News archive - June 2008

Week Ending 6th June 2008

Climate Challenge Fund

The new £18.8 million Climate Challenge Fund, which will support community-led action to reduce emissions, has been officially launched by Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead and Scottish Green MSP Patrick Harvie.

At the launch at Glasgow's Shawlands Academy, an eco-school, Mr Lochhead said: ?Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing us today, both here in Scotland and across the world. We want Scotland to be part of the global solution. There are many things we can do as individuals to reduce our carbon emissions, but by acting and working together as communities we can do much more. That's why the Climate Challenge Fund is so important. It will empower communities to take action to reduce their carbon footprint and make a real difference to the local and national environment.?

The scheme is intended to help deliver innovative solutions at a local level such as becoming more energy efficient, encouraging people to walk and cycle more, and using local, sustainable food. It is open to applications from organisations including the voluntary sector, charities, schools, colleges, universities, local authorities and housing partnerships. Information about how to apply to the fund can be found at this website http://www.itsourfuture.co.uk/climate_challenge_fund/index.html

'One stop' Energy Shop

A new advice network has been launched with the aim of helping people in Scotland to cut their fuel bills. The Energy Saving Scotland advice network will offer free advice on energy efficiency, small scale renewables and sustainable transport. The ?shop? will help customers access grants from the Scottish Government and energy supply companies and, for the first time, will offer an energy home help service.

Energy Minister Jim Mather said, "For the first time, the Energy Saving Scotland advice network will give a range of advice in one place - on energy efficiency, on the most suitable microgeneration technology and on sustainable transport. Having these components together allows consumers to consider wider opportunities of how they can reduce their energy use and their impact on the environment.?

The Energy Saving Scotland advice network (ESSac) is funded by the Scottish Government and managed by the Energy Saving Trust. Its services are provided on a regional basis (Ayr, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Highlands), by experienced and expert local organisations working under contract to the Energy Saving Trust, giving full geographical coverage across Scotland. The ESSac network replaces and upgrades the previous network of Energy Efficiency Advice Centres which focused on energy efficiency. The new network covers the full sustainable energy agenda of energy efficiency, microrenewables and personal transport. The new ESSac network has targets to more than double the number of customers to 250,000 each year and quadruple the potential carbon savings to 400,000 tonnes of lifetime carbon.

Napier University Signs Research Agreement on Biofuels

Napier University has signed an agreement with the Chinese consortium Breeze Global Inc., which will form the basis of a partnership to further the development of second-generation biofuel from waste products.

The Biofuel Research Centre, launched at Napier University several months ago, is committed to researching and developing second-generation biofuel from a potentially diverse range of non-food crops and waste matter. The Centre has already secured £500,000 in research funding to study biofuel and hopes to act as a portal between industry, government, academia and the public; giving accurate and consistent messages across all relevant parties.

The agreement with Breeze Global Inc will focus on working with local partners in the research and development of new technologies and microbial strains related to the biological processing of local biowastes for the production of biofuel.

Asda Reconsiders Wind Turbines

Asda has revealed that it has resubmitted plans to Falkirk Council to build a single wind turbine to power its distribution centre at Bankside, Falkirk. Last December, councillors on the regulatory committee turned down a similar request because of concerns .
about the potential visual impact of the 125 metre tall turbine, the lack of community benefit and whether alternative means could be used to generate green energy.

The proposed turbine should be able to produce up to 75 per cent of the centre's energy needs and is expected to stop the release of over 5000 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year.

Hydrogen Fuel Plant for Asco and Buchan

ASCO and Buchan CHP, the company behind plans to build a green energy plant in Peterhead, have joined forces to develop proposals for one of the first hydrogen fuel production plants in Scotland.

The development which would be centred on Buchan CHP's proposed residual waste-to-energy plant, follows a recent announcement about the company's plans for the first dedicated oilseed rape commercial-scale biodiesel plant in Scotland at Peterhead. Buchan CHP unveiled its plans in February for the £50m waste-to-energy plant that would incinerate a third of the north-east's rubbish and produce enough power for approximately 10,000 homes. A planning application is currently with Aberdeenshire Council.

The new plans would see the creation of a hydrogen production plant which would be powered from the energy produced by using the region's residual, non-hazardous waste as a fuel source.

Week Ending 13th June 2008

Stirling Aims to be Carbon Neutral

A total of £1.25m, from the Government and the Big Lottery Fund, has been given to the community-led project, Going Carbon Neutral Stirling (GCNS), which hopes to reduce the area's environmental impact. The target is to bring down average annual carbon dioxide levels from 12 tonnes, the average in Scotland, to one tonne per person per year.

Residents will be encouraged to do things like turning their washing machines down, switching off lights and changing their shopping habits to buy local and seasonal produce. At the same time businesses will be urged to recycle and use energy saving light bulbs.

GCNS will be administered through Keep Scotland Beautiful.

Turbine Powers School

Currie Community High School has become the first in Edinburgh to be part-powered by wind energy. The new turbine will supply an alternative source of power to run electrical systems such as heating the swimming pool. The turbine was funded by the Council's sustainable development unit with a grant from the Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative and the Energy Savings Trust.

