- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to adopt a zoning approach to recycling and waste collection in urban areas.
Answer
Commercial waste zoning was included in our consultations on the Circular Economy Bill and the Waste Route Map and we are considering options in light of consultation responses and further research.
The Programme for Government committed the Scottish Government to bring forward a Circular Economy Bill in this Parliamentary year, at which point the content of the Bill will be made public. Our final Route Map is due for publication later in 2023.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to inform individuals and businesses how to identify textiles fit for reuse, before recycling.
Answer
Zero Waste Scotland seeks to raise awareness of the benefits of responsible consumption by promoting the benefits of reuse. This is regularly done through communications campaigns promoting the Revolve programme, actions such as Pass It On Week and European Week for Waste Reduction, and encouraging individuals to reuse items and choose second-hand. Its recent carbon metric publication highlighted the impact of textiles waste.
Zero Waste Scotland is working to support businesses in understanding the benefits of circular business models which support the waste hierarchy, including hosting an upcoming textiles specific webinar.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to increase the recycling rate of waste electrical and electronic equipment.
Answer
The Scottish Government is working with the other UK administrations on reforms to the producer responsibility system for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) to make it easier for consumers to recycle WEEE and incentivise producers to make more sustainable design choices. We will consult on these reforms in due course.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what measures it will put in place to encourage consumers to dispose of nitrous oxide canisters responsibly.
Answer
A range of information and advice is available from Zero Waste Scotland and local authorities to help consumers recycle and dispose of waste responsibly, including gas canisters. Householders can seek specific advice from their local authority on recycling and disposal options in their local area.
Nitrous oxide canisters should not be disposed of in residual waste (‘black bag’) bins as they may explode if they are crushed, increasing the risk of injury or fire. Consumers of nitrous oxide canisters should follow advice provided by suppliers or contact their local authority to check that these items are accepted at their nearest Household Recycling Centre, where gas canisters can be safely stored and disposed of by a specialist waste contractor that has the facility to recycle them safely.
We will continue to work closely with the waste sector to consider any further advice required to support safe disposal of nitrous oxide canisters.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of Peterborough's model for becoming a circular city by 2050 and its potential application to local authority areas in Scotland.
Answer
While we have not made any direct assessment of the Peterborough model, Zero Waste Scotland has engaged with Peterborough City Council in the past and has since explored a number of regional strategies and approaches to help inform their work to support cities and regions to adopt circular economy principles.
Zero Waste Scotland recently developed a framework for local authorities. The framework has been produced to help local authorities embed circular economy into their own operations, their wider cities, districts and regions and to deliver circular opportunities and benefits. It draws together experience, knowledge and learning from Scotland as well as other organisations and locations.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the health and safety risk of nitrous oxide canisters being found in Material Recycling Facilities and Energy from Waste plants.
Answer
The Waste Industry Safety and Health (WISH) Forum develops and promotes health and safety guidance for the waste management industry with input from industry experts and other bodies, such as the Health and Safety Executive.
Existing WISH guidance offers advice on eliminating or reducing the risk of serious injury associated with the handling, storage and disposal of unwanted or unidentifiable gas cylinders (‘orphaned’ cylinders) that may appear in the waste stream.
WISH has also advised that it is developing new guidance on how Material Recovery Facilities can address the dangers of gas cylinder and aerosol explosions.
Following discussion at the Waste and Resources Sector Forum, waste sector stakeholders are considering any other actions that could be taken to address key fire safety risks. We will continue to work closely with the sector to consider any further actions required to ensure safe recycling and disposal of nitrous oxide canisters.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Michael Matheson on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to reduce carbon emissions from clinical waste in the NHS.
Answer
I refer the member to the NHS Scotland Climate Emergency and Sustainability Strategy 2022-2026 which sets out the Scottish Government’s plans to help reduce carbon emissions from clinical waste in NHS Scotland. This publication is available at:
Specifically, the strategy sets out that each Health Board should set appropriate targets for reducing the volume of clinical waste it produces through measures including; greater use of reusable items, improvements to waste segregation and increased recycling of recyclable materials. The Scottish Government will review the need for a national target for clinical waste reduction.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to encouraging local authorities to issue public bonds to attract investment for net zero projects.
Answer
Local authorities are independent democratically elected bodies with their own powers and responsibilities. As long as they act lawfully, it is up to each local authority how it manages its day-to-day business and decision making processes. Ultimately, it is for locally elected representatives to make local decisions on how best to deliver services to and outcomes for their local communities, including decisions on borrowing to attract investment for net zero projects. Any borrowing by local authorities, whether it’s through the public works loans board or through the issuance of bonds, is for local authorities to determine affordability themselves, subject to the conditions of their prudential borrowing regime.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Answered by Lorna Slater on 2 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether weight is the most appropriate metric for measuring quantities of waste, and, if this is not the case, whether (a) climate change coefficient, (b) environmental impact, (c) scarcity, (d) recyclability and (e) social benefit is being considered as an alternative metric.
Answer
As set out in our 2022 Waste and Circular Economy Route Map consultation, we intend to set new circular economy targets for the period to 2030, which go beyond weight-based criteria.
We must ensure that any future targets correspond to our Environment Strategy and overall vision for a circular economy, alongside the four underpinning principles we set out in the consultation. These key principles included focus on achieving net zero by 2045 and the delivery of a sustainable international material footprint.
Our final Route Map is due for publication later in 2023.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 April 2023
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023
To ask the Scottish Government how it is improving data gathering in relation to health outcomes.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023
