Climate change protestors outside Derry’s Guildhall in 2019
She was speaking after the Economy Committee received a briefing which stated that Northern Ireland would not be fully decarbonised until 2100.
Foyle MLA Ms McLaughlin said: “It is welcome that progress has been made in our transition towards renewable energy, but we are still a long way off from achieving the NI Change Act target of generating 80% of our energy from renewables by 2030.
“If we are to meet our target, then we must increase our renewable electricity generation by more than 200% as we seek to meet the growth in demand for electrifying transport and heat.
“We must also make substantial changes to our infrastructure if we are to continue in our transition towards net-zero. When compared to the rest of the UK, we are significantly behind in our current capacity to grow our use of renewables.
“It is also unacceptable that we are still building the houses of the past. We remain stuck with building regulations that are not fit for purpose.
“If we are to plan for the future, then we must have planning and building processes which reflects that and the need for planning reforms is urgent.
“The Executive must tackle the sensitivity around renewables and must seek to rebuild trust within the sector and the wider community.
“Investments must be turned into revenue streams to generate greater growth for our transition to renewables.
“The cost of doing nothing is much greater than the cost of intervention.’’
