A coastal commuter county for Dublin, Wicklow is getting hit from all sides by climate change

Climate change impacts counties in different ways. Wicklow is in a strong position halfway through the decade. In 2019, the county council was the first local authority in the country to declare a climate and biodiversity emergency, in direct response to calls from students for more action.

The local authority was also the first in the country to establish a Climate and Biodiversity Action Strategic Policy Committee to co-ordinate its policy response on climate and biodiversity.

Wicklow encompasses 21 towns, some of which fall within the Greater Dublin area. The county covers an area of 2,027 sq km and has over 60km of coastline.

Alongside the Wicklow Mountains and Wicklow National Park (which protect almost 57,000 acres of land), the county has 17 special areas of conservation, 35 proposed natural heritage areas, four special protection areas and six nature reserves.

In line with global trends, the climate of Wicklow is under constant threat, with temperatures and sea-levels rising, and the rate of extreme weather events increasing.

Part of the Bray to Greystones cliff walk is closed as a direct result of climate change. Photo: Getty

It is estimated that fires in June 2018 cost Wicklow County Council an additional €170,000. Heavy snowfall associated with Storm Emma in 2018 left many local roads impassable, with several metres of snow accumulating in some areas.

The county’s coastline is subject to coastal erosion, which has had significant impacts upon coastal habitats and the coastal railway. Part of the Bray to Greystones cliff walk is closed indefinitely due to rock falls near Bray and a landslide at the Greystones end of the walk in 2022.

Coastal erosion is also occurring at the Murrough in Wicklow town, which has led to the loss of coastal meadow.

The railway corridor required urgent works in 2016 and again in 2023, resulting in the development of coastal defences to reduce the risk of further damage.

Residents in the county are very car dependant, with the M11 a main artery extending as far as Enniscorthy in Co Wexford.

Other regional connections include the N81 in west Wicklow, which stretches from Tallaght, west Dublin, past Tullow, Co Carlow. The route remains the only national road out of the capital that has never been upgraded.

The coastal town of Arklow is Co Wicklow’s decarbonising zone. Photo: Getty

Wicklow’s main arteries are notorious for traffic during morning and evening rush hours.

As part of the county’s Climate Action Plan, the coastal town of Arklow has been chosen as a pilot decarbonising zone with the target to reduce emissions by 7pc a year until national targets of halving emissions by 2030 are reached.

Addressing the severe shortage of public transport in the county will be one way to achieve this goal, as the majority of travel-related emissions in the county come from private car and commercial vehicle usage. The lack of viable alternatives was one of the main issues raised during public consultation ahead of the drafting of the action plan.

Some progress has been made in improving rural and urban bus services since the start of the decade, including the introduction of a route between Arklow train station and Sallins, Co Kildare; another between Wicklow town and Bray; and a new 24-hour route between Bray and north Dublin under the BusConnects programme.

Additionally, the rail station at Woodbrook, which closed in 1960, has re-opened for Dart services.

The Dart line will be extended from Greystones to Wicklow town. Photo: Getty

A Luas extension to Bray is not planned until 2036, but it is hoped that a Dart extension from Greystones to Wicklow town could be running with electric carriages by 2030.

The Dublin to Rosslare rail line is severely underutilised, with only six trains per day in each direction. The infrastructure is also ageing rapidly, with weekend closures implemented on a regular basis to maintain the line.

Like the rest of Ireland, the Garden County has experienced severe biodiversity loss since the beginning of this century. The main pressure points include invasive and problematic species, unsustainable land-use and development, recreation impacts, and pollution.

Mark Costello is climate change co-ordinator for the local authority. He says a great deal of public consultation went into the draft action plan.

Nine of the 15 submissions received related to Brittas Bay, coastal erosion and offshore wind turbines. Others related to rural transport within the west of Wicklow, active travel, biodiversity, nature-based solutions, and rivers, allotments and community gardens.

The action plan contains 112 actions for the county, with 23 specifically relevant to the Arklow decarbonising zone.

Everyone is taking climate action very seriously

“There’s been a lot of positive work in relation to climate change, and this came within stakeholder engagement. It became very obvious that everyone is taking climate action very seriously,” Mr Costello said.

The local authority must track and report on how they are delivering a reduction of emissions and helping to build resilience on the negative impacts of climate change within the county, with quarterly reports to councillors.

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“We must influence sectors such as business, communities and individuals in the delivery of local climate action,” Mr Costello said. “We need to co-ordinate and facilitate, bring together the key stakeholders and delivery of a climate action within the county, and advocate by raising awareness on climate-related issues and responses.”

There are three major projects happening in the Arklow decarbonising zone.

“We have the flood defence scheme, the wastewater treatment plant – which was completed earlier this year – and possibly phase two for the offshore Arklow wind bank,” Mr Costello said.

The wastewater treatment plan in Arklow. Photo: Getty

“We are also going to look to put in a shared travel scheme within Arklow, we are going to look to retrofit the civic amenity site for [solar panels], and we are going to support the work of the Arklow Sustainable Energy Community.”

“We will be looking at tree surveys, and promote the development of the circular economy, including waste minimisation,” he added.

It was found that, for the period 2024, 88pc of the actions in the action plan had commenced, with 40pc of these classified as ‘In progress’ (with delivery timelines that extend to a period greater than a 12- month period). Out of the 112 actions in the plan, 38pc are actions that are partially completed, but recur annually.

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Further measures can be updated and added during the process of the plan, but Mr Costello said obstacles exist.

“The main challenge for all local authorities is funding and staff resources. As we all know, the effects of climate change can be reduced the quicker we take the actions,” he said.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme