- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 20 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what the impact would be on carbon emissions if coal-fired generation capacity were replaced by equivalent renewable capacity.
Answer
It is likely that thermal baseload, utilising carbon reducing technology, will be required into the future to help meet security of supply objectives.
If fitted with carbon capture and storage equipment, estimates from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change are that emissions from coal-fired generation would fall by up to 90%.
Where renewable energy replaces thermal generation without carbon capture and storage, a significant reduction in carbon emissions may also be expected.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 20 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what level of (a) carbon emissions and (b) sulphur and other pollutants ministers would regard as acceptable for coal-fired power stations to be considered as clean coal stations.
Answer
Levels of carbon emissions, sulphur and other pollutants from coal-fired power stations are strictly regulated by EU emissions and air quality legislation. The European Union is currently negotiating its Climate and Energy package, which includes new and revised directives on Carbon Capture and Storage, the Emissions Trading Scheme and industrial emissions.
These new directives will set the framework for what levels of emissions will be considered acceptable from coal-fired power stations in future to meet the EU''s agreed target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 20 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive when ministers expect carbon capture and storage technologies to be ready for use in Scotland.
Answer
The current Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) competition being run by the UK Government sets a deadline of 2014 for the chosen project to be operational on a commercial scale. We are hopeful that a Scottish based project will win that competition.
We are also playing an enabling role to assist the development of CCS more generally such as funding research into identifying future carbon stores and participating in the UK Energy Bill''s provisions on carbon storage.
We believe that all of this work will ensure that CCS technologies will be ready for deployment in Scotland at the earliest possible opportunity.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 20 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of electricity generation capacity ministers expect to be delivered by coal by 2020.
Answer
The composition of Scotland''s future electricity generation will be dependent on a number of factors, including relative cost of fuels, requirements in relation to carbon emissions and related investment decisions made by the private sector. Therefore, we do not have a specific prediction for coal-based generation.
It will be for the industry to bring forward proposals for new or replacement capacity, and Scottish ministers will consider each on its merits under our consenting powers in the Electricity Act 1989. We will be consulting shortly on new guidance for applications for consent to construct thermal power generation.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jim Mather on 20 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what range of technologies ministers regard as necessary for coal-fired power stations to be considered as clean coal stations.
Answer
There are a range of potential technologies, some of which are still in development, that can reduce emissions, such as carbon capture, supercritical boilers, or flue gas desulphurisation. The package of energy and climate change directives being negotiated by the European Union will drive the development of necessary technologies to reduce emissions associated with burning coal.
We will shortly be consulting on guidance in relation to consent for construction of thermal power stations, and this will seek views on requirements in respect of emissions reduction.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 24 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 14 August 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what records it maintains of public buildings, including schools, that were constructed with the use of asbestos and if this information (a) has been or (b) will be made available to the public.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold information on the incidence of asbestos in schools or other public buildings. The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2006 place a duty on those with responsibilities for buildings to manage the risk from asbestos. In the case of schools that would be the local authority.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 July 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 30 July 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to implement the recommendations in the Scottish Law Commission’s Report on Conversion of Long Leases, published in 2006.
Answer
Officials in Constitution, Law and Courts Directorate are considering the Scottish Law Commission’s Report on Conversion of Long Leases (Scot Law Com 204) and the Scottish Government will take a view in due course about the timing of any bill.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 June 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 29 July 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it remains committed to achieving an average 3% reduction in greenhouse gases in each year of the current parliamentary session.
Answer
We are committed to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050 which is equivalent to an average reduction of more than 3% per year. Continuous progress to reduce emissions is essential and the Scottish Government believe that reporting an annual measure of progress within a multi-year budget process is the best means of achieving this. Independent, expert advice would be taken on the trajectory of emissions needed to meet our 2050 target.
We are considering our final approach in light of responses to our consultation on a Scottish Climate Change Bill. In the meantime, we have committed to reduce emissions over the period to 2011 from a baseline of 2005.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 June 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 29 July 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive when it will consult on measures to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from the existing building stock and whether the results of the consultation will be analysed and published before the commencement of parliamentary scrutiny of the Climate Change Bill.
Answer
A two-stage process of consultation on measures to improve the energy performance of existing buildings is proposed. The first consultation will focus on non-domestic buildings and is expected to be launched within the next few weeks. We will endeavour to provide an analysis of this consultation prior to parliamentary scrutiny of the Climate Change Bill. The second consultation will cover measures related to existing housing and it is planned to issue this later in the year.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 June 2008
-
Current Status:
Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 29 July 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13460 by Stewart Stevenson on 9 June 2008, by how much it intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the 2011 target date.
Answer
As outlined in
The Government Economic Strategy, whether our emission reduction targets will be based on a basket of greenhouse gases or CO
2 alone, will be decided after the public consultation on the proposals for the Scottish Climate Change Bill. Public consultation closed on 23 April and responses are currently being considered.
The Technical Notes for the 2007 Spending Review (available on the Scottish Government website at www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/11/30090722/0) confirm that, pending a final decision on the gases to be covered, the short-term target is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the period to 2011 from a baseline of 2005.
