Environmental campaigners have welcomed the findings of a report published by Zero Waste Scotland that shows that biostabilisation, a way of managing waste, has significant carbon savings over incineration and landfill.
Biostabilisation is a treatment method for managing waste where organic material is broken down in a controlled environment. This greatly reduces the carbon emissions from the waste. The report shows that each tonne of waste biostabilised emits the equivalent of 12kg of carbon dioxide, which is 20 times lower than sending that same waste to incineration.
Kim Pratt, circular economy campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “We know that reducing and recycling are the most important ways of limiting the climate impact of waste.
“The Zero Waste Scotland report shows biostabilisation is a lower carbon option for managing non-recyclable waste compared to incineration or landfill. It adds to the growing body of evidence that incineration must be rapidly phased out if Scotland is to reduce its impact on the climate crisis. Policy makers must now act on the findings of the report and make sure that biostabilisation is economically viable.”
Shlomo Dowen, national coordinator at the UK Without Incineration Network (UKWIN) added: “Zero Waste Scotland has previously shown that incineration is a high-carbon option, and this new report demonstrates that incineration is far worse for the climate than biostabilisation.
“This makes it clear that there is no justification for building any new incineration capacity in Scotland.
“Instead, what we urgently need is an incineration exit strategy that looks to phase out existing burners as we increasingly reduce, reuse and recycle.”
The landfill ban prohibits all biodegradable waste going to landfill by 31 December 2025. Earlier this year, the Scottish Government committed to an effective moratorium on new incinerators, recognising their huge environmental and health impacts. Incinerators are responsible for some of the largest sources of climate emissions in Scotland.
The 2012 the Waste (Scotland) Regulations acknowledged there are two potential disposal routes for biodegradable waste once landfill is banned: biostabilisation and incineration. However, the same regulations create an artificial economic barrier to biostabilisation by requiring that biostabilised waste must pay the higher rate of landfill tax, whilst incinerator outputs are exempt.
Environmental campaigners say the upcoming council elections are going to be significant in tackling the climate crisis, and are calling on all parties to make policies on transport and waste management a priority.
The councillors elected across Scotland in May will be in their position for five years in what is a vital decade for action to avert climate breakdown.
The UN climate conference in Glasgow was a key moment for international action, but the powers held by Councils makes them pivotal when it comes to tackling Scotland’s emissions and building on the legacy of COP26.
Transport is the primary source of carbon emissions in Scotland, making up around a third of the total. While progress has been made in other areas, this has barely changed in the last three decades.
Councils have the power to set up publicly-owned bus companies which could make a significant difference here. They also receive funding, which will be increasing in the coming years as part of the SNP and Greens agreement, for cycling and walking, which some councils currently make use of more than others.
Scotland is now burning almost as much of its household waste as it is sending to landfill, while household recycling rates have fallen by 2.9% to 42.0% between 2019 and 2020. This means Scotland now has the poorest recycling rates in the UK. Councils are in charge of designing and providing waste collection systems for households and therefore have a key role to play in reducing the carbon impact of household waste.
Mary Church, head of campaigns at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “These elections are being contested against the backdrop of a climate and nature emergency. Many of the powers to drive action on the climate crisis sit with local councils, which is why this vote matters so much.
“Councillors must put people and the planet at the heart of all of the decisions they make. This means making it easier and more affordable to take public transport by running services in the interests of passengers rather than shareholders, helping people to reduce and recycle their waste, and planning for the vital phase out of incineration.
“Over the coming weeks, people can get in touch with candidates to hear what they have to say on these climate-critical issues and build pressure for ambition and urgency at the local level during the next five years.”
Friends of the Earth Scotland has set out a programme of priorities for climate action they want parties to champion, which can be downloaded below:
The UK’s leading IoT service and solutions provider, North, has been appointed by IT and business consulting firm, CGI, to support the City of Edinburgh Council’s vision to become one of the world’s leading Smart Cities.
A five-year contract has been agreed to support the Council’s plans to ‘transform the capital into one of the world’s leading Smart Cities’.
