SEPA – Page 12 – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

Campaigners seek Bathing Water Quality Monitoring at Wardie Bay

‘This is about protecting both people and wild places’

Wild swimmers and environmental campaigners are leading an appeal, which includes a campaign film, song and petition, for Wardie Beach to be included in Scotland’s list of designated bathing waters.

In 2019, the Wardie Bay Wild Ones and Wardie Bay Beachwatch came together to make an application to SEPA for designated Bathing Water status for north Edinburgh’s much-loved and increasingly popular bathing site, Wardie Beach, situated between Granton and Newhaven Harbours.

Evidence of over 150 beach users across the bathing season, from 1^st June to 15^th September, was provided. The decision not to designate was made, not by the review panel^, but by the Scottish Government. Feedback cited issues relating to a lack of appropriate infrastructure and facilities.

On 28^th August 2020, SEPA offered the group the opportunity to appeal the decision, and the #WardieBay4BathingWater campaign was born.

A petition launched on 25^th September received over 1000 signatures in four days. The appeal document was submitted on Friday 30^th October. The review panel meets to confirm 2021 Bathing Waters in December, and a decision will be made by the government early next year.

Karen Bates, volunteer organiser of Wardie Bay Beachwatch said: “The community works so hard to look after Wardie Beach, which receives marine litter and sewage related debris on every tide.

“We don’t believe we should be penalised for a lack of existing infrastructure and protection from these harms. We believe people need water quality monitoring and deserve the same safety protections in Granton that other similar local beaches are afforded.

“Large numbers of people come to Wardie Bay anyway, because of the semi-wild nature of this place not despite it. We saw a huge rise in the number of bathers in 2020 due to the pandemic. We don’t want the unintended consequence that Wardie Bay loses its special character and precious wildlife because of a perceived need to develop it.”

The group’s campaign film, shot by Carlos Hernan in recent weeks, includes interviews with swimmers, swim safety coach Colin Campbell, health and ecotoxicology experts Kate Swaine and Professor Alex Ford, and illustrator Alice Melvin who recently published her ‘Book of Swims’. Alice Caldwell also created a beautiful song for the campaign.

You’ll find the film HERE: https://vimeo.com/476234839

Kate Swaine, local wild swimmer and nutritionist, said: “One of my big concerns, when I’m swimming all the time is, what exactly is in the water? We know that when there’s been lots of rainfall, there will be an increase in the number of parasites, viruses, bacteria that can get into the water through sewage, and some of these have the potential to cause sometimes severe symptoms …

“I would like for Wardie Bay to be monitored as other beaches are in Scotland, so that the swimmers who choose to swim here, the paddleboarders and other people that use the water, have an idea of whether the water quality is rated poor, average, good.

“That would be really useful for people so that we can just enjoy being in the water and getting all the benefits from it: the mental health benefits, the physical benefits and just knowing that we’re not possibly putting ourselves at any risk.”

A spokesperson for the Wardie Bay Wild Ones said: “It is a frequent occurrence that swimmers will ask one another in the group for advice or thoughts on water quality, either generally, or on a given day. At present the only thing anyone can do is guess.

“Even people who’ve been in the water that day have no way of actually knowing what the water quality is like, and how safe it is to swim. Having some kind of testing, or even informed estimates of water quality available publicly would make a huge difference to swimmers.”

Karen added: “There is remarkable biodiversity and natural history at Wardie Bay, especially for such a city location.

“Environmental monitoring isn’t just for the many children and adults that use the water for swimming or playing, vital though that is. It is also an indicator of the environmental harm that untreated sewage does to our coastal ecology.”

Dr Alex Ford, Professor of marine biology, ecotoxicology and parasitology at the University of Portsmouth, who took his PhD at Napier University, said, “The general public have been very good at adjusting their behaviours to how damaging plastic pollution can be.

“But one of the problems we have with the chemicals coming out through our storm water overflows is that they can’t be seen and they don’t need to be there in very high concentrations to damage wildlife and the many species we use for food.

“Within that effluent, you’ve got fertilisers, industrial chemicals, pharmaceuticals as well as the organic matter from faeces. With that pollution comes disease but also abnormalities in those coastal organisms’ development. There are also suggestions that us humans are suffering as well.

