Climate change

George Monbiot: Independent Scotland could show a way out of climate crisis

Vicky Fairley — Sat, 30 Oct 2021 10:04:33 +0000

George Monbiot: Independent Scotland could show a way out of climate crisis

Primary Author or Creator

Spowart, Nan

Vicky Fairley Sat, 10/30/2021 - 11:04

Publisher

The National

Date Published

Sun, 10/17/2021 - 12:00

Category

Climate change

Campaigning

Independence

Type of Resource

newspaper article

Fast Facts

George Monbiot interview highlights the need for mass mobilisation to combat climate change. The 2014 Scottish Independence movement provides a good example of how to create a mass movement in the 21st century.

More details

Leading environmental campaigner George Monbiot criticises the lamentable ineffectiveness of the current climate change movement, stating that the current mass movement needs to grow substantially in order to effect the change required. He maintains that governments and big business will not act unless we make it impossible for them to maintain the status quo and to do that we need to ''mobilise, mobilise, mobilise.'' He cites the Scottish Independence campaign of 2014 as an example of effective mobilisation and posits that Scotland could lead the way in combatting the climate crisis.

Resource Address (URL)

https://www.thenational.scot/news/19652546.george-monbiot-independent-scotland-…

Keywords

Climate change

Environment

2014 independence referendum

Language English

Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Full Report

Stephen Richard — Sun, 26 Sep 2021 06:30:19 +0000

Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Full Report

Primary Author or Creator

IPCC

Stephen Richard Sun, 09/26/2021 - 07:30

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Add additional Authors and/or Publisher

Alternative Published Date

2021

Category

Climate change

Type of Resource

Scientific report

Length (Pages, words, minutes etc...)

3949pp

Fast Facts

This report gives the current state of climate change at 2012, the possible climate futures, risk assessments for regions of the world, and the actions required to limit future climate change.

Resource Address (URL)

https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGI_Full_Report.pdf

Keywords

Climate Emergency

Climate change

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Language English

IPCC Special; with 21 Actions for Scotland to do Right Now

Stephen Richard — Tue, 21 Sep 2021 14:00:35 +0000

IPCC Special; with 21 Actions for Scotland to do Right Now

Primary Author or Creator

Craig Dalzell

Stephen Richard Tue, 09/21/2021 - 15:00

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Keith Baker, Douglas Chapman Ali Anderson, Common Weal

Date Published

Wed, 08/11/2021 - 12:00

Category

Climate change

Type of Resource

Podcast

Length (Pages, words, minutes etc...)

41:52 minutes

Fast Facts

Implications for Scotland and the world if we fail to act on the climate emergency and why this report represents the last change to make those changes. They then discuss Common Weal’s latest policy paper 21 For 21 which offers 21 actions that the Scottish Government should take immediately in light of the IPCC report.

Common Weal podcast #96

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/podcast/the-common-weal-policy-podcast-episode-96/

Keywords

Climate Emergency

Climate change

Environment

Language English

Watershed: the Turning Point for North Sea Oil and the Just Transition

Stephen Richard — Thu, 16 Sep 2021 13:48:47 +0000

Watershed: the Turning Point for North Sea Oil and the Just Transition

Primary Author or Creator

Rachel Tansey

Stephen Richard Thu, 09/16/2021 - 14:48

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Friends of the Earth, Oil Change International

Alternative Published Date

September 2021

Category

Energy

Climate change

Type of Resource

Assessment report

Fast Facts

No new oil and gas fields can be approved for development. Given the right policies, a just transition can generate more than three jobs in clean industries for every North Sea oil job at risk

More details

The First Minister claims that early closure of North Sea production would lead to increased imports of more carbon intensive fossil fuels, but this ‘carbon leakage’ argument does not hold water. To begin with, justice and equity require that wealthier countries with higher capacity to support the transition and lower dependence on fossil fuel production – like the UK – phase it out more rapidly.

Additionally, support for the fossil fuel industry – including for CCS – comes at the expense of renewable energy, effectively slowing down the shift to meeting Scotland’s demand with renewable sources. This argument also ignores efforts to reduce demand and increase energy efficiency, and forgets the abysmal record of UK North Sea oil companies at tackling preventable emissions.

Finally, investment in fossil fuel infrastructure now locks us into oil and gas for decades, pushing the UK closer to a ‘deferred collapse’, whereby delayed action and worsening climate impacts forces a sudden and chaotic shutdown, pushing many workers out of work in a short space of time.

To keep within 1.5ºC, in line with equity and climate justice, Scotland needs a just phase-out policy for oil and gas extraction, based on a managed winding down of production in this decade, shaped by affected workers and communities to ensure a just transition, and leaving some of the 6.55 billion barrels in the ground. Given the right policies, a just transition can generate more than three jobs in clean industries for every North Sea oil job at risk. The barriers are not technical, they’re political.

A rational, precautionary and cost-effective approach requires the Scottish Government to end its support for MER, and urge the UK Government to do the same, while redirecting financial support from fossil fuels and CCS to a just transition to a fully renewable Scotland.

