Sir, – Orla Kelleher, Clare Kelly and Aideen O’Dochartaigh (Connolly could prevent an assault on climate laws, July 9th) deal with two subjects relevant to emissions: modification of the Climate Act to allow for strategic natural gas reserves, and the cap on Dublin Airport passenger capacity. However, they totally ignore a fundamental factor in the discussion: demographics. This is a shame.It is an undeniable fact that the Irish population is both growing and ageing. This means a greater need for energy stability – more than can be supplied by renewables for a long time to come. There have been great strides in this area, but we are still a long, long way short of what would be needed to replace fossil fuels. We also need transport connections with the rest of the world. For one thing, our ageing population will require more immigration. For another, we have a need to hedge against the risk inherent in our concentration of government revenues from corporation and payroll taxes from a small number of multinationals. That hedge will come from tourism: Ireland is now a haven from the extreme heat events that are plaguing other parts of the globe, so we can expect this revenue stream to only increase. All of this means more and more air travel. Whether the capacity for that is supplied by Dublin Airport, or by a transfer of travelling habits to other airports, the result will be the same. This means that maintaining the passenger cap at Dublin is only fiddling at the edges of the issue. It also means that proposed solutions, such as those suggested by the authors of your article, need to recognise and deal with the complexities of the issues involved. – Yours, etc, SEAMUS McKENNA,Maynooth,Co Kildare