Rob Edwards

Paris and back in 26 hours

from Sunday Herald, 30 December 2007

It's 5.30 in the morning, and I am cycling through the streets of Edinburgh towards Waverley station. Cash machines blink at me from banks, and the eery quiet is broken only by the growl of a taxi and the occasional burst of pre-dawn birdsong.

At the station the bike rack, as always, is full. But it's not long before I'm settled in my seat on the 5.50 am train to London, exhaling. This was the train I had to catch to make my journey feasible - Paris in a day on the inaugural Eurostar service from St Pancras International.

New US design for Trident causes headache for UK

from Sunday Herald, 23 December 2007

The US nuclear-armed missile that the Westminster government is hoping will replace Trident may not actually fit into British submarines, creating a “major headache” for British weapons designers.

The Sunday Herald has seen evidence that US designers are contemplating new missiles too big to slot into the tubes that house Trident's current D5 missiles.

Tenders to bid for a test bed for future underwater-launched nuclear missiles issued by the US Navy last month specify a missile diameter of up to 120 inches. The diameter of Trident's D5 missile tubes is 87 inches.

New move to bring back beavers

23 December 2007

Plans to bring the beaver back to Scotland four centuries after it was hunted to extinction have taken a crucial step forward this weekend.

Two wildlife groups have formally applied to the Scottish government for a licence to introduce up to 20 European beavers for a trial at Knapdale forest in mid-Argyll.

Scotland accused of 65 breaches of European laws

from Sunday Herald, 16 December 2007

Scotland has been accused by the European Union (EU) of 65 violations of laws meant to prevent pollution, protect wildlife and control waste, according to a secret government database released to the Sunday Herald.

The number of alleged breaches of European legal directives over the past six years is twice as high as previously admitted, prompting accusations yesterday that Scotland's record was "shocking" and had been "covered up".

The range of environmental crimes investigated by the EU is very broad. They include breaking rules on overfishing, hazardous waste, water pollution, sewage, radiation protection, plant imports, pesticides, birds of prey and pigs.

US U-turn saves climate talks - but is it enough?

from Sunday Herald, 16 December 2007

First the world held its breath, then it sighed with relief. In the end the wind that blew from Bali yesterday was favourable.

After two weeks of intense negotiations, a sleep-deprived night and a morning of high drama, over 180 countries gathered on the Indonesian island finally agreed a way forward for combating one of the most serious threats humanity has ever faced - climate change.

Over the next two years countries are committed to agreeing how to cut the pollution that is warming the globe, causing floods, droughts and storms. The aim is to come up with a deal in Copenhagen in 2009 which will succeed that made at Kyoto in Japan, which runs until 2012.

Bali: progress but frustratingly little

comment from Sunday Herald, 16 December 2007

There is a natural flow to international summits. First there is hope, then there is disappointment, then there is compromise. And in the end it all comes down to negotiations over a few words by dedicated diplomats who've been deprived of sleep for days.

So it was in Bali, Indonesia, yesterday as the world's latest and most crucial attempt to agree how to combat climate change drew to a close. As always, the outcome was simultaneously hailed as historic, and derided as pathetic. So what comfort can we actually drew from what was agreed?

Warning that waste target could be missed

from Sunday Herald, 16 December 2007

Ministers are being warned that Scotland could fail to meet a vital target to stem the growth in waste - but that burning large amounts in big incinerators is not the solution.

Instead, the Scottish government is being urged by its environmental advisors to reduce the mountains of rubbish produced by households and businesses. Landfill bans and other compulsory controls should be considered in the drive towards a “zero waste society”, they say.

Ministers facing protests for helping Donald Trump

from Sunday Herald, 09 December 2007

Scottish ministers are facing a rising barrage of protest - and the threat of legal action - over their unprecedented decision to call in plans for an international golf resort by the American billionaire property developer, Donald Trump.

The move has upset planning professionals, who fear that rules are being bent to pave the way for the £1 billion scheme on the Aberdeenshire coast. Environmental groups representing hundreds of thousands of people are also mobilising opposition, and talking to their lawyers.

The way in which Scottish Nationalist ministers handle the Trump development is now seen by many as the first major test of the new government’s green credentials. Leading environmentalists are warning that ministers risk being “bullied” by the tycoon, and are already making comparisons with the big environmental battles of the past over the Harris superquarry and the Cairngorm funicular.

Recycling targets at risk from spending change

from Sunday Herald, 09 December 2007

Targets to boost recycling could be breached and more incinerators could be built because Scottish ministers have stopped ring-fencing council spending on waste.

A decision by the Scottish government to allow local authorities to decide on their own spending priorities has provoked alarm amongst professionals, politicians and environmental groups - and concern from ministers’ own green watchdog.

Community action needed on climate change

from Sunday Herald, 09 December 2007

An innovative new campaign is to be launched in Scotland this week to help communities take action to cut the pollution that causes global warming.

The launch follows a global day of protest timed to put pressure on the governments which are meeting in Bali, Indonesia, to decide the world's next moves to combat climate change.

New move to stop ship-to-ship oil plans

from Sunday Herald, 02 December 2007

Controversial plans to pump millions of tonnes of oil between ships around the UK coast could be prevented by a new law being proposed by a Scottish MP.

This week Mark Lazarowicz, Labour MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, will launch a private member's bill aimed at plugging the loophole which has enabled ship-to-ship oil transfers to escape independent regulation.