“During Covid-19, there’s been an extraordinary number of people to have taken up water sports which is absolutely fantastic for health and wellbeing, but that combined with this increase in sewage going into the water; it may have detrimental effects on our health as well.”

A designated bathing water profile would be a holistic investment for both our environment and society. It would result in Wardie Beach visitors receiving water quality monitoring across the bathing season, daily water quality predictions, information on the potential pollution sources and risks to water quality as well as feedback on the measures being taken to improve water quality at the site.

Karen added: “If the issue is under-resourcing of our Environmental Protection Agencies, we must emphasise that we need them now more than ever. Rainfall is going to intensify with climate change and consequently, damage to our oceans due to infrastructure that is increasingly unfit for purpose.

“Unless we monitor, record and report on environmental issues we can’t do anything to protect ourselves and perhaps more importantly, marine habitats.”

“What we are looking for is environmental protection, not just for swimmers, but for everything else that lives in these waters and might be affected by pollutants”, says swimmer Vicky Allan, member of the Wild Ones, and co-author of Taking the Plunge.

“Many of us swimmers love this bay not just for its access to water, but for its wildlife. This is about protecting both people and wild places.”

PICTURES: Karen Bates, Dr Mark Hartl, Carlos Hernan

12 Regional Flood Alerts and 16 Local Flood Warning issued

Mark Franklin, Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA’s) Flood Duty Manager, said: “Heavy rain and strong winds are expected across much of Scotland on Saturday and Sunday.

“Flooding impacts from rivers and surface water are possible across much of the south west and west of Scotland, including Argyll, much of central Scotland and extending across Tayside into Angus and Aberdeenshire.

“Impacts may include flooding of land and roads, disruption to travel and difficult driving conditions.

“There may also be disruption from spray and waves overtopping today along the Solway coast, west coast, the Caithness, Sutherland and Moray coastlines and around the Orkney and Shetland Islands.

“Flood alerts have been issued and people living, working and travelling in affected areas are advised to take extra care and ensure they have signed up to Floodline. You can also stay up to date with flood alerts and warnings at floodlinescotland.org.uk/.

“The Met Office has issued a yellow rain warning for much of the south and west of the country for Saturday.

“SEPA is working 24/7 to monitor rainfall and river levels, and is in close contact with the Met Office and other partners to review the forecasts, which are combined with local expertise from all regions of Scotland to understand and present the flooding risk. The most up-to-date information is always available on our website.”

Staying informed

All SEPA’s Alerts and Warnings are available on our website at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodupdates/
Floodline is always the most up-to-date information – with any new flood updates available as soon as they are issued.
You can also sign up to receive these messages to your phone, for free. You can register online at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodingsignup/
Advice on what you can do to prepare for flooding can be found at org.uk/

Be prepared and stay safe

Check Floodline – visit sepa.org.uk/floodupdates
Don’t walk through flood water – 15cm of fast flowing water could be enough to knock you off your feet and hazards can be hidden under the water.
On the road or on public transport we can expect difficult conditions.
Drive with care, and do not travel through deep fast flowing water. It only takes 30sm of fast flowing water to move an average family sized car.
If you are walking beside rivers be extra careful of wet footpaths and possibly small watercourses in spate.

What’s the difference between a Flood Alert and a Flood Warning?

We use forecast weather information provided by the Met Office combined with our own observation of rainfall and river levels and advanced hydrological modelling to provide advance warning of flooding.

Regional Flood Alerts are early advice that flooding is possible across a wider geographical area. The purpose of the Alerts is to make people aware of the risk of flooding and be prepared. We normally issue them 12 to 24 hours in advance of the possibility of flooding.
Flood Warnings are more locally specific and are issued for areas where we have gauges on rivers to measure the exact river height. They are issued at shorter notice when we are more certain that a specific area will be affected.

Recycling: ‘a real Scottish success story’

Carbon impact of waste down 1.1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent from 2011
Less than 1 million tonnes of household waste sent to landfill for the first time
Plastic and glass recycling increase, paper and cardboard continues downward trend
Total household recycling rate 44.9%
Scottish households generated the equivalent of 0.44 tonnes of waste per person in 2019

Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) statisticians have published Official Statistics today (27 October 2020) which provide detail of Household Waste collected across all Local Authorities during 2019.

