COP26 as seen from Glasgow
We thought it was high time to get a Scottish viewpoint on the COP26 conference that is due to be held in Glasgow in November 2021, so we are very pleased to have persuaded Kirsty Platt, International Collaboration Specialist at Scottish Enterprise, who covers the Circular Economy, Sustainability and Inclusive Growth, to contribute this guest article.
Glasgow. Photo courtesy of Stuart Platt
As a Glaswegian, I am immensely proud and honoured to have such a significant event happening on my doorstep! I see it as the last real chance for World Leaders to unite and agree to take the necessary actions that will protect us and our children’s future. Scotland leads by example in relation to many aspects of climate change action and I hope you will see this is showcased during COP 26 in a way that inspires others to follow suit. I hope to see great examples of how we are embracing Innovation, R&D and Business Development activities that support sustainable investment opportunities and how we are actively and consciously creating a Green Economy model.
In Scotland, we have world-leading climate legislation. We have already set targets to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2045, five years ahead of the rest of the UK. We aim to deliver 50% of Scotland's total energy consumption from renewables by 2030 and phase out the need for new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2032 as well as lead on low carbon transport. We also have a new Scottish National Investment Bank that invests in activities that support Scotland’s transition to net-zero. We are capitalising on the world’s largest planned tidal energy solution, MeyGen, located in the Pentland Firth off the North Coast of Scotland. MeyGen is expected to generate clean power for up to 175,000 homes. Moreover, I have Europe’s largest onshore wind farm, Whitelees, right on my doorstep, it generates up to ~540 MW of electricity, enough to power approximately 350,000 homes and very accessible to visit from Glasgow City.
Across Scotland, we have vast amounts of peat bog that can be turned into thriving wetlands. This offers fantastic nature-based solutions to climate change by acting as “carbon sinks”. The Flow Country in the Caithness and Sutherland area of Scotland for example is Europe’s largest expanse of bog, trapping ~ 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon and is home to a vast array of thriving wildlife. Much commitment is now being given to managing and restoring this and other sites and it is also being considered for World Heritage Status. Our way of managing these natural resources can be replicated throughout the world where the environment lends itself to similar characteristics and indeed, we are open to learning new land management practices from other countries.
Additionally, In the North East of Scotland, the Acorn Project are investing in a commercial-scale Carbon Capture & Storage facility. This will also support the Acorn Hydrogen project, which aims to convert the natural gas produced in the North Sea into clean hydrogen. It reutilises the existing infrastructure from our pre-existing Oil and Gas Industry and is a great example of circular thinking. We need to continue to accelerate support to communities, institutions, industry, and innovators to de-risk and financially reward sustainable entrepreneurship and projects such as Acorn. This will help us make sizeable inroads to further reduce emissions. This is imperative for a healthy future!
Overall, we have amazing opportunities to further our “Green Economy “. To support this, I’d love to see heightened collaboration between research, innovation, and industry to find the right solutions across the globe to tackle Climate Change. Scotland has set up a Just Transition Commission to support UK Government ministers to apply Just Transition principles into our decision-making process. Just Transition Mechanism is a vision led model that will support our net-zero commitments, steer us away from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy in alignment with UN SDG goals which will support and enhance our enterprises, people, communities, and jobs. At a European level for example it is enabling up to €150 billion of funds and investments to be spent in the areas most affected by climate change and alleviate the socio-economic impact of the transition.
Our emissions have almost halved since 1990 and we continue to outperform the rest of the UK in delivering reductions, but despite all this great work we still have lots to do to turn this around in time. We need to see a better alignment of government mechanisms post-Brexit to steer the economy onto a trajectory that decouples economic growth from escalating resource usage. I want to see agreements made on how to enable this change at a systemic level including a plan to reframe our current legal, financial & business to make a shift from their current frameworks.
Moreover, we need to see a reversal and reallocation of perverse subsidies and taxes and properly incentivise the right behaviours and decisions required to shape the sustainable future we are trying to achieve. I want the leaders to fully embrace the opportunities of a “Green Economy“ and in a way that underpins fundamental Human Rights. We need to showcase opportunities for improving quality of life for all including access to cheap and clean energy, quality jobs & housing, diversity, inclusion along with circular production and consumption behaviours.
It’s no small ask, I know, but I hope COP26 achieves all of this.
The Weir at Glasgow - John Waterson. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jdw/