The deal is supported by a European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grant as part of the ‘Scotland’s 8th City – the Smart City’ programme. City of Edinburgh Council will deliver three projects budgeted at £6.4m, of which £2.5m is part of the ERDF grant. Funding secured by the Council from Zero Waste Scotland through its Recycling Improvement Fund will also be used towards the scheme.
The development of a Smart City Operations Centre will transform and enhance city management and the citizen experience by utilising data captured through a range of emerging technologies to drive transformational change’.
Driven by CGI’s industry-leading Smart City Platform, North was selected by CGI to provide the Smart Waste sensors and to provide connectivity for the solution through the IoT Scotland network, the most advanced Internet of Things (IoT) network in the UK.
Intelligent sensor data will now be used to develop and drive improvements for better waste management, transmitted using North’s IoT Scotland network, allowing the City of Edinburgh Council to improve services across the city.
The project will see North provision 11,000 smart waste sensors in waste containers throughout the city. The state-of-the-art technology will enable clever waste management by detecting waste levels and predicting usage trends, enabling the Council to optimise waste collection and manage routes more efficiently.
The smart technology will assist in creating a cleaner and greener city and will help reduce the Council’s environmental impact.
The IoT Scotland network will also be used to transmit data for other critical services to enhance the council’s digital vision. In parallel with the waste project the council will roll-out a digitally enabled proactive service for Social Housing across the city, using the IoT Scotland network.
This solution will capture insightful data through real-time management and monitoring of the conditions in social housing properties. The proactive approach for the maintenance of properties and asset management will deliver efficiencies for the council while enhancing the living conditions of their residents and improving wellbeing.
Commenting on the partnership, City of Edinburgh Council Deputy Leader, Cammy Day, said:“Edinburgh has big ambitions for becoming a world-leading Smart City – a digitally inclusive, sustainable and connected Capital with services easily accessible by all of our residents no matter where they are.
“The use of intelligent sensors will help us to deliver a more digitally-enabled proactive service and address many of the challenges a rapidly growing city like Edinburgh faces and will support our work towards providing clean and green communities, meeting our net zero targets and improving living conditions and wellbeing for all.”
Scott McEwan, Chief Commercial Officer at North, said:“Edinburgh is one of seven Scottish cities working collaboratively on a Smart City programme. The introduction of the Smart City Platform will enable the Council to reach its ambitions efficiently and North is proud to accelerate this vision.
“The use of technology to introduce intelligent waste management services will create a cost-efficient solution to everyday duties, whilst improving the streetscape and health of communities, and increasing sustainability. Working with CGI, the roll-out of the smart waste scheme is an important step that will help Edinburgh reach its ambitions.”
Tara McGeehan, UK & Australia President at CGI, said:“Edinburgh is a vibrant and diverse capital city that is home to more than 518,000 citizens and CGI has been the primary provider of transformational ICT services to the City of Edinburgh Council since 2015.
“We very much look forward to taking Edinburgh’s vision of a Smart City and making it real through our innovative use of technology, analytics and data. Together, we will turn Edinburgh into one of the world’s leading Smart Cities.”
New research shows that Scotland’s incineration capacity is so high that it is likely to stop councils from recycling waste. Campaigners are calling for a ban on new incinerators so that councils focus on reducing and recycling waste, rather than sending it up in smoke.
The Scottish Government set up an independent review into incineration which is currently taking place. As part of this, the reviewers have researched whether existing and planned incineration capacity matches Scotland’s projected waste levels.
It shows that if Scotland meets its recycling targets, by next year we will already have more incineration capacity than we need. Even if we make no progress towards these targets, there will still be overcapacity by 2026.
The 2025 ban on sending biodegradable municipal waste to landfill means councils have had to find some other way to dispose of waste. Rather than attempting to reduce the waste through recycling and other measures, councils have signed up to expensive and lengthy incineration contracts.
It is now emerging that the amount of waste councils have agreed to supply is greater than the waste available. This means to fulfil their contracts, councils must supply huge amounts of waste to be burnt, instead of focusing on reducing and recycling.
Kim Pratt, circular economy campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “The Scottish Government has unwittingly created the perfect conditions for waste management companies to make as much money as possible from keeping Scotland’s waste levels high. The ban on biodegradable waste to landfill means councils have sought alternative waste management solutions in a hurry.