Scottish households generated the equivalent of 0.44 tonnes of waste per person in 2019, with 0.20 tonnes recycled, 0.14 tonnes sent to landfill and 0.11 tonnes diverted through other means such as incineration, composing and anaerobic digestion.

The total volume of household waste generated in Scotland remained largely the same as 2018, up 17,000 tonnes (an increase of 1%) from 2.41 million tonnes in 2018 to 2.42 million.

CARBON IMPACT OF SCOTTISH HOUSEHOLD WASTE CONTINUES TO DECREASE

The Scottish carbon metric measures the whole-life impact of resources. A measure of national performance, the metric takes a holistic view, from resource extraction and manufacturing emissions, through to resource management emissions.

Measuring the true impact of waste and waste management is most accurate when viewed in terms of emissions. This is measured in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This provides a more accurate picture than merely looking at tonnage (glass weights a lot more than paper), and takes into account the emissions created when waste is disposed of, whether through recycling, incineration, composting, anaerobic digestion or being sent to landfill.

The 2019 metric shows a continued downward trajectory since 2011 in Scotland’s household waste carbon impact. This is largely due to increased recycling rates – particularly for high impact waste materials – as well as reductions in waste generated and reduced landfilling of biodegradable waste.

The carbon impact of household waste generated and managed in 2018 was 5.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) – which is 1.0 tonnes per person. This was a decrease of 94,000 TCO₂e from 2018 and a decrease of 1.1 million from 2011.

LESS THAN 1 MILLION TONNES OF HOUSEHOLD WASTE SENT TO LANDFILL FOR THE FIRST TIME

2019 saw a further decrease of household waste sent to landfill – falling below 1 million tonnes for the first time – down 26% or 273,000 tonnes from 2018. This is the eighth consecutive decrease in household waste landfilled since 2011 – and for the third consecutive year there was more Scottish waste recycled (1.1 million tonnes) than landfilled (0.76 tonnes). Waste recycled included reuse and composting.

The total amount of Scottish household waste managed by other diversion from landfill was 577,000 tonnes, an increase of 93% from 2018 – 369% from 2011. Most was managed by incineration (78%, 454,000 tonnes), followed by other treatment (16%, 91,000 tonnes) and non-certified composting/digestion (6%, 32,000 tonnes)

PLASTIC, GLASS, PAPER AND CARDBOARD

Plastic recycling rose by 1,000 tonnes (1%) to 57,379 tonnes in 2019, continuing the trend of increasing each year for the last eight years. Glass remains the second most recycled material, with 107,000 tonnes, similar to 2018.

Paper and cardboard as a whole remains the largest volume of material recycled at 192,562 tonnes. However, there has been a general downward trend of paper and cardboard wastes recycled –in 2018 was down 17,000 tonnes (8%) – a 48,000 tonne (20%) reduction since 2011.

Within this mix, segregated paper waste is in continual decline – while cardboard and mixed paper and cardboard wastes have remained constant or increased over time. This may be partly due to replacement of segregated paper collections with mixed paper and cardboard collections.

It is also likely that a move away from print media to electronic media has decreased paper waste, while cardboard wastes have not decreased on the same scale, which could be a result of increased packaging materials as consumer habits move online.

HOUSEHOLD RECYCLING RATE 44.9%

Scotland’s overall household waste recycling rate was 44.9%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from 2018 and 5.4 percentage points up from the 39.5% achieved in 2011. Data for every one of Scotland’s 32 local authorities are available on SEPA’s website.

WASTE DATA COLLECTION

Data on waste are collected to monitor policy effectiveness, and to support policy development, particularly commitments in the Scottish Government’s Making Things Last – A Circular Economy Strategy for Scotland.

Further details on the methodology used to produce the figures are provided in the “Household waste” section of the annual Waste Data Quality Reports.

The figures are accurate at the time of publication, however data may be updated if further revisions are necessary. Normally these revisions will be published concurrent with the next official release.

Jo Zwitserlood, Head of Materials at the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), said: “Recycling is a real Scottish success story and is a simple daily step we all can take to build a more sustainable Scotland.

