|
|
|
Barra and Vatersay take up climate challenge |
|
|
|
Tuesday, 26 August 2008 |
The isles of Barra and Vatersay will seek to reduce their carbon footprint with the help of a £62,000 grant from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund.
The money from the fund – developed jointly by the Government and the Scottish Greens – will be used to help the communities grow more of their own food to avoid having it shipped from Oban, to develop a community-owned wind turbine and to improve energy efficiency in homes.
Barra is also hosting other remote Scottish communities that want to share ideas and develop plans for using the Fund to tackle climate change.
Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said:
“Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing us today, both here in Scotland and across the world. We want Scotland and its local communities to be part of the global solution. There are many things we can do as individuals to reduce our carbon emissions, but by acting and working together as communities we can do much more.
“That's why supporting communities such as Barra and Vatersay through the Climate Challenge Fund is so important. It will empower people to take action to reduce their carbon footprint and make a real difference to the local and national environment.”
Green MSP Patrick Harvie said:
“The Western Isles have a crucial role to play as Scotland starts to tackle climate change. As fuel costs rise, the islands regularly see some of the country's most substantial increases in living costs. Similarly, as sea levels rise and extreme weather patterns become more common, the Western Isles may well bear the brunt.
“However, Barra, Vatersay and the other isles are also uniquely blessed with the potential for renewable energy. Well-sited wind power will bring big rewards, especially community turbines like those being supported today. Larger-scale offshore wind and wave power could generate enough power to keep the lights on across Scotland. Greens believe local economies are stronger economies, and this project is no exception. Funding is being provided today to increase local food production and to cut waste. These are measures that could be beneficial across the whole country, but more remote communities like Barra and Vatersay will see even greater benefits from moves of this sort.”
No one has commented on this article.
|
Site news...
This website has been tested as working under Firefox, and Internet Explorer 6 and 7. Although the website will work in any of these browsers, users of Internet Explorer may experience some visual distortion due to the browser lacking support for widely accepted open standards.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause, and will endeavour to ensure that the site will deliver its content irrelevant of browser choice.
We strongly encourage users to install the Firefox web browser, as it is both standards-compliant and free software.
Please click here to visit the Firefox home page.
|
|
|
Holyrood news 
