Working together to deliver a low carbon future for Scotland
A new target to generate the equivalent of half of Scotland’s electricity needs from renewable energy by 2015 has been set by the first minister. Alex Salmond revealed the target at the RenewableUK conference in Glasgow. The SNP claimed the new goal was achievable, after the government confirmed Scotland had beaten a 31% target for 2011 by about 4%.
A conference in London on Wednesday has agreed an ambitious target of cutting gas flaring by 30% over five years. Flaring mostly happens in remote areas where gas at the surface as an oil by-product cannot be brought to consumers. The World Bank says $50bn (£31bn) in fuel goes up in polluting smoke every year, and that the target represents the equivalent of taking 52 million cars off the road. Environmentalists have said that flaring …
The UK cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than any other European country last year, over-achieving on targets under the Kyoto protocol on climate change. Some of the reduction was owing to milder weather and an increase in renewable energy generation, but the sluggish economy is also likely to have contributed. France and Germany also made sizeable cuts in emissions, but Spain and Italy are lagging and are in danger of missing their Kyoto targets, according to figures released by the …
Royal Bank of Scotland and Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) were praised by transport campaigners today for slashing staff air travel and introducing “no fly” months. RBS has cut plane journeys within Britain by 40 per cent this year compared to 2011, and increased train trips by 10 per cent, a report by Transform Scotland showed.
The Scotsman »
Scotland has failed to meet its first legally binding climate change target. The first Scottish Greenhouse Gas Emissions Annual Target Report states that Scotland emitted 54.7 megatons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2010, 1.1 megatons above the target set by the Climate Change Act 2009. At Holyrood, Environment Minister Paul Wheelhouse blamed “exceptional cold snaps”, “year-to-year fluctuations”, “factors beyond our control”, “budget constraints”, “the challenging financial environment” and data revisions for the rise. But Labour accused the Scottish …
The Scotsman »