“Reducing the amount of waste we generate, and keeping products and materials in use for as long as possible through re-use and recycling, will help Scotland tackle the climate emergency. This is reflected in the household waste data published today, that shows the reducing carbon impact of our waste.

“The most successful countries in the 21st century will move from a traditional ‘take, make and dispose’ model to a resource efficient, circular economy where materials that would have been waste, are now valued as a useful resource. It is therefore extremely encouraging to see a continued increase in the amount of household waste recycled, and the amount of waste going to landfill at its lowest since records began.

“With its globally ambitious circular economy strategy and investment in infrastructure that will extract maximum value from materials through remanufacturing and recycling, Scotland is well placed to realise the environmental and economic opportunities for our nation and its people.”

Scottish partnership identifies Covid-19 RNA traces through waste water monitoring

Scientists at the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA) have successfully pinpointed fragments of coronavirus’ ribonucleic acid (RNA) in local waste water samples across the country.

SEPA was among the first European agencies to begin this exploratory work back in May, with the backing of Scottish Government and Public Health Scotland (PHS), alongside Scottish Water, CREW (Centre of expertise for Waters) and academic partners from the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute and Heriot Watt University.

The aim was to detect fragments of the virus’ RNA – a genetic footprint which can be measured in waste water even after the virus has begun to breakdown. The World Health Organization has said there is currently no evidence that coronavirus has been transmitted via sewerage systems.

Analysis on samples from across Scotland has now identified traces in waste water from 12 health board areas. The results have been shared with PHS and areas with positive RNA findings are consistent with the areas known to have confirmed Covid-19 cases.

One such example is Aberdeen, where SEPA’s analysis demonstrates how the prevalence of the virus in waste water samples is mirroring cases in the population. At the beginning of August, SEPA analysed a sample from the Aberdeen area which was positive for Covid-19 RNA. This was consistent with an increase in positive cases in the areas.

On SEPA’s request Scottish Water increased the sampling rate to four times a week to provide more information, and over the following three weeks there was a gradual decline to below the level that concentrations can be detected with sufficient accuracy. Sample results remained at the same level until the end of September when they began to rise again, reflecting PHS data on known cases.

Sample results across the rest of Scotland, including in the Central Belt, continue to be consistent with PHS information on cases in the community. SEPA has made data available for all samples analysed at https://informatics.sepa.org.uk/RNAmonitoring/

Since May SEPA and partners at the Roslin Institute have been refining analysis methods to lower the concentration of RNA that can be reliably detected.

Testing is conducted on incoming waste water samples collected by Scottish Water and its operators at 28 public waste water treatment works across the country, covering all 14 NHS Scotland health board areas. Most locations are tested weekly, but this can be increased when local outbreaks are apparent.

Samples are representative of waste water from between 40-50 percent of the Scottish population and, in combination with community testing, are helping Scotland understand the prevalence and distribution of the virus.

SEPA continues to work with academia and public health officials to understand how this monitoring can be best used to support Scotland’s response to the pandemic.

Terry A’Hearn, SEPA CEO, said: “As Scotland’s environmental watchdog and as a public agency, we remain proud to be playing our part in the national effort to combat coronavirus.

“Our scientific capabilities and expertise in designing and implementing monitoring networks made us ideally suited to delivering this trial and the results we are seeing demonstrate its scientific validity.

“Central to the delivery of this project has been our partnership working Scottish Water and the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute, and we will continue to work closely together to refine our techniques and understanding.

“We’ve received support from across the public sector, agencies and institutions – including a donation of specialist kit from Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture – demonstrating how Scotland is coming together to find ways of tackling this virus.”

SEPA is also assisting UK government scientific advisors, who are engaging with the research community to investigate how waste water monitoring can be used to track the transmission of coronavirus.

Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham said: “In order to manage the coronavirus pandemic, it is vital that we continue to develop our understanding of it, and I welcome this UK-wide programme of research and the development of waste water monitoring to help build our knowledge base.

“SEPA and Scottish Water have translated this experimental programme into a comprehensive, Scotland-wide monitoring network. The early data is already providing our public health experts with new information, which complements the wider population testing programme to give a more robust picture of the prevalence of Covid disease in Scotland.