The school is one of just six in Scotland to have been involved in the Secondary Schools Partnership Project, which promotes renewable energy technology in schools.

£10m for the Greening of Glasgow
Glasgow Council?s Executive Committee is considering how a £10m cash injection could improve the city's green credentials. Currently only 18.1% of rubbish is recycled in Glasgow with another 250,000 tonnes going to landfill each year. The council now plans to spend an extra £1.3m on improving its recycling record. An extra 5,000 blue bins will go to single properties, plus 20,000 brown bins for garden refuse, while another 5,000 "difficult to access" properties will be added to recycling collections. And an extra £40,000 will be spent on replacement bins for multiple occupancy properties.

A number of other environmental initiatives are planned including improved safety measures around schools and notorious accident hot spots, as well as extending the bike loan scheme and a substantial amount of further money will go towards new and improved play areas and upgrading neglected ground in housing schemes.

The money for these developments will come from Glasgow City Council, Glasgow Housing Association and the Scottish Government.

In a separate long-term plan the city council aims to spend £135million on an autoclave system which will help to improve its record on recycling. This system will pre-treat and process waste into organic material. It will mean 80% of rubbish in Glasgow will be recycled by 2013.

£70m Recycling Plant Planned
Plans have been unveiled for a £70m state-of-the-art recycling facility near Bathgate, in West Lothian. The proposed plant would be big enough to handle all of the area's commercial, industrial and domestic waste.

Waste recycling company Scotwaste has put forward the plan which would be built by Banks Developments. The plans have yet to be considered by West Lothian Council.

Ponds Industrial Estate, two miles south-west of Bathgate, has been earmarked for the site. Advanced technologies which would be used at the plant include anaerobic digestion, where waste is broken down by micro-organisms. A separate area would use gasification, a form of burning, to create synthetic diesel. Scotwaste claims it would be the first site in the UK to combine all these treatments.

Wind Farm Approved

Ministers have approved the 60 Megawatt, 20 turbine Carraig Gheal wind farm near Kilchrenan. It is expected to be capable of powering about 32,000 homes; a third of those in Argyll and Bute.

In November 2004, Green Power (Carraig Gheal) Ltd applied for consent to construct and operate a wind farm comprising 24 turbines, with a maximum installed capacity of 72 MW. Following the consultation round, the development layout was changed and the number of turbines reduced to 20 to address visual impact and bird issues.

Conditions imposed by the consent include:

? prior to work starting, a construction method statement, an environmental management plan, a pollution prevention plan and a traffic management plan must be approved by Argyll and Bute Council;
? prior to work starting, a bird monitoring programme to protect local bird populations must be approved by the Council in consultation with SNH.

Week Ending 20th June 2008

Methane into Energy

Dumfries and Galloway Council, in partnership with the Manchester-based company Ener-g, is launching a 15-year scheme turning methane gas into energy. It is hoped to create enough energy to power 700 homes and cut carbon emissions by approximately 20,000 tonnes.

The project will be based at Locharmoss Waste Disposal site near Dumfries and means that the local authority is now no longer responsible for controlling and disposing of the methane produced. The site has been capped with plastic to prevent methane escaping into the atmosphere and wells have been drilled to transfer the gas to a compact generator unit where the electricity conversion process takes place.

Green Homes for Ravenscraig

Four show homes incorporating green technology are to be built at the "innovation park" at the former Ravenscraig steelworks in the hope of influencing the future of house-building in Scotland.

The Building Research Establishment (BRE) has given construction companies until 26 June to express an interest; construction should begin next year and be completed by 2010. BRE Scotland said the development would address issues such as affordability, energy efficiency, recycled materials, carbon emissions and sustainable methods of construction. It hopes to channel more than £2m of new technology investment into the project and build on lessons learned by its first demonstrator centre in England.

Methil Wind Turbine Approved

The planning application to erect an 81-metre wind turbine at Methil Docks has been approved. The turbine proposal had been opposed by some parts of the community but, following consultations, Scottish Natural Heritage withdrew the objection it made to the plan while others, including Transportation Services, BEAR Scotland and Trunk Road Network Management, approved it with conditions.

SEPA and Environmental Services supported the plan while the RSPB and the Civil Aviation Authority offered comments.

Scottish Power and Strathclyde University Joint Energy Venture

ScottishPower and the University of Strathclyde have joined together to set up an advanced research centre at the University to develop new technologies for the energy business. The partnership will receive £150,000 a year in financing from ScottishPower, which is owned by Spanish energy group Iberdrola. It will use the skills of researchers from the University's department of electronic and electrical engineering, the largest academic centre of electrical power and energy expertise in Europe.

The centre is expected to create cost savings and efficiencies for ScottishPower. Research will focus on three main areas: power network development, asset engineering and asset strategy.

