Cork to Receive €800,000 in New EU Climate Funding

Cork City Council is set to receive €800,000 in new government funding to accelerate climate action across the city, as part of a €2 million package announced for Cork, Dublin and Galway under the EU Climate Neutral and Smart Cities Mission.

Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment Darragh O'Brien has approved the funding, known as the Cities Mission Accelerator Fund, the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment has confirmed.

Cork and Dublin will each receive €800,000, while Galway City will receive €400,000. The funding forms part of a wider package supporting 21 strategic, city led proposals aimed at reducing emissions, supporting resilience and adaptation, and improving quality of life across the three cities.

In Cork, the funding will go towards extending transport network sensors across the city. The project will provide data to help manage demand for car travel and support a shift towards more sustainable ways of getting around.

David Joyce, Director of Service for the Emergency Management and Climate Action Directorate, Cork City Council:

"Cork City Council warmly welcomes the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment's significant financial support this year – to accelerate climate action in Cork City. We are using this funding to help decarbonise public buildings, better manage and monitor the transport network, retrofit heritage homes, and build our capacity to deliver. This funding will help us to build momentum towards our goal of Cork as a net-zero, climate-resilient city as soon as possible."

Cork was selected for the EU Climate Neutral and Smart Cities Mission from more than 300 applicant cities in April 2022, alongside Dublin. Galway City was selected separately for the EU Pilot Cities Programme. The mission aims to support 100 cities across the EU to reach climate neutrality by 2030, paving the way for all European cities to do so by 2050.

In May 2025, Cork and Dublin were awarded a Mission label, recognising that their Climate City Contracts, which set out how the cities plan to reach climate neutrality by 2030, had been approved by the European Commission and the European Investment Bank.

Elsewhere in the package, Dublin's funding will support a series of local events aimed at reducing food waste, while Galway's allocation will fund a green roof and permeable paving at a local authority owned building.

Minister Darragh O'Brien, Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment:

"Local authorities are at the forefront of climate action in Ireland. This new Cities Mission Accelerator Fund will support our three largest cities to deliver meaningful, place-based climate action and will assist them on their path to climate neutrality. Reaching climate neutrality in these cities will help them to become places which provide citizens with a good quality of life by reducing pollution, providing safer transport, and creating more sustainable communities."

Since 2022, the Department has provided over €19 million to local authorities nationwide to support their Local Authority Climate Action Plans, which include locally identified Decarbonising Zones targeting emissions reduction, biodiversity and climate adaptation. Councils are also supported by the Climate Action Regional Offices and the Local Authority Climate Action Training Programme, which has received a commitment of over €1.7 million in funding between 2024 and 2027.