News archive - Week ending 6th July 2007

Scotland Hits 25% Recycling Target for 2006/07

According to the most recent figures published by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), Scotland narrowly beat its household waste recycling and composting target for 2006/07. According to the new league tables the 32 local authorities achieved a combined recycling rate of 25.3%, equivalent to almost 860,000 tonnes of municipal waste

The Scottish Executive set a 25% target for 06/07 and now wants 30% of household waste recycled by 2008 and 55% by 2020. Clackmannanshire was top of the table with a rate of 41.3%, followed by South Ayrshire with 37.4%. The Shetland Islands was bottom of the league with a 10% rate and Eilean Siar was in second last position with 11.7%. Glasgow's rate was 15.7% and Edinburgh hit 22.6%.

The Environment Minister said that although the figures were encouraging some local authorities will need to do better. Ewart McAuslane, Head of Environmental Services for Clackmannanshire Council, said the local authority, in partnership with Stirling and Falkirk (who achieved rates of 34.2% and 31.1% respectively), was one of the first to secure funding under phase one of the Strategic Waste Fund. He stressed that funding was vital for councils to achieve increasingly higher recycling rates.

Scots Heavy Users of Power Hungry Gadgets

A study commissioned by the Energy Saving Trust suggests that the growing popularity of hi-tech devices, such as flat-screen TVs and digital radios, threatens to undermine efforts to save energy. UK consumers spend £12bn a year on electronics and research shows that despite popular belief many modern gadgets use more electricity than older equipment. Well over half of Scots said they automatically assumed they were more efficient. An old-fashioned, bulky cathode ray tube TV on average consumed about 100 watts of electricity when it was switched on but newer flat screen televisions on average use three times that amount. Digital radios were also singled out by the report as being energy intensive

The study 'The Ampere Strikes Back' calculated that by 2020, gadgets will account for about 45% of electricity used in UK households and need the equivalent of 14 power stations just to keep them working. By that time televisions on standby could consume 1.4% of all domestic electricity.

Sales of gadgets such as computers and set top boxes have soared in Scotland in recent years. On average those north of the border spend more time online than other parts of the UK, and about 16 hours a week watching TV. Scots appeared to be the worst offenders for leaving computers and other equipment on standby.

The Ampere Strikes Back report found Scots that:

- 93% of Scottish homes have a PC or laptop
- Scots spend an average of 23 hours a week online
- 35% of Scots leave their computer on standby for more than three hours a day
- 61% of Scottish homes have a set top box
- 44% of Scots leave their set top box on standby for more than three hours
- 32% of Scots leave their TV on standby for more than three hours

Bill Proposes to Reward Homes Using Green Energy

Edinburgh Central MSP Sarah Boyack has revived her plan to give a council tax discount to people who install windmills or solar panels on their homes. The cash incentive would also apply to other green technologies or energy-saving measures like roof insulation. Businesses would also qualify for a cut in their tax bill.

Ms Boyack put forward a Bill in the last parliament aimed at encouraging small-scale renewable energy production and increased energy efficiency, but had to abandon it when she was appointed Deputy Environment Minister. However she has now lodged a revised version of the Bill which has already received considerable support. Under the proposed bill, there would be a one-off, flat-rate £100 reduction in council tax for houses which incorporated energy efficiency or "micro-generation" measures. It would also require all new houses and other buildings to include some form of green energy production

Aberdeen Bay Surveyed for Wind Farm

A geological survey of Aberdeen Bay is to be carried out by the Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG) which hopes to build several turbines off the coast. The study is thought to be the first of recent times, and will locate previously undetected shipwrecks, munitions and prehistoric settlements.

As well as yielding important archaeological evidence, it will also be used to decide where turbines should be built. Scanning work will last a few days and is expected to start later this month. The results of the full survey will be known later this year.

Second Experimental Turbine Floated to Cromarty Firth

The second of two giant experimental offshore wind turbines has been floated out into the Moray Firth. The first tower was taken by barge from the former oil fabrication yard at Nigg on the Cromarty Firth last August. However, the second was delayed by poor weather. The turbines are part of a renewable energy trial in Beatrice oil field.
They each weigh about 1,000 tonnes and, when one of their three 63 metre (206ft) long blades is pointing straight up, they tower 170 metres (557ft) above sea level.

A Scottish-based consortium led by oil firm Talisman and Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) is supporting the £35m deepwater turbines pilot project.