Chamber and committees

Research supporting the review of energy standards provides an indication of the potential cost of future standards. Research to inform the 2010 review was published in 2009. Research to inform the 2013 review will be published in 2012. There is industry stakeholder involvement in this research.

The Scottish Government recognises the need to encourage the most efficient and effective use of Scotland’s wood resource.

Our preference to see biomass deployed in heat-only or combined heat and power schemes, particularly off gas-grid, and at a scale appropriate to make best use of both the available heat and local supply has been set out in the Draft Electricity Generation Policy Statement 2010, as well as in National Planning Framework 2, Scottish Planning Policy, Section 36 Thermal Guidance, Section 36 Biomass Scoping Opinion guidance and in statements by ministers to parliament.

We are reviewing support for biomass under Renewables Obligation Scotland to ensure that it aligns with this policy, and proposals will be consulted on shortly. The Scottish Government is actively working with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to ensure they are aware of concerns over the cumulative impact of biomass proposals.

Forestry Commission Scotland’s annual Woodfuel Demand and Usage report provides industry with regular updates on market trends and analysis to help industry make informed decisions. The Wood Fuel Task Force report set out the potential resource availability and emphasises the limitation on further large-scale biomass plants using domestic material.

We are also engaged with existing timber users to address their concerns over the potential impact of biomass incentives on their businesses and we have set up joint meetings with Scottish and UK Ministers to discuss the impacts of biomass projects with industry stakeholders.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-02236 on 14 September 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Currently only certain materials such as liquid waste, clinical waste and other potentially hazardous substances are banned from landfill, largely on the basis of environmental and health impacts.

The EC Landfill Directive requires Scotland to reduce the amount of biodegradable municipal waste going to landfill to 1.8 tonnes by 2013 and 1.26 tonnes by 2020 and that Scotland has already achieved its 2013 target.

Notwithstanding this success, the proposed landfill bans within the draft Zero Waste Regulations are aimed at maximising Scotland’s approach to recycling and resource recovery of its waste.

Scotland’s Zero Waste Plan is underpinned by the Waste Framework Directive and the main driver of the directive is the Waste Hierarchy. We are committed to ensuring that these wastes are managed further up the hierarchy and away from the basic disposal method of landfill. The banning of source segregated and separately collected materials from landfill will ensure that they are recycled and as a consequence, Scotland’s dependency on landfill will be significantly reduced.

The Scottish Government recognises that we have limited biomass resource in Scotland and if we are to meet the target for renewable heat and power, it is vital that we make the most efficient, effective use of that resource. The Scottish Government would prefer to see biomass deployed in heat-only or combined heat and power schemes, off grid-gas use, at a scale appropriate to make best use of both the available heat, and of local supply. In addition, ministers have already outlined that they would review the Renewables Obligation Scotland support in order that it reflects our policy in this area.

The Zero Waste Regulations will ensure that only a limited quantity of material will be available for incineration in Scotland. All inputs will have to be treated and recyclate removed before energy can be reclaimed. These restrictions will limit the economic viability of large plants. In addition SEPA Thermal Guidelines on Energy from Waste, which are a material consideration during the planning process, detail the efficiency requirements of new projects. These stringent efficiency guidelines make the construction large scale plants impractical.

The proposed Zero Waste Regulations will ensure that separately collected dry recyclables and food waste are banned from both landfill and incineration. These bans will be universal and apply regardless of the source of the waste.

The draft Regulations also contain a requirement that every effort is made to remove all recyclable material from an unsorted waste stream before the remaining residual element can be incinerated. This effectively means that “black bin bag” waste or waste which has not been collected separately cannot be sent direct to mass incineration without first having been subject to some form of pre-treatment. This provides a second opportunity to remove recyclable materials missed at the source segregation and separate collection stage. This will ensure that Scotland does not simply move from mass landfill to mass incineration.

The intended effect of this restriction is to ensure that only materials which cannot be recycled are available for incineration. This reduction in potential “feedstock” for incineration facilities is unlikely to reduce the number of speculative planning applications in the short-term, but it will ultimately limit the number that are built.

Scottish Government officials based at the Marine Laboratory in Aberdeen, who are the Marine Scotland on call Duty Officers, were first notified of the spill via a telephone call from Shell at 1pm on 11 August 2011. As is routinely the case in relation to the hundreds of offshore oil and chemical spills notified each year, a watching brief was maintained at that stage, as the volume and nature of the spill was not clear. Ministers were notified the following day after Shell provided information on the scale and extent of the incident.

The update and replacement of Planning Advice Note 63 - Waste Management Planning 2002, will address good practice in development planning and development management across all waste streams. It will include advice on factors such as location, need, public engagement, awareness, infrastructure delivery, operation, monitoring and compliance.

The Scottish Government supports business and industry through a number of avenues to help business and the public sector in Scotland to reduce carbon emissions, improve business efficiency and with carbon management planning. The Carbon Trust have indicated the latest results for 2010-11 show annual savings of at least 284kt CO₂ and £31.8 million in reduced annual energy costs. Our Energy Saving Scotland small business loans scheme offers small and medium enterprises interest-free loans for renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency measures. This scheme paid out over £2.4 million through more than 80 loans during 2010-11.

The Scottish Government is committed to simplifying the landscape for energy and resource efficiency advice to business. We have established a single Scottish Energy and Resource Efficiency Service for business, bringing together key delivery bodies (including Carbon Trust, Energy Saving Trust, Zero Waste Scotland and SEPA), our enterprise agencies and Business Gateway. The new service will provide greater cross-referral, encouraging businesses to consider taking action on energy and wider resource efficiency at the same time.