“I look forward to the programme providing further, valuable data over the coming months to support our fight against the pandemic.”

Scientists at The Roslin Institute have been working with Scottish Water and SEPA to develop robust methodologies for detecting and measuring SARS-CoV-2 genetic material in wastewater.

Funding from the Centre of Expertise for Waters (CREW), which is supported by Scottish Government, has allowed scientists in Scotland to work with academic colleagues across the UK to keep pace with international developments in the rapidly expanding field of wastewater epidemiology.

SEPA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic can be found at coronavirus.sepa.org.uk.

Portobello community embraces My Beach,Your Beach campaign

A summer of learning, celebrating and caring for Portobello Beach has come to a close, as environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful reports on its My Beach, Your Beach campaign.

Launched in mid-July, just as we were easing out of lockdown, the campaign aimed to help improve water quality at six of Scotland’s well-loved beaches through targeted interventions to encourage better attitudes and behaviours.

Now, as we look to the autumn and winter, it is heartening to see that despite 57% of people thinking dog poo is an issue and 35% believing litter is an issue at Portobello Beach, 66% of those surveyed in the area have said they are willing to pick up litter when visiting the beach to leave it cleaner than they found it.

The successful campaign raised awareness of the potential impact on bathing water quality by dog fouling and encouraging gulls by feeding and leaving litter.

The third year of the My Beach Your Beach campaign was a little bit different – extending it to two more great beaches, Irvine and Troon – and also taking community engagement online in the face of lockdown measures, to encourage those who live locally to get involved and celebrate their beach.

Campaign messaging appeared on the bins along the promenade, encouraging people to dispose of waste responsibly.

This was supported by anthe interactive online programme aiming to celebrate and engage people with their local beach, through information about local environment, landscape and heritage, quizzes, photo galleries and a virtual ‘Doggy Ambassador’ competition, reaching nearly 10,000 people.

Although impact monitoring was not possible this year, 90% of locals surveyed had seen at least one campaign message and 83% said that they would like to see more campaign activity like this in the future. Last year, the campaign achieved a 53% reduction in litter as compared to the previous year and a 40% reduction in dog poo too.

Paul Wallace, Campaigns and Innovation Manager at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “We know that, in many cases, people only need a small nudge to do the right thing and take better care of their local environment.

“This summer, our local neighbourhoods became even more precious to many of us. For those #LuckyToLiveHere by the beach, the unprecedented pressures of more people taking holidays and day trips in Scotland, consuming more single-use items and take-away food and using limited services, such as toilets and bins, were felt.

“We’re grateful to both council staff and members of local community groups like Keep Porty Tidy, Friends of Porty Prom and Portobello Timebank for working to keep the beach clean for everyone to enjoy and are delighted to find that, following following this summer’s campaign, over 60% of people from communities locally have shown an interest in picking up litter at Portobello beach when they visit, to leave it cleaner than they found it.

“Cleaner sands can lead to cleaner seas – a win, win for our beach environments and communities.”

Cllr Lesley Macinnes, city council Environment Convener, said: “Our beaches and other open spaces have been so important for people to enjoy in recent months as we’ve all had to adapt to the coronavirus restrictions.

“It’s really important then that we look after them and keep them clean and tidy for everyone to enjoy. This campaign has been really helpful in supporting the hard work of our waste services department getting across that message and celebrating Portobello.”

The campaign, funded by the Scottish Government and supported by SEPA, was led by Keep Scotland Beautiful alongside its Upstream Battle and Clean Up Scotland campaigns and annual Beach Awards.

All six of the beaches selected for this campaign have faced challenges in improving the quality of their bathing water as measured by SEPA, and research confirms a significant link between behaviour on the land and the cleanliness of the local seawater.

Find out more about Portobello Beach by visiting its campaign web page at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org/mybeachyourbeach/

Climate changing carbon dioxide emissions from industrial sites drop 57% in a decade

Climate changing carbon dioxide emissions from SEPA regulated industrial sites drop 57% in a decade – down 5% in the last year.
2019 Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI) contains data from 1,327 regulated sites published by Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).

The Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI) 2019 data – this year experimental official statistics – was published today 29 September 2020 by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency. This year’s data covers annual mass releases of specified pollutants to air and water and information on off-site waste transfers from 1,327 SEPA regulated industrial sites.

Greenhouse gases

The two largest contributing pollutants in terms of emissions are carbon dioxide and methane which drive the overall greenhouse gas trend.

While carbon dioxide continues to drive the overall emissions trend and remains the largest contributing pollutant in terms of the emissions for 2019, the data shows Scotland’s carbon dioxide emissions have reduced significantly in the last 10 years. Emissions of the gas are down 57 per cent in the decade and 5 per cent annually to around 11,293,146,000 kg since 2018.

Whilst overall carbon dioxide emissions fell by 5% in the last year, direct emissions from those waste and waste-water management sector facilities required to report under SPRI increased by 76% over the last decade, partly driven by a move towards waste incineration instead of landfill for residual waste management. However, their emissions of greenhouses gases remain small relative to the energy sector.

The shift away from landfill towards recycling and incineration has resulted in further reductions in direct Methane emissions. While methane does not remain in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide it is initially far more impactful on the climate because of how effectively it absorbs heat. Methane emissions decreased significantly – by 44% – over the decade to 2019, and by 4% between 2018 and 2019 to 26,777,357 kg.

	2010	2018	2019	% change 2010-2019	% change 2018-2019
Carbon dioxide	26,384,456,678	11,849,079,760	11,293,145,941	Down 57%	Down 5%
Methane	47,912,442	27,878,368	26,777,357	Down 44%	Down 4%
Nitrous Oxide	250,912	89,846	96,543	Down 61%	Up 8%
Hydrofluorocarbons	1,465	3,513	1,263	Down 14%	Down 64%
Perfluorocarbons	1,604	4,418	3,945	Up 146%	Up 11%
Sulphur Hexafluoride	207	107	221	Up 7%	Up 106%

All measurements in kilogrammes.

Energy transition

A number of variables influence SPRI emissions. In the long term, the shift away from use of coal as a fuel is a significant factor. Carbon dioxide emissions from the energy sector have fallen by around 70% since 2010, largely due to the closure of coal fired power stations. As emissions from the energy sector have fallen, releases from other sectors now form a greater proportion of the greenhouse gas emissions reported to SPRI.

Some of the decreases observed for these gases can be accounted for by investment in new technologies and renewables, and landfill gas recovery systems.

Wider economic drivers and the weather are other factors identified as affecting carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions from SPRI sites.

Circular economy

Scotland’s progress towards a circular economy is also highlighted in both SPRI and separate ‘2019 Waste landfilled in Scotland’ and ‘2019 Waste incinerated in Scotland’ Official Statistics released today by SEPA.

As Scotland reduces, reuses and recycles more than ever before, waste which cannot be recycled is now being diverted from landfill as new energy from waste (incineration) infrastructure comes online. As a consequence methane emissions from the waste sector decreased by 47% over the decade, from a high ceiling of 40,868,900 kg in 2010, to 21,575,000 kg in 2019. Capture of gas at landfill sites has also contributed to the reduction.

Consequently, as methane emissions from landfill have reduced, carbon dioxide from incineration sites have increased 83% over the last decade from a low base of 1,090,000,000 kg to 2,000,000,000 kg in 2019. Emissions from this sector are small compared to that of the energy sector.

These trends represent direct emissions of greenhouse gases from specific parts of the waste management sector. They do not take into account efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle our waste. Scotland’s Carbon Metric shows that in 2018, the overall impact of Scotland’s waste management system – taking into account reduction, recycling, incineration and landfill – was 30% less than in 2011.

Terry A’Hearn, Chief Executive of SEPA, said: “These experimental official statistics chart the progress we’ve made as a nation with our globally ambitious climate change targets, with some pollutants emitted from regulated businesses falling in the last decade. They also reflect the realism of a modern, Western European economy in transition.

“The successful businesses of tomorrow will be those that are sustainable. As Scotland’s environmental regulator, our firm focus remains to helping Scottish businesses innovate and emerge stronger and more sustainably from the current public health pandemic, enabling leadership in a decade of climate emergency.”

