monopoly, the ESB now operates as ...

Bord na Móna Bord na Móna (; English: "The Peat Board"), is a semi-state company in Ireland, created in 1946 by the Turf Development Act 1946. The company began developing the peatlands of Ireland with the aim to provide economic benefit for Irish Midland c ...

EirGrid EirGrid plc is the state-owned electric power transmission operator in Ireland. It is a public limited company registered under the Companies Acts; its shares are held by the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications. It is one of ...

An Post (; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...

* Irish National Petroleum Corporation

History

The Department of Fisheries was created in 1921 during the

Ministry of Dáil Éireann Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

. It was given a statutory basis by the

Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924 The Ministers and Secretaries Acts 1924 to 2020 is the legislation which governs the appointment of ministers to the Government of Ireland and the allocation of functions between departments of state. It is subject in particular to the provisi ...

, soon after the establishment of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

in 1922. This act provided it with: The Schedule assigned it with the duties of the following bodies: *Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland—Fisheries Branch. *Congested Districts Board for Ireland—Fisheries Branch, and Rural Industries Branch. *The Conservators of Fisheries.

Alteration of name and transfer of functions

The name and functions of the department have changed several times by

statutory instrument In many countries, a statutory instrument is a form of delegated legislation. United Kingdom Statutory instruments are the principal form of delegated or secondary legislation in the United Kingdom. National government Statutory instrument ...

References

External links

Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications
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Telecommunications in the Republic of Ireland Communications in the Republic of Ireland Energy in the Republic of Ireland Ministries established in 1921

Environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

1921 establishments in Ireland Environment of the Republic of Ireland