A host of industry leaders, academia and government scientists and policy experts have turned out in force for a climate action conference in Dublin.

The annual Geological Survey Ireland Conference, Geoscience2019: Geoscience for Climate Action, will focus on geoscience activity in Ireland and how the community can focus efforts to deliver the objectives set out in the Government's Climate Action Plan.

Launching the event today, 05 November, Minister of State for Natural Resources and Rural Development Seán Canney TD said: "I am delighted that this conference is tackling the most serious issue facing us today of Climate Change and to see the progress across so many areas being reported by Geological Survey Ireland and their partners. This includes vital work in rural areas such as groundwater flood mapping being developed for OPW, which is delivering a commitment made in the Programme for Government. Geological Survey Ireland is also progressing its tasks under the Climate Action Plan 2019 in relation to offshore renewables, geothermal energy and the Just Transition in the Midlands."

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The one-day conference is being held at the Aviva Stadium, and will address four main topics: Water; Coastal & Geohazards: Raw Materials for Sustainable Development; and Decarbonising Energy.

The conference also features a range of new climate change initiatives including Ireland's first predictive maps and monitoring network for groundwater and Turlough flooding and the development of a new coastal erosion monitoring system using satellite data.

The conference will close with a panel discussion by the heads of Geological Survey of Northern Ireland, The Institute for Geologists of Ireland, the Irish Centre for Research in Applied Geoscience, and a Climate Policy expert in the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment on the future role of geoscience in tackling climate change.

(CM/JG)