Minor year-to-year fluctuations in pollutants can often be attributed to changes at a few sites, due to increases or decreases in production, changing source products and new sites opening. All pollutants have a reporting threshold, below which sites do not need to report a value to SPRI. An increase in production can move a site’s releases above the threshold, giving the appearance of a larger increase.

SEPA continues to monitor ExxonMobil flaring

SEPA’s latest statement on unplanned flaring was issued at 8.30pm last night:

Having received reports of elevated flaring at the ExxonMobil Chemical Fife Ethylene Plant shortly after 3:30pm on Sunday, SEPA officers have remained in contact with the site across the day.

SEPA’s four remote monitoring points around the site, at Lochgelly, Auchtertool, Donibristle and Little Raith continue to capture data and environment protection officers have deployed to record community impacts at five locations surrounding the site.

Whilst monitors continue to demonstrate no breach of air quality standards*, officers continue to note noise, light and vibration impacting local communities.

With no firm indication as yet from ExxonMobil Chemical Limited of the cause of the flaring other than ‘a trip on one of our machines’, or further information on expected duration, specialist officers remain deployed this evening gathering information, data and evidence.

We do so to determine whether there has been a breach of permit conditions and what our next steps should be in line with our published Enforcement Policy. We will provide updates as soon as further information becomes available.

Updates will be available on social media and sepa.org.uk/mossmorran

We urge the public to report community impacts at SEPA.org.uk/report

Flooding outlook update

Sunday 13 September: 11:00am

75mm OF RAINFALL OVERNIGHT AT REST AND BE THANKFUL AS REGIONAL FLOOD ALERTS REMAIN IN FORCE FOR NORTH WEST SCOTLAND

75mm of rain fell in a 24 hour period at the Rest and Be Thankful, Argyll as Scotland faced a weekend of wet weather.

On Saturday and overnight, Scotland’s flood forecasting and warning service had 10 Regional Flood Alerts and 7 Local Flood Warnings in force. In total, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency said that between 70mm – 80mm fell across the day yesterday and overnight, with further rain and flooding impacts predicted across the North West of Sunday.

Mark Franklin, SEPA’s Duty Flood Manager, said: “Yet again we’ve seen Scotland battered by another weekend of wet weather, with flooding impacts across West, Central, North and Southern Scotland.

“At the Rest and Be Thankful in Argyll, the subject of a second landslip in a matter of weeks, we saw 75mm of rain in a 24 hour period and across the country we saw rainfall of between 70-80mm.

“Our 24/7 flood forecasting and warning centre saw people responding well to our 10 Regional Flood Alerts and 7 Local Flood Warnings and we want to thank those who signed-up overnight for our free Floodline service.

“Whilst Sunday see’s an improving picture for Central and Southern Scotland, we’ll see continued heavy rainfall across the day for the North West. This is likely to result in further localised flooding of land and roads, as well as some transport disruption before improving on Monday. People living, working and travelling in these areas are advised to ensure they have signed up to Floodline and are prepared to take action to protect property. Advice on what you can do to prepare can be found at floodlinescotland.org.uk.”

Rainfall Data:

SEPA’s Rainfall data for Scotland is available at https://www2.sepa.org.uk/rainfall/

Staying informed

All SEPA’s Alerts and Warnings are available on our website at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodupdates/
Floodline is always the most up-to-date information – with any new flood updates available as soon as they are issued.
You can also sign up to receive these messages to your phone, for free. You can register online at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodingsignup/

Be prepared and stay safe

Check Floodline – visit sepa.org.uk/floodupdates
Don’t walk through flood water – 15cm of fast flowing water could be enough to knock you off your feet and hazards can be hidden under the water.
On the road or on public transport we can expect difficult conditions.
Drive with care, and do not travel through deep fast flowing water. It only takes 30cm of fast flowing water to move an average family sized car.
If you are walking beside rivers be extra careful of wet footpaths and possibly small watercourses in spate.

What’s the difference between a Flood Alert and a Flood Warning?