Islanders Community Lottery Grant

Islanders on Tiree are a step closer to harnessing renewable energy as a source of community income with the news of an £888,259 investment from the Big Lottery Fund. The Tiree Community Development Trust, which plans to build a community-owned and managed wind turbine, is one of 11 organisations across Scotland sharing in more than £2million from the Growing Community Assets scheme.

The Tiree grant will contribute to the construction of a community-owned and managed wind turbine at Ruiag, which will generate about £3.9million over 25 years. Electricity produced by the turbine will be sold to the national grid and the money from sales will be used to support community development on Tiree.

Fuel Efficiency for the Fishing Industry

An expert group has been established to develop fuel efficiency measures for the Scottish fishing fleet. The Fuel Efficiency Expert Group will be chaired by Paul Williams, Director of Seafish, and will report its initial findings to the Fuel Task Force within three weeks.

By August the Task Force will advise on:

Action by all parts of the industry, associated sectors and all levels of government to reduce the cost of fuel
A fuel efficiency scheme, in particular incentives to be offered under the European Fisheries Fund for steps designed to reduce fuel consumption
Further reductions in non-fuel costs

It will also advise on longer term measures such as fishing practices and the transportation of produce to markets by February 2009. A five point action plan to help the Scottish fishing industry counter the effects of rising fuel costs was announced by Mr Lochhead on May 12, 2008.

Week Ending 27th June 2008

Scotland's Largest Solar Panel System

The roof of Glasgow Sheriff Court now has Scotland's largest solar panel generating system which will deliver 97kWp of electricity in optimum conditions. The £500,000 solar panels cover 700 m² of the roof and their location is such that they are rarely affected by shade from other buildings. It is hoped the move to solar power will save £20,000 in energy expenditure and offset nearly forty tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.

Chief Executive of the Scottish Court Service, Eleanor Emberson said, "Even with the Scottish weather, the system can generate enough electricity from the outset to cover our out of hours usage. We are planning further investment on building and energy management systems to significantly cut the Court's energy consumption, which will mean the solar panels can contribute even more of our power requirements?.

The Scottish Court Service received a grant from the Low Carbon Buildings Programme which covered 50 per cent of the materials and installation costs. The system is expected to have a working life of around forty years. The Scottish Courts Service is now planning to install a ground source heat pump to support the energy requirements of Lochmaddy Sheriff Court in the Western Isles.

Retail Scheme Launches Green Lease

Land Securities has launched a ?green lease? at its Elements shopping centre in Livingston. Almost all the prospective tenants of the 375,000 sq ft centre, which is due to open in October, have signed the new style lease. The most radical clause effectively says the landlord can pursue its environmental agenda without having to always settle for the cheapest option.
It states: ?The landlord is entitled to carry out the services and incur service expenditure in accordance with its obligations under clause 7 [which relates to cutting carbon], notwithstanding that a more economic alternative may be available.? In the other green clauses, the landlord and tenant agree that they wish to reduce carbon emissions and will co-operate with each other to cut energy use and water consumption, and reduce and recycle waste. They also agree to abide by energy management plans and to share information about their energy consumption

Ayrshire Wind Farms Approved

Two wind farms capable of generating electricity for 117,000 homes have been approved for South Ayrshire. The 60-turbine Arecleoch wind farm near Barrhill, which is set to be the fourth largest in Scotland, will be able to generate electricity for 76,000 homes, while the 28-turbine Mark Hill wind farm will generate power for 41,000 homes.

UK Reveals Ambitious Renewable Energy Plans

The Government has outlined plans showing how the UK can meet its 2020 renewables obligation, saying that it would lead changes to work towards 30 to 35 per cent of the UK's electricity coming from renewable sources.

While reducing climate change is the driver behind the target, the Prime Minister stressed how working on this objective would create new jobs, boost the economy and increase energy security. Mr Brown told a low carbon summit in London that Britain must achieve a "clean economy" and that it is about to undergo a "green revolution in the making".

Promising that the next few years would see the "most dramatic change in our energy policy since the advent of nuclear power", Mr Brown outlined the proposals. There would be a ten-fold increase in the current use of renewables, with the North Sea becoming to wind power what the Gulf of Arabia is for the oil industry" with a £100bn investment to support this. By 2020 about 3,000 offshore wind turbines will have been installed in British waters and there will have to be about 4000 more onshore wind farms
Energy from waste and biomass, solar panels and microgeneration technologies will also play a role in reaching the goal.

Scotland?s Targets for 2050 ?? Emission Impossible?

The Energy Saving Trust paints a bleak picture for Scotland if it fails to meet its targets for 2050. A new survey report, ?Emission Impossible? commissioned by the Trust concludes that steps must be taken now to make sure the whole of the UK is on course to reduce its carbon output.

It even suggests that persistent offenders could be forced to go to energy rehab and take energy addiction classes. Over half the people who took part in the survey agreed with the idea of Carbon Police, enforcing strict environmental laws.

However, according to the EST, if everyone took simple steps now to help the environment, the day to day quality of our lives would not be affected. The report suggests that if these simple measures are taken to reduce carbon emmisions by 2020, then Scotland and the rest of the UK will be on course to meet the major targets set for 2050