Act locally
There are many ways to make a difference and help fight climate change.
Talk to your local authority
Local authorities have the potential to play a key role in tackling climate change through both their own activities and their influence on the wider community.
Your local authority, in common with all local authorities in Scotland, has signed Scotland's Climate Change Declaration committing them to working together with the Scottish Government and their local communities to address climate change.
Local councillors and council officers will welcome your involvement. Enter into a dialogue, talk about how you can each help one another tackle global warming, and invite speakers from your local authority to your school. Think about what actions are practical and ask for assistance.
How good is your local authority’s record on climate change action?
As part of Scotland's Climate Change Declaration, local authorities committed to prepare a plan, with targets and timescales, on how they would achieve a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from their own operations including energy use, transport and waste. They are also to publish an annual statement on their progress in addressing climate change.
Recycling and composting
Scotland has been traditionally reliant on landfill to dispose of its waste. We now understand that we must seek out more sustainable options, such as: reducing the amount of waste generated , reusing, recycling and composting the waste we do produce.
To help achieve this the Scottish Government have provided funding to local authorities to help develop recycling and composting facilities. Local Authorities have in turn been set targets including:
- 25% recycling/composting of municipal waste by 2006 (and 30% recycling/composting of municipal waste by 2008)
- 55% recycling/composting of municipal waste (35% recycling and 20% composting) by 2020.
Information on Scotland's recycling rates can be found on the Scottish Environment Protection Agency's (SEPA’s) website. The figures below are recycling in local authorities from July 2005 to June 2006.
How well did your local authority do? (% of municipal waste recycled/composted)
| Aberdeen | 19.2 |
|---|---|
| Aberdeenshire | 16.1 |
| Angus | 31.4 |
| Argyll & Bute | 29.0 |
| Clackmannanshire | 41.3 |
| Dumfries & Galloway | 10.7 |
| Dundee | 30.5 |
| East Ayrshire | 30.2 |
| East Dunbartonshire | 26.9 |
| East Lothian | 29.9 |
| East Renfrewshire | 30.3 |
| Edinburgh | 22.6 |
| Eilean Siar | 11.7 |
| Falkirk | 31.1 |
| Fife | 29.8 |
| Glasgow | 16.0 |
| Highland | 21.8 |
| Inverclyde | 29.8 |
| Midlothian | 25.1 |
| Moray | 34.2 |
| North Ayrshire | 26.1 |
| North Lanarkshire | 24.7 |
| Orkney | 24.2 |
| Perth & Kinross | 33.3 |
| Renfrewshire | 25.8 |
| Scottish Borders | 21.0 |
| Shetland Islands | 10.0 |
| South Ayrshire | 37.4 |
| South Lanarkshire | 34.1 |
| Stirling | 34.2 |
| West Dunbartonshire | 23.0 |
| West Lothian | 28.3 |
If your local authority recycled or composted less than 25%, ask why.
Challenge your local supermarkets
What shops and supermarkets are there in your area? List the shops, size, type of provision and car parking space, delivery services, existence of recycling facilities, etc.
Investigate supermarket chains’ websites and find out what each has to say on the environment and green shopping. What are their current and future plans to reduce their carbon footprint? Are the supermarket’s green shopping initiatives really making a difference or are they just trying to sell you a greener image?
Each supermarket chain will have an Environmental Policy and more than likely a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report detailing how they are reducing their environmental impact. Look at what is happening locally - are these ‘central promises’ being delivered by the stores in your area?
What are supermarkets promising to do and what are they actually doing? Ask the managers of your local stores directly what they are doing to meet these promises, tackle global warming and reduce their store’s carbon footprint.
Challenge local businesses
Look at major employers and companies in your area. Do they have environmental policies? How many local businesses leave their lights on all night? Do they recycle? Could they switch to green energy and energy efficient vehicles? Have they measured their carbon footprint?
Lots of companies have adopted Environmental Management Systems such as ISO14001 and EMAS. These systems outline what the company does in terms of its environmental responsibilities, how it handles its waste, energy, water, transport and its employees etc. The systems mean that the company is independently assessed (just like Eco Schools) to gain the award ISO or EMAS and is constantly monitored for progress.
Contact local businesses and ask them for details of what they are doing to reduce their impact on the planet.
Photo credit: Scotland's Climate Change Programme (SCCP).Images are freely available for educational use in Scotland.