- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what projects have benefited from the Zero Waste Fund in 2008-09.
Answer
A number of projects designed to help meet zero waste policy aims and objectives have benefited. For example, delivery bodies including the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), Envirowise, Community Recycling Network for Scotland (CRNS) and the Scottish Waste Awareness Group (SWAG) have all received funding from the 2008-09 Zero Waste Fund.
Funding has also been made available to Eco Schools and for local authority food waste trials. In addition, various community based projects have also benefited from funding provided through the INCREASE III programme which is administered and delivered by WRAP and CRNS.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive which community recycling projects have received support since the announcement on 24 January 2008 of £2.5 million of government funding over three years for community recycling.
Answer
The community recycling projects that have received funding since January 2008 are set out in the following table. The actual funding being made available by the Scottish Government under the INCREASE III Programme for community recycling projects is in fact £7.5 million over the period 2008-09 “ 2010-11.
| Organisation | Town | Name of Project | Award |
| Alloa Community Enterprises Ltd | Alloa, Clackmannanshire | Enterprise Development | £180,000.00 |
| Blythswood Care | Evanton, Highland | Re-use and Recycling Partnership | £91,440.00 |
| Friends of the Earth Scotland Ltd | Edinburgh | Communities Reducing Excess Waste (CREW) | £203,198.44 |
| Golspie Recycling and Environmental Action Network | Golspie, Highland | GREAN Development Project | £242,063.00 |
| Highland Real Nappy Project | Grantown-on-Spey, Highland | Real Nappies for Highland Babies | £176,787.00 |
| Sustain Dundee | Dundee | Dundee Real Nappy Campaign | £53,630.45 |
| The Wise Group | Glasgow | Getting Glasgow Waste Wise | £299,065.00 |
| Aberdeen Forward | Aberdeen | Grampian Real Nappy Project | £108,912.14 |
| Changeworks | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and Lothians Real Nappy Project | £165,911.00 |
| Compost Doctors Scotland | Stirling | Compost Doctors Scotland | £133,000.00 |
| Edinburgh Community Backgreens Association | Edinburgh | Green Caretakers On-Site Household Composting Service | £32,490.00 |
| Edinburgh Cyrenians | Edinburgh | Cyrenians Waste Collection Services | £189,458.00 |
| Employability Orkney (Restart Orkney) | Orkney | Restart Orkney - Enterprise Development | £74,700.00 |
| Fallin Community Services | Fallin, Stirling | Polmaise Community Reuse Centre | £105,500.00 |
| Forth Environment Link | Stirling | Forth Valley Waste Minimisation Programme | £74,579.00 |
| Glasgow Furniture Initiative | Glasgow | GFI: The Next Steps | £225,000.00 |
| Glasgow Wood Recycling | Glasgow | Glasgow Wood Recycling Expansion & Enterprise | £91,991.00 |
| Good Green Fun CIC | Stirling | Good Green Fun Move to Self Sufficiency | £41,706.00 |
| Instant Neighbour | Aberdeen | The Aberdeen Instant Neighbour Workshop | £138,525.00 |
| Intowork (Bits and Bobs) | Edinburgh | Community Scrapstore | £84,500.00 |
| Moray Waste Busters Limited | Forres, Moray | Completion of Site Development | £37,142.00 |
| Perth and Kinross Real Nappy Network | Perth | Perth and Kinross Real Nappy Scheme | £57,190.00 |
| Recycle to Cycle (The Bike Station) | Edinburgh | The Bike Station | £133,000.00 |
| RePaint Scotland | Glasgow | RePaint Scotland | £299,503.00 |
| Ross-Shire Waste Action Network Ltd | Dingwall, Highland | RoWAN: Towards Waste-free Communities Project | £299,534.00 |
| Tiree Environmental Action and Recycling Group | Tiree | Mobile Waste Agri-Plastic Recycling Service for Tiree | £9,810.00 |
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how many single outcome agreements with local authorities include outcomes relating to recycling.
Answer
Twenty-nine of the 32 local authorities in Scotland have single outcome agreements that include outcomes on recycling. The three who do not are Shetland, Western Isles and Clackmannanshire.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how many unfair dismissal claims arising from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s pay settlement for 2008-09 have been (a) submitted and (b) resolved.
Answer
None. The 2008-09 pay settlement is still in negotiation with the trade union. As this is an operational matter for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, I have asked its Chief Executive, Campbell Gemmell, to write to the member.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is considering implementing to encourage a reduction in the use of plastic packaging.
Answer
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), on behalf of the Scottish Government, are working with retailers, manufacturers and leading supermarkets through the Courtauld Commitment to reduce the amount of packaging used and sold. Earlier in 2008 the signatories to the Courtauld Commitment reported that packaging waste growth had halted. There is now a commitment to deliver a reduction in packaging waste by March 2010.
WRAP is also working closely with industry to ensure that where plastic packaging is used the packaging is optimised in terms of weight and functionality and designed so that it can easily be reused or recycled.
In the case of plastic bags, the Scottish Government has secured a commitment from retailers in Scotland to reduce carrier bag usage by 50% by Spring 2009.
Work with the Scottish Waste Awareness Group (SWAG) includes the provision of information on packaging for consumers on SWAG''s web site so that the public is better informed about the role of packaging, how to avoid unnecessary packaging and how to complain about excess packaging.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the £41.1 million Zero Waste Fund for 2008-09 has been allocated.
Answer
I can advise that all of the 2008-09 Zero Waste Fund (£41.1 million) has been allocated to a range of projects and initiatives designed to meet zero waste policy aims and objectives.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether local authorities will be penalised for not achieving their agreed outcomes on waste management.
Answer
The concordat between Scottish Government and COSLA has established a new way of working based on mutual respect, trust and partnership. The concordat makes it clear that it is the responsibility of each local authority to allocate resources on the basis of local needs and priorities, including the Scottish Government''s key strategic objectives and manifesto commitments.
The funding from the previously ring-fenced Strategic Waste Fund, plus money from the Zero Waste Fund, and the overall additional funding package resulting from the 2007 Spending review is considered sufficient to meet both landfill directive and zero waste targets for 2010.
As regards longer term targets, Scottish Government and COSLA are currently discussing how best to ensure that waste management targets are achieved. Whilst those discussions are ongoing the penalties associated with the Landfill Allowance Scheme have been temporarily suspended.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that individuals and businesses that cause pollution should be required to pay to clean up that pollution.
Answer
Yes, the Scottish Government fully embraces the polluter pays principle. Furthermore, in the current economic climate it is appropriate for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to assist business wherever possible where this can be done without impacting on regulatory activity or having a deleterious effect on human health and the environment.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how the proposals to waive and restrict fees charged to businesses by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), announced on 25 November 2008, will impact on SEPA staff.
Answer
The decision to waive certain licence application fees and charges from businesses for the remainder of 2008-09 will not adversely impact on SEPA staff. The same level of regulatory activity and support will continue to be available to businesses.
- Asked by: Elaine Murray, MSP for Dumfries, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 01 December 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 December 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how the proposals to waive and restrict fees charged to businesses by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, announced on 25 November 2008, will be funded.
Answer
Any loss of income in 2008-09 from the decision to waive certain licence application fees payable by businesses will be funded from reprioritisation of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency''s existing budget provision.