“Councils have panicked and signed up to contracts that now create a conflict of interests. They are faced with choosing between helping residents reduce and recycle their waste and fulfilling the incineration contracts. Through a lack of strategic thinking, the Government and councils have ensured Scotland’s recycling targets are now much harder to achieve.
“It’s vital we stop burning our valuable resources if we are to bring down the consumption levels that are wrecking the planet. We need to see an end to new incinerators being built in Scotland, and an immediate ban on burning plastics.”
This overcapacity problem is evident at a local level, as well as a national one. Three councils in the North East of Scotland, Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Moray Councils, have signed a joint contract to build and supply a privately run incinerator. The NESS Energy Project is due to start operating later this year.
The incinerator has been built to take 150,000 tonnes of waste. The Environmental Statement for the project shows this was based on the amount of residual waste generated from the councils in 2016 when planning permission was granted.
However, data from SEPA shows that, even before the plant has opened, there will not be enough household residual waste to supply the plant. The 20-year contracts mean these councils will be looking for more material to burn, rather than supporting residents to reduce and recycle waste.
Scotland is now burning almost as much of its household waste as it is sending to landfill. Household waste statistics published in December show a 33.6% increase in waste being incinerated between 2019 and 2020 – that’s an extra 152,000 tonnes burnt in one year.
As well as burning valuable resources, incinerators contribute to climate change by emitting greenhouse gases from the waste they burn.
To find out more visit: www.foe.scot/campaign/plastic-pollution/incineration/
Scottish Councils create safer and more sustainable communities through smart tech
The city council is one of six Scottish local authorities – alongside Scotrail, Blackwood Homes and Care and Borders College – set to benefit from a new Internet of Things (IoT) trial which has the potential to transform the experience of people who live within communities across the country.
The ‘IoT Accelerator Packs’ are being supplied by North, the UK’s leading IoT service and solutions provider.
The innovative packs are set to provide access to real time data insights on waste management, air quality, social housing solutions, building health and water monitoring capabilities. Used in the right way, they have the potential to transform the ways in which local communities live and work and can deliver a wide range of societal and economic benefits.
With access to the Scottish Government-backed national Internet of Things network, IoT Scotland, and funded IoT Accelerator Packs, the organisations involved can investigate and evaluate the power of IoT technology. Scotrail, Blackwood Homes and Care and Borders College are taking part in the innovative trial alongside the following:
Aberdeen City Council
Angus Council
East Renfrewshire Council
City of Edinburgh Council
Fife Council
Highland Council
Working closely with each organisation, North determined the services which would most benefit from smart solutions.
Comprising of sensors and the back-end services required to deploy the selected pack, the IoT Accelerator Packs are accompanied with professional services to facilitate the rollout. The North team will then evaluate and capture feedback, with deployment and support fully funded by the provider.
Fife Council has selected intelligent waste management technology. This will help to reduce their carbon footprint and operational costs using data to monitor smart bins, which align waste collection frequency with demand, significantly reducing costs and emissions.
Scotrail, Edinburgh City, Angus and East Renfrewshire Council will have the ability to measure air quality within train stations, council buildings or across a busy town centre, measuring and reporting on temperature, humidity and pressure, alongside primary air pollutants, enabling environmental teams to access and collate measurements in real-time more easily and frequently than traditional manual processes.
Similarly, Blackwood Homes and Care will be implementing the use of sensors within its social housing to monitor and improve living environments. This will ensure parameters such as moisture control and ventilation are adequate, providing a healthy living environment for tenants whilst also protecting the fabric of the building.
Borders College will use the technology to monitor levels of CO2 within the working environment across its building. With high levels of CO₂ saturation proven to have a detrimental effect on an occupant’s health, affecting productivity, comfort, absence rates and learning retention.
Aberdeen City Council will implement smart sensors to monitor its water, alongside Highland Council, which has already successfully adopted the smart IoT sensor technology across its schools, care homes, leisure centres and council offices to gather a range of data and insights.
The addition of water monitoring is set to help each of the organisations maximise their water safety, by continuously monitoring and measuring water temperature to identify and reduce the risk of legionella and other bacteria.
Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy, Kate Forbes, said:“These innovative accelerator packs have been designed to help organisations explore Internet of Things (IoT) solutions which can deliver sustainable social and economic benefits for local communities.
“Digital technologies like IoT help drive forward our economic recovery while reducing business costs and enabling progress towards net-zero emissions.”
Alasdair Rettie, Group Technical Director at North, said:“IoT technology has the power to truly transform our lives, from revolutionising the ways in which we work, to ensuring that we live in safe and healthy environments. Whilst providing us with the ability to access data which allows us to make informed decisions to improve services across communities.
“We are elated to assist these 10 organisations across Scotland, as they pave the way to use IoT technology to its fullest potential, enhancing their operations and existing systems. From connecting large scale cities to remote communities, the opportunities brought about by the implementation of IoT within our digital connectivity infrastructure are endless, particularly as we work towards Scotland’s social and economic recovery.
“The use of such solutions provides extensive opportunities and a vast number of benefits, and we are pleased to be able to provide these organisations with this opportunity.”
IoT Scotland is the UK’s most advanced IoT network, and it is hoped that through the ‘IoT Accelerator Packs’, local authorities will realise the benefits insightful and actionable IoT data can deliver, driving the adoption of IoT technologies and smart solutions to revolutionise the lives of people throughout Scotland.
Data gathered by these smart solutions will remain the property of the council and all data will be handled in accordance with data protection and GDPR regulations. Councils will have the opportunity to pay to expand and continue the solutions after the initial 12-month period if they so wish.
Councils interested in taking part in the IoT Accelerator Pack programme should get in touch through the following email address: contact@north.tech.
SEPA is leading Scotland’s efforts to tackle new waste crime trend as seven lorries of waste found in North Lanarkshire in recent months
Research estimates £53 million is taken from the public purse every year in Scotland removing illegal waste
Scotland’s enforcement agencies are working together, alongside UK counterparts, to find and stop illegal activity
SEPA is warning waste criminals that compliance with Scotland’s environmental laws is non-negotiable and those caught risk a criminal conviction and a fine of up to £40,000 and/or imprisonment
Everyone is asked to remain vigilant and report suspicious vehicles and activity so action can be taken swiftly
Now more than ever, everyone needs to play their part in correctly managing Scotland’s waste and help stop waste crime
Public are warned – do not give your waste to potential criminals. Take steps to protect yourself, your community and the environment
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) is warning that a new trend appears to be establishing in Scotland as a total of seven abandoned trailers full of waste have been discovered in the central belt in recent months. Investigations to establish the source of the trailers are ongoing – which could lead to the prosecution of those responsible.
Similar instances of waste being placed into trailers and being abandoned at roadsides and industrial locations had been seen in England over recent months. Working alongside partners through the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce and the Joint Unit for Waste Crime, SEPA had been tracking this growing trend across the UK since last year, but seven trailers in eight months indicates this may now be a new disposal route for waste criminals in Scotland.
Jennifer Shearer, SEPA Head of Enforcement, said: “This type of crime has a real impact on local communities, legitimate business and the public agencies who are working to tackle it.
“A high proportion of individuals or companies that are involved in waste crime are also associated with other criminality and sadly this activity has continued during the pandemic.
“Waste crime can cause serious pollution. It puts communities at risk and places further stress on legitimate operators. It also impacts investment and economic growth – serious and organised waste crime is estimated to cost the UK economy at least £600 million a year.*
“We know that criminals are inventive and will find new ways to break the law and make money – but Scotland’s enforcement agencies are inventive too and we are working together, alongside others across the UK, to make sure we find them and we stop them.
“We will continue to work closely with partners, often through joint initiatives such as the Joint Unit for Waste Crime, to ensure we can maximise our collaborative efforts to have the greatest impact, and ultimately stop this type of highly adaptive and lucrative waste crime.”
Clearing up after criminals
The distinctive form of illegal waste disposal saves criminals thousands of pounds in waste disposal costs, but the costs to others may be high. Money often ends up coming out of the public purse – according to 2013 Zero Waste Scotland research at least £53 million of public money is spent cleaning up litter and fly-tipping every year. That is money that could be spent on other public services.