Resource Address (URL)

https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Watershed-Report_final…

Keywords

Language English

A real Green New Deal for Scotland

Stephen Richard — Tue, 14 Sep 2021 08:48:16 +0000

A real Green New Deal for Scotland

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Tue, 09/14/2021 - 09:48

Alternative Published Date

2020

Category

Climate change

Type of Resource

Video

Fast Facts

The world is under threat from a series of approaching environmental crises and Scotland is a country which still has enduring social failures like poverty and inequality. Many people are pessimistic. But both can be tackled if we take them head-on and plan for them – which is what Common Weal did with The Common Home Plan, the world’s first comprehensive Green New Deal. It is a reason for optimism and hope. It is a costed proposal for how to avert the environmental crises, transform Scotland and get the nation ready for the era to come. You can find out much more and get copies of the books here.

Our Common Home. video 1:38 minutes

More details

The following is a very quick summary of some of the key action points from the plan:

Buildings: All new construction must be energy-neutral and have at least 60-year lifespan | Renovate rather than demolish | Set up National Housing Company and insulate all existing homes to 90 per cent efficiency | Make all construction materials organic or recycled | Make all public buildings ‘energy positive’ | Require businesses to achieve high heating efficiency but provide subsidies for small businesses | All electrical goods must have AAA efficiency rating
Heating:Set up an Energy Development Agency to plan the shift to renewable heating | Set up a National Energy Company to install a national District Heating System with renewable heat generation | Install renewable heating in off-gas-grid houses | Invest in training the workforce | Establish a Heat Supply Act to make this happen
Electricity: The Energy Development Agency plans the move to a zero- carbon electricity | Set up a National Energy Company to build the generation and energy storage | Build electrolysis plants to generate hydrogen for energy storage | Nationalise and upgrade the National Grid with local storage and ‘smart grid’ technologies | Gradually take existing generation capacity into public ownership | Use an Industrial Strategy to develop domestic supply chains for all of this | End the extraction of oil and gas in Scotland
Transport: Create a National Transport Company to plan the transition to carbon-free travel | Use better planning to reduce the need for car journeys | Begin installing charging and refueling infrastructure for zero-carbon vehicles | Replace or retrofit existing public transport to be zero-carbon | Commission more hydrogen ferries | Develop an air transport strategy
Food: Set up a National Food Agency to plan a transition to a regenerative food system | Move to an agro ecological system for Scotland’s food production | Implement a strategy to greatly reduce food waste | Invest in new forms of food growing like vertical farming | Shorten supply chains by supporting new food processing businesses in Scotland | Strengthen regulation of the food industry and redesign farming subsidy regimes to encourage agroecology | Use pricing mechanisms to embed environmental externalities in the cost of food | Pursue import substitution to reduce the environmental impact of unnecessary imports | Institute a legal Right to Food to ensure that changes to the food system do not harm the access to healthy nutrition of anyone in Scotland | Consider implementing a Universal Basic Income
Land: Set up a National Land Agency to oversee the management of Scotland’s land | It should then deliver a target of 50 per cent reforesting | Introduce a process of National Land Planning to zone rural land for specific purposes | Strengthened regulation and reporting on land management | Train roughly 20,000 additional land managers | Take direct action to diversify land ownership in Scotland | Develop a rural industrial strategy | Allocate fishing quotas on the basis of environmental performance | Implement Scotland’s water shortage plan
Resources: Set up a National Resources Agency to oversee the move to zero waste | Develop a circular economy | Set a hierarchy for resource use: deconsumerise → dematerialise → simplify → share → reuse → remanufacture → compost → and only then recycle | Create a national waste collection and reprocessing service | Use ‘Producer Responsibility’ to make manufacturers responsible for the full lifecycle of the goods they produce | Use ‘externality taxes’ to ensure the price of goods reflects their true lifecycle costs | Invest in a wide range of initiatives like National Deposit Return schemes, container standardisation and tool libraries to optimise resource use | Ban single-use plastic | Regulate to discourage and then end the use of most single-use materials | Set up a National Consumer Agency to monitor all products, require them to be manufactured along circular economy lines and ban particularly harmful materials altogether

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/big-ideas/a-real-green-new-deal-for-scotland/

Keywords

Language English

Back to basics: Research and Development in Scotland

Stephen Richard — Mon, 13 Sep 2021 09:53:28 +0000

Back to basics: Research and Development in Scotland

Primary Author or Creator

Picture of Ben Cooper, assistant at the Fraser of Allander Institute Ben Cooper

Stephen Richard Mon, 09/13/2021 - 10:53

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Adam McGeoch, Fraser of Allander Institute

Date Published

Mon, 01/25/2021 - 12:00

Category

Research

Climate change

Type of Resource

Assessment report

Fast Facts

Investment in Scotland's R&D has evolved over the past few years. The challenges and opportunities for R&D in Scotland, and the future of R&D are reviewed.

More details

Scotland’s spend on research and development has increased in the past decade but its total spend on R&D lags behind the UK and other leading OECD countries. However, within the UK, London, and surrounding areas significantly skew the UK average and Scotland actually performs fairly well out of the 12 regions.