Regional Flood Alerts are early advice that flooding is possible across a wider geographical area. The purpose of the Alerts is to make people aware of the risk of flooding and be prepared. We normally issue them 12 to 24 hours in advance of the possibility of flooding.
Flood Warnings are more locally specific and are issued for areas where we have gauges on rivers to measure the exact river height. They are issued at shorter notice when we are more certain that a specific area will be affected.

Today’s Area of Concern Map

Area A Area of most significant rainfall for Sunday – people living, working and travelling in these areas are advised to ensure they have signed up to Floodline and are prepared to take action to protect property. Advice on what you can do to prepare can be found at floodlinescotland.org.uk/
Area B Area of further rainfall.

10 REGIONAL FLOOD ALERTS IN FORCE

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), this morning (Saturday 12th September 2020) confirmed that it had issued ten regional flood alerts for Scotland over the weekend period.

Mark Franklin, SEPA’s Duty Flood Manager, said: “With yet another wet weekend forecast for much of Scotland, SEPA has issued ten regional flood alerts.

“Persistent, and occasionally heavy rain will bring a gradual build-up of surface water and rising river levels during Saturday evening and into Sunday across many parts of the North, West and Central Highlands. This is likely to result in localised flooding of land and roads, as well as some transport disruption.

“Parts of Argyll, Easter Ross and Lochaber could experience flooding affecting communities and disruption to infrastructure due to the heaviest rain – and people living, working and travelling in these areas are advised to ensure they have signed up to Floodline and are prepared to take action to protect property. Advice on what you can do to prepare can be found at floodlinescotland.org.uk/

“North Ayrshire, the Central Highlands and the Ochils may also see impacts from rainfall, with localised flooding of known trouble spots likely.

“The Met Office has issued a weather warning for Central, Tayside & Fife, Highlands & Eilean Siar and Strathclyde from 18:00 on Saturday 12 until 23:59 on Sunday 13 September.

“SEPA is working 24/7 to monitor rainfall and river levels, and is in close contact with the Met Office and other partners to review the forecasts, which are combined with local expertise from all regions of Scotland to understand and present the flooding risk. Flood Alerts and Warnings are likely to be issued during Saturday and the most up-to-date information is always available on our website.”

Staying informed

All SEPA’s Alerts and Warnings are available on our website at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodupdates/
Floodline is always the most up-to-date information – with any new flood updates available as soon as they are issued.
You can also sign up to receive these messages to your phone, for free. You can register online at floodline.sepa.org.uk/floodingsignup/

Be prepared and stay safe

Check Floodline – visit sepa.org.uk/floodupdates
Don’t walk through flood water – 15cm of fast flowing water could be enough to knock you off your feet and hazards can be hidden under the water.
On the road or on public transport we can expect difficult conditions.
Drive with care, and do not travel through deep fast flowing water. It only takes 30cm of fast flowing water to move an average family sized car.
If you are walking beside rivers be extra careful of wet footpaths and possibly small watercourses in spate.

What’s the difference between a Flood Alert and a Flood Warning?

Regional Flood Alerts are early advice that flooding is possible across a wider geographical area. The purpose of the Alerts is to make people aware of the risk of flooding and be prepared. We normally issue them 12 to 24 hours in advance of the possibility of flooding.
Flood Warnings are more locally specific and are issued for areas where we have gauges on rivers to measure the exact river height. They are issued at shorter notice when we are more certain that a specific area will be affected.

Today’s Area of Concern Map

Area A Persistent, and occasionally heavy rain will bring a gradual build-up of surface water and rising river levels during Saturday evening and into Sunday across many parts of the North, West and Central Highlands. This is likely to result in localised flooding of land and roads, as well as some transport disruption. Parts of Argyll, Easter Ross and Lochaber could experience flooding affecting communities and disruption to infrastructure due to the heaviest rain – and people living, working and travelling in these areas are advised to ensure they have signed up to Floodline and are prepared to take action to protect property. Advice on what you can do to prepare can be found at floodlinescotland.org.uk/
Area B North Ayrshire, the Central Highlands and the Ochils may also see impacts from rainfall, with localised flooding of known trouble spots likely. The Met Office has issued a weather warning for Central, Tayside & Fife, Highlands & Eilean Siar and Strathclyde from 18:00 on Saturday 12 until 23:59 on Sunday 13 September.