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 is to ban the cultivation of genetically modified (GM) produce, the country's rural ministry has announced. Rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead said he was not prepared to "gamble" with the future of Scotland's £14bn food and drink sector. The Scottish government intends to take advantage of new EU rules …
Opposition parties said Nicola Sturgeon’s government had to start dramatically cutting CO2 emissions from transport, housing and the public sector after the latest annual statistics showed Scotland missed its emissions target by 2m tonnes equivalent (mte) of CO2. Ministers at Holyrood said they planned to greatly increase investment in home …
Details of Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions for 2013 are due to be published. The figures are widely expected to show that the country has missed its climate change targets for the fourth year in a row. The Climate Change (Scotland) Act requires a minimum 42% cut in emissions by 2020 …
The Scottish energy minister has called for an “adult discussion” with the UK government over the future of windfarm subsidies, after writing to Amber Rudd to express his concern that Scotland is being shut out of discussions. In his letter to the secretary of state for energy and climate change, …
The call by WWF Scotland follows the publication of new figures revealing that there was enough sunshine in April to have met more than 100% of the electricity needs of an average home in Scotland or 99% or more of an average household’s hot water needs. Wind turbines in Scotland …
The Scottish Government has announced a £224m energy efficiency scheme to tackle fuel poverty in Scottish homes. The seven-year scheme, launching in September, will install heating, renewable energy and insulation upgrades in up to 28,000 households. It will reportedly bring financial benefits to tens of thousands of Scottish people by …
Zero Waste Scotland is recruiting more than 1,000 'zero waste volunteers' to support its mission to reduce food waste, boost recycling rates and promote re-use, repairing and sharing across the country. The Scottish Government-funded body is offering funding to organisations to help coordinate volunteer groups that will engage members of …
Scotland has met its 50% renewable electricity target a year ahead of schedule after a surge of 11.7% in the past year alone. Figures published today (26 March) by the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for renewable energy generation in 2014 reveal that 49.6% of gross electricity consumption …
Young adults in Scotland are the population group most likely to experience poverty, a report has said. Research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) found that one in four of those under the age of 30 is at risk of financial hardship. Its report said the poverty faced by young …
Scottish politicians should consider congestion charges, reducing speed limits and rethink plans to cut air passenger duty after Scotland again missed its climate targets, an influential advisory committee has said. The committee on climate change, the Scottish government’s official advisers, said far-reaching action was needed to reduce CO2 emissions after …
Congestion charges should be considered to help the Scottish government reach its climate change targets, a report has concluded. The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) said stronger policies were needed in transport, renewable heat, agriculture and forestry if targets were to be met. It warned plans to cut air passenger …
Zero Waste Scotland has published a new guide to help event organisers deliver environmentally sustainable events. The guide takes lessons from high profile events hosted by Scotland during 2014. Surplus energy demand at the Ryder Cup, for example, was met using a biofuel generator, which reduced the need for non-renewable …
Wave energy in Scotland will be boosted by £14.3m in funding over the next 13 months, thanks to new funding from the Scottish Government Energy Minister Fergus Ewing announced today that Wave Energy Scotland (WES) – the industry's new technology development group – will receive £1.3m for the remainder of …
Scottish Water has been fined after it accidentally polluted a river, killing nearly 5,000 fish. The body admitted polluting several kilometres of the River Farg with aluminium sulphate after an employee left a valve open at a water treatment facility in Perthshire. Perth Sheriff Court heard that virtually all the …
Campaigners in Scotland believe a series of imminent decisions could force the SNP government to come off the fence on fracking. This week SNP MPs will have an opportunity to vote on an amendment to the infrastructure bill, a proposed moratorium on fracking, which Friends of the Earth Scotland argues …
Scotland's streets continue to break European air quality standards as the country wrestles with an invisible "public health crisis" costing thousands of lives and billions of pounds. Analysis by environmental group Friends of Earth Scotland found dangerous levels of pollutants nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter in several of Scotland's …
Scotland’s electricity system could be powered almost entirely by renewables by 2030 and without the need for any gas, coal or nuclear power stations in Scotland, according to a new report published by WWF Scotland. Based on independent technical analysis by leading engineering and energy consultancy DNV GL, ‘Pathways to …
Since October sightseers on the hills above Edinburgh have gawped at a brand new landmark. Across the Firth of Forth, on a test site, stands the biggest wind turbine in Britain. The tips of its blades rise 196m above sea level. Its rotor sweeps an area twice as large as …