There are opportunities for Scotland to grow its R&D activity through additional funding and tax relief but to address questions surrounding how to incentivise R&D, it is important to acknowledge the limitations of the data available.

There are some limitations of the BERD data such as the under-coverage of small businesses and businesses in some industries such as finance. However, by looking at Scotland’s growth sector database we were able to analyse R&D activity in Scotland’s financial services sector. This sector, along with Scotland’s other growth sectors account for a large share of Scotland’s R&D and there are a lot of opportunities for growing Scotland’s research and development within these industries.

Continued growth in these sectors will require significant investment and policies that incentivise R&D activity must be in place. However, as this article has highlighted, decisions must not be based solely on data that has as many caveats as the GERD data.

Resource Address (URL)

https://fraserofallander.org/back-to-basics-research-and-development-in-scotlan…

Keywords

Research Scotland.

Technological innovations Scotland.

Research & Development investment

Language English

Research and innovation in Scotland

Stephen Richard — Mon, 13 Sep 2021 09:34:37 +0000

Research and innovation in Scotland

Primary Author or Creator

The Royal Society

Stephen Richard Mon, 09/13/2021 - 10:34

Alternative Published Date

May 2018

Category

Research

Climate change

Type of Resource

Fact sheet

Fast Facts

This document provides an insight into the current research and innovation landscape in Scotland to inform discussions over how people across Scotland can have the opportunity to contribute to and share the benefits of R&D investment in the UK

Resource Address (URL)

https://royalsociety.org/~/media/policy/projects/investing-in-uk-r-and-d/region…

Keywords

science

Research & Development investment

R&D employment

R&D funding

Language English

21 For 21: The Climate Change Actions Scotland Needs Now

Stephen Richard — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 20:50:44 +0000

21 For 21: The Climate Change Actions Scotland Needs Now

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Sun, 09/12/2021 - 21:50

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Energy Policy Group

Date Published

Mon, 08/09/2021 - 12:00

Category

Climate change

Type of Resource

Policy Paper

Fast Facts

21 Policies that would enable Scotland to meet our responsibilities as laid out by the 2021 IPCC Sixth Assessment Report

More details

The 21 actions we are calling for are as follows:

1. Build a Green New Deal
Scotland needs a comprehensive, coordinated plan which delivers major social benefits while tackling climate change

2. Start our own energy company
A National Energy Company will let us build and control the infrastructure Scotland needs to decarbonise

3. Plan our energy future
Setting up a Scottish Energy Development Agency enables us to plan the infrastructure we need in the public good

4. Build what we need in the right way
By establishing a National Infrastructure Company we can ensure that the infrastructure we need is built to the highest standard and owned by the public

5. Leave no-one without a warm house
A proper, coordinated plan of increasing energy efficiency for all homes without exception will help householders and reduce carbon

6. Capture waste heat and use it
If we introduce a Heat Supply Act it can require large producers of waste heat to capture and recycle that heat for public use

7. Future-proof the electricity grid
We must commit to long-term investment in local electricity grid reinforcement, management and energy storage to prepare for a secure, renewable energy future

8. Fair connection charges for Scotland’s power
Renewable energy production in Scotland pays a very high cost for feeding it into the grid – this is unjust and must be reformed

9. End coal, end nuclear
Scotland has bountiful renewable energy resources and has no need for dangerous and polluting fuels and energy technologies

10. No new oil
Scotland must ban new oil and gas exploration and set out a route map for phasing out all fossil fuels

11. Train a renewables workforce
To transition people from the fossil fuel and nuclear industries and prepare them for a renewable future we should set up a ‘one-stop shop’ for retraining

12. Back a green hydrogen road-map
Scotland needs clear guidance on how we develop and use Green Hydrogen so we can built this new industry as quickly and efficiently as possible

13. Make energy efficiency meaningful
The way we measure the thermal performance of buildings is riddled with problems so we must reform Energy Performance Certificates so they reflect reality

14. Measure the whole-life energy of houses
Include embodied energy (the energy needed to build a house, not just run it) in the next revision of the Building Standards

15. Energy-efficient appliances only
The energy rating of electrical appliances is about to be revised, so choose now to ban the sale of appliances with ratings below the new C level

16. Make localism work
Prioritising localism has enormous energy-saving benefits so make all neighbourhoods ‘20-minute neighbourhoods’

17. Set a legal right to homeworking
Homeworking saves energy and time, so while not everyone can or wants to home work and no-one should be forced, anyone who does should be given the right to do so

18. Fewer cruise ships
Cruise ships are environmentally damaging and don’t help the economy so Scotland should introduce a quota for cruise ships entering Scottish waters and ports

19. Explore a flights quota
There is no green alternative to the way we fly available so we must limit our flights with flight quotas, a moratorium on airport expansion and investment in airships

20. Divest from fossil fuel
Require all public sector bodies to commit to divesting from fossil fuels in the next year

21. Clean politics
End the influence fossil fuel lobbyists have over our politics by signing up to the Fossil Free Politics campaign

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/21-For-21.pdf

Keywords