Climate Change Legislation Impact on FHE

Stephen BoyleSenior Policy Officer

19th January 2007

Content

• SEPA• Climate Change• International and Domestic goals• Climate Change legislation in the UK• Climate Change legislation which impacts on

FHE• Concluding Remarks

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Who we are

• Non-departmental public body set up by Environment Act 1995

• Budget of £68m (06/07)• 54% from Scottish

Executive Grant in Aid• 46% from charging

schemes• 22 offices• 1270 staff

What we do

Our responsibilities are to regulate: • Activities that may pollute water;• Activities that may pollute air;• Storage, transport and disposal of waste; and• Keeping and disposal of radioactive waste

How we do it!

We protect and improvethe environment through:• Regulation • Raising environmental

awareness • Environmental economics • The planning system • Advising Government and

Scottish Executive on environmental issues

Climate Change

Concentration of Carbon Dioxide and Methane Have Risen Greatly Since Pre-Industrial Times

Carbon dioxide: 33% rise Methane: 100% rise

The MetOffice. Hadley Center for Climate Prediction and Research.

BW 5

Arctic ice cover

• There is evidence that both Arctic and Antarctic ice cover is reducing

• Thomas et al, 2006 state that the near coastal thinning rates (Greenland) have increased substantially since the 1990’s

“Antarctica sends 500 billion tonne warning of the effects of global warming” The Independent

Courtesy of Michael Bentley

Larsen B ice shelf through time (1947-2002)

Climate change in Scotland (SNIFFER report, 2006)

• Annual average 24-hour maximum temperature over 90 year period, in 3 regions of Scotland•Very varied, non monotonic

Average Temperature

Snow cover

Source A Handbook of Climate Trends across Scotland SNIFFER 2006

Wetter winters

Winter Flows, R Kelvin at Killermont, 1949-2000

02468

101214161820

1949

1952

1955

1958

1961

1964

1967

1970

1973

1976

1979

1982

1985

1988

1991

1994

1997

2000

Flow

(cum

ecs)

Winter5 per. Mov. Avg. (Winter)Linear (Winter)

Winter Flows - River Nith at Friars Carse 1958-2000

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Flow

(cum

ecs)

Winter5 per. Mov. Avg. (Winter)Linear (Winter)

R.Tay at Ballathie winter flows (Oct-Mar),1958-1996

100

150

200

250

300

350

1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994

Flow

(cum

ecs)

Annual winter flow5 year moving averageLinear (Annual winter flow)

R.Teith at Bridge of Teith winter flows (Oct-Mar),1957-1996.

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

1957 1961 1965 1969 1973 1977 1981 1985 1989 1993

Flow

(cum

ecs)

Annual winter flow5 year moving averageLinear (Annual winter flow)

Extreme events – floods

Photo: SEPA

Mountain Ringlet

Scotch Argus

Species ranges moving uphill & north

Mountain Ringlet has moved uphill

In 2004, 50% fewer km squares than in the1970s

Scotch Argus has moved north

In 2004, 17% fewer km squares than in the1970s

By Aldina M. A. Franco, Jane K. Hill, Yvonne C. Collingham, Richard Fox, Brian Huntley, David B. Roy and Chris D. ThomasUniversities of York and DurhamCEH Monks Wood, Butterfly Conservation

Funded by NERC

Earlier Flowering

3 weeks early

Snowdrop Wild Daffodil Winter aconite

2 weeksearly

Bluebell Dog violet Lesser celandine

1 weekearly

Broom Wild cherry

Courtesy:Prof. Fred Last,Longniddry

1978-2001

Longer growing seasons

Fife lawn cut for an extra 29 days in 2003 than in 1984

Courtesy: Dr. Tim Sparks, CEH

Woodland Trust Picture Library

International and Domestic Goals

International and Domestic Goals

• Kyoto Agreement; to reduce CO2 emissions below 1990 levels by 12.5% in the period 2008-2012

• UK Domestic goal; 20% reduction in CO2 emissions below 1990 levels by 2010

• Energy White Paper Feb 2003; 60% reduction by 2050

Climate Change Legislation in the UK

Current Climate Change Legislation

• The Climate Change Levy (CCL)• Climate Change Agreements (CCA)• Building Regulations• UK Emissions Trading Scheme• EU Emissions Trading Scheme• Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC)In addition• Voluntary Agreements• Enhanced information provision and advise to

business

Proposed Legislation and Measures

• Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO)• Expansion to the EU ETS• Energy Performance Commitment (EPC)• Voluntary benchmarking and reporting

Climate Change Legislation which impacts on FHE

EU Emissions Trading Scheme

• The EU Emissions Trading Directive (the Directive) establishes a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community.

• It aims to promote reductions of greenhouse gas emissions in a cost-effective and economically efficient manner.

• The Directive was transposed into UK law through the UK Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme Regulations 2003.

• The Scheme commenced on 1 January 2005.

EU ETS requirements

• A qualifying installation must apply for a permit and submit a Monitoring and Reporting (M&R) plan to their relevant authority for approval

• They will be issued allowances for the each Phase period from the National Allocation Plan (NAP) based on their historic emissions

• At the end of each year the site will calculate their annual carbon dioxide emissions in line with their M&R plan and have this verified by an independent UKAS accredited verifier

• The installation will then surrender sufficient allowances to cover their annual emission or open themselves up for civil penalties and enforcement action

Source Scottish Energy StudyScottish Executive 2006

EU Energy Performance of Buildings DirectiveAim• To Improve the Energy performance of buildings

through cost effective measures• Harmonisation of building standards across the

community in line with the most ambitious state targetsMeasures• Methodology for Calculating the energy performance of

buildings• Application of building standards on new and existing

buildings• Certification schemes for all new buildings• Regular inspection and assessment of boiler/heating

and cooling installations

Energy Performance Commitment

Aim• Energy Review (2006) commitment to

reduce carbon emissions from large non-energy intensive organisations by 1.2 million tonnes of carbon per year by 2020

Energy Performance Commitment

How• Organisations who use more than 3000

MWh’s of electricity from half hourly logging electricity meters will be covered in the scheme

• Participating organisations will be required to purchase, in an auction, sufficient allowances to cover their carbon emissions

Energy Performance Commitment

At the end of each scheme year the organisation will be required to report its total energy use and surrender allowances to cover their carbon emissions

• Failure to do so will result in civil penalties

• Auctioning revenue will be redistributed to participating organisations annually in line with their past year performance

Concluding Remarks

Thank You

stephen.boyle@sepa.org.uk01786 455966

Climate change“Climate change presents very serious global risks,

and it commands an urgent global response…it is the greatest and widest-ranging market failure ever seen” (Stern Review 2006)

“Climate change is a far greater threat to the worldthan global terrorism” (Sir David King, Government’sChief Scientific Advisor)

“… the impacts of global warming are such that I have no hesitation in describing it as a ‘weapon of mass destruction’” (Sir John Houghton, former chief executive of the UK Meteorological Office)