Robert Steenson, DETER Strand Lead with Scotland’s Serious Organised Crime Taskforce and Executive Director of North Lanarkshire Council said: “This type of illegal dumping not only costs the taxpayers’ huge sums of money to clear up, but poses a serious hazard to the environment and our communities.
“These poorly maintained trailers are also being driven on public roads before being dumped and therefore create a dangerous risk to other road users.
“Those responsible have absolutely no respect for people living in the areas these trailers are being dumped and I would urge anyone with any information to contact SEPA or Police Scotland immediately. This type of waste crime has unfortunately became more widespread across the country and is often linked to organised crime groups who use it as a means to make money to fund their other criminal activities. It undermines legitimate disposal businesses and poses a very serious risk to public safety.
“We are working with our partners to safely clear this dumped waste and we will use all the powers at our disposal to identify those responsible.”
Vehicle or landowners may also end up incurring the cost of having waste removed and disposed of legally, which can be considerable.
Tackling waste criminals
SEPA has developed a more targeted approach to tackling environmental crime that directly impacts local communities and the environment. In recent weeks we have been able to confirm that 25 illegal sites or activities have ceased since the turn of the year, with partnership working across agencies being a key success factor.
Keith Brown, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans and Chair of the SOC Taskforce said: “Those involved in fly tipping and other waste crimes will exploit any opportunity to maximise their wealth at the expense of everyone else.
“This is not a victimless crime and causes significant problems to the public, legitimate businesses and the landowners where the waste is abandoned.
“Partners on the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce will use every means at their disposal to disrupt this crime, but we need the help of the public.
“Everyone needs to ensure their waste is properly and legally disposed of and we are also urging members of the public who see evidence of these crimes to report it. If you see something say something.”
Help stop waste criminals operating
Investigations into the source of the trailers and waste are ongoing and SEPA is urging anyone who recognises the vehicles, or the waste within them, to get in touch.
Communities are asked to be vigilant and report any suspicious trailers left by the roadside or in isolated areas as soon as possible. If alerted to it early SEPA has a better opportunity to step in and take action, along with partners like Police Scotland and local authorities. The longer it takes to identify trailers the more chance there is agencies will lose access to essential evidence to help track the perpetrators.
Anyone who may have any information about these lorry trailers, no matter how significant it may seem, is encouraged to get in touch with SEPA as soon as possible. Similarly, if they see any suspicious trailers left by the roadside or in isolated areas they should report it to SEPA’s 24 hour pollution line using the online form at sepa.org.uk/report or by calling 0800 80 70 60.
Landowners are also reminded to be alert to the risk of their land or premises being used for illegal waste deposits. Trailer or vehicle owners should be aware of the risk of theft.
SEPA is also warning the criminals involved that their activities are firmly in the spotlight and compliance with Scotland’s environmental laws is non-negotiable. Illegal waste disposal and fly tipping is a serious offence with significant consequences and those caught risk a criminal conviction and a fine of up to £40,000 and/or imprisonment.
The distinctive form of illegal waste disposal saves criminals thousands of pounds in waste disposal costs, but the costs to others may be high. Vehicle or landowners are likely to incur the costs of having waste removed and disposed of legally, which can be considerable.
Do not give your waste to potential criminals
As well as reporting suspicious activity, members of the public can help tackle waste crime by refusing to engage the services of people who are not authorised.
Jennifer Shearer explained: “Now more than ever, we all need to play our part in correctly managing our waste. You have the responsibility to take care of your waste and if we trace it back to you, we can take enforcement action against you too.
“We don’t want people to be put in that situation so make sure that anyone who takes your waste for disposal is properly accredited. Take steps to protect yourself, your community and the environment.
“Remember, disposing of waste legally costs money. Services that sound too good to be true often are and could lead to your waste being illegally fly-tipped or disposed of by other illegitimate means.
“Anyone offering to take your waste away should be able to provide a SEPA waste carrier registration number and give you the name of the facility they will take the waste to – if they can’t provide this information, do not allow them to take your waste.”
