This publication explores the consequences of severe weather in 2017/2018 on Scottish agriculture, with respect to livestock numbers, fodder supplies, crop production and other related topics. The overall losses to Scottish livestock and crops are estimated at £161 million, equivalent to 6 percent of total output in 2017. The biggest …
Scotland’s climate emissions have broken through a landmark reductions target six years early after a warm winter helped drive down energy use. The Scottish climate change secretary, Roseanna Cunningham, said she was delighted that the country’s emissions had fallen by nearly 46% between 1990 and 2014, surpassing the government’s 2020 …
Pathways leading to socioeconomic inequalities in young children's body mass index (BMI) are not well understood. This study examined whether parenting related to the physical and social context of children's food consumption helped to explain associations between maternal educational level and child BMI trajectory. Original Source
In a first, researchers have shown that a fungus can transform manganese into a mineral composite with favourable electrochemical properties — paving the way for a better rechargeable battery in the near future. The findings suggest that fungus Neurospora crassa , which is present in a red bread mould, could …
Scotland's national football stadium has reduced its water consumption by 35% in the space of 15 months after installing monitoring equipment which identified anomalies and spikes in water usage. The 52,000-seater Hampden Park stadium in Glasgow installed automated meter reading (AMR) devices, which automatically collect data on the site’s water …
Green groups, opposition parties and renewable energy industry bodies have unanimously called on the Scottish Government to embrace 'demand response' energy efficiency measures in favour of building more costly and dirty fossil fuel power stations. WWF Scotland, Scottish Renewables and the Scottish Greens have all told edie of the need …
It could be the mildest 22 December since records began, with forecasters saying the unsettled weather sweeping across Britain could last until Christmas Eve. The uncharacteristically mild temperature on this year’s winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, means the Greater London area is the most likely to beat …
Pearl mussels may be extinct from several rivers in Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has warned. A new survey commissioned by SNH suggests 114 Scottish watercourses support populations of one of the UK's rarest freshwater molluscs. However, the shellfish were missing from 11 rivers where they were previously found. SNH …
Manmade climate change was partly responsible for Storm Desmond’s torrential rain which devastated parts of Scotland, the Lake District and Northern Ireland, scientists have concluded. The researchers at Oxford University and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) calculated that climate change had made the flooding event 40% more likely, with …
The first minister says Scotland's role in tackling climate change has received international recognition Scotland is to invest an extra £12m over four years to tackle the impact of climate change on the world's poorest communities. The funding will see the Scottish government's Climate Justice Fund double in size to …
Oil major Royal Dutch Shell was handed a 22,500 pound ($33,919) fine by a local Scottish court on Tuesday for a 2011 oil spill in the North Sea that was the largest in more than a decade. A subsea pipeline leak from Shell's Gannet Alpha field spilled more than 200 …
The Scottish government has granted consent for the world’s largest floating offshore windfarm to be developed off the coast of Peterhead. Oil and gas giant Statoil will build a 135GWh pilot park consisting of five floating 6MW turbines, which could power nearly 20,000 homes. The project will be the UK’s …
Offshore wind farms could pose a more serious threat to Scotland's globally important gannet population than previously thought, scientists claim. It is thought twelve times as many gannets could be killed by the turbines than previous estimates. It follows research which showed the seabirds fly at greater heights when searching …
Northern peatlands have been accumulating organic matter since the start of the Holocene, and are now a substantial store of terrestrial carbon. However, their current status as carbon sinks is less clear, because of the possible effects of climate change, air pollution, grazing and drainage etc., and the difficulties of …
Dental caries is one of the most common diseases of childhood. The aim of this study was to compare the cost of providing the Scotland-wide nursery toothbrushing programme with associated National Health Service (NHS) cost savings from improvements in the dental health of five-year-old children: through avoided dental extractions, fillings …
Sixty electric cars took part in a rally between Stirling and Glasgow over the weekend to celebrate the launch of a new electric vehicle (EV) subsidy. The sixty-mile round trip, led by Scrapheap Challenge presenter Robert Llewellyn in his Tesla, cost drivers around £1.50, compared to £9 for a petrol-powered …
The party leaders have promised their manifestos will be consistent with Scotland's Climate Change Act The leaders of Scotland's five main political parties have promised to set out plans on how they will tackle climate change and reduce emissions. An agreement was brokered by WWF Scotland ahead of the Holyrood …
Germany has reportedly begun taking steps towards banning the use of all genetically modified crops. New rules will allow individual member states to block farmers from using GM organisms, even if the variety has been approved on an EU-wide basis. Scotland became the first country to opt out of bloc-wide …
The report says less should be spent on projects that increase energy use - which could include roads Scotland needs to shift a fifth of its spending on new buildings and transport towards backing for its targets of big cuts in carbon emissions, a new study has claimed. A report …
New figures have revealed the massive amount of small-scale renewable projects deployed in Scotland, but industry figures warned that further development could be crippled by recent subsidy cuts. Scotland is now home to around 660,000 250W solar panels, 2,557 small wind projects, 204 hydro-electric schemes and three anaerobic digesters, according …
Nearly 30 organisations sign open letter accusing Scottish environment secretary of taking political decision not based on scientific evidence A powerful group of scientists and academic bodies has urged the Scottish government to rethink its ban on growing GM crops, with a warning that it would damage farming, healthcare and …
