Will the ‘little green men’ get their way in Donegal?

Little green men are the stereotypical portrayal of extraterrestrials as little humanoid creatures with green skin and sometimes with antennae on their heads ...the stuff of science fiction, right?

Maybe not.

The new threat of little green men is with us right now and they are members of a political party. Maybe you don't see the green skin or the antennae but the green is going to their heads.

I think most of us are singing off the same hymn sheet when it comes to looking after the environment and there's no denying there is plenty to do but proposals this week in the Government's Climate Action Plan, heavily influenced by the Green Party, really makes you wonder if some of their policies are really applicable outside The Pale.

The plan will affect most areas of our economy and in some cases, that's not a bad thing but you can't just ride in like a knight in shining armour and suddenly save the princess.

Measures to reduce the number of car journeys taken, reduce on-street parking and prioritise active travel, the use of public transport, congestion charges in areas where there are viable alternative transport options available, a reduction in car-parking spaces and higher parking charges might look great in a Green Party manifesto but from a practical perspective, it's a little too wild west for me.

Telling us, and particularly here in Donegal, to cut our car journeys and indeed convert to electric cars by 2030 is bordering on the daft. Don't get me started on the core component of these costly electric cars, lithium. This metal is used to make lithium-ion batteries for electric cars, solar panels and other green technologies, and the damage mining for that stuff is doing in many Third World countries is another story.

Time to strike a greener balance that can work for places like Donegal

There is no doubt the powers that be have targets to meet in relation to climate action and carbon efficiency but has anyone taken out a map of this county and pointed out how far we are behind places like The Pale when it comes to transport? I'd love to see Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment, Climate, Communications and Transport, Eamon Ryan take a bike ride up through Meenaroy in the snow or navigate Glengesh with a delivery bag over his shoulder.

New road infrastructure is making good progress here but to be honest we're only playing catch-up with the rest of the country. Now if the Government and their little green men force us to change tact and go over the top green, many projects needed to bring us up to speed may fall by the wayside. We don't have the luxury of embracing all the green alternatives. Lord knows, getting anything done here can present more hurdles than the Grand National. More green stoppages will keep us in a Stone Age-type situation.

I'm not saying ignore the climate crisis, far from it but let's call a turf spade a turf spade, some policies need to be tailored to suit where we're at right now. The clock is ticking yes, but there should be other ways to save the planet. Rushing headfirst into costly and dramatic changes won't win support and definitely won't speed things up. 

Yes, climate action must boldly go where no policy has gone before ...but the little green men must get to know the realities too.