This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Debate on waste and the environment
16/05/2002
"If we are serious about creating a cleaner, healthier Scotland, we need to reduce dramatically the amount of waste we simply throw away," Environment Minister Ross Finnie told the Scottish Parliament today as the issue of waste was debated.
Mr Finnie continued:
"In 1999 we established the National Waste Strategy. It's principles are simple. Reducing waste is the best approach. Re-use of items currently consigned to the bin is the next. Recycling materials or composting them into a useful product is the third option. Where that is not possible, extraction of energy is recommended.
"Over the last two years, much work has gone into area waste plans covering the whole country. These all put an emphasis on waste reduction, recycling and composting.
"Now the task is for us to bring these together, to ensure that they complement each other, to produce a single National Plan, with national targets for municipal waste.
"Much work remains to be done. I will be chairing a Scottish Waste Strategy Advisory Group to bring together government, local government industry and the voluntary sector to address municipal, industrial and commercial waste.
"We will continue to raise public awareness. The Executive's Do a Little, Change a lot has been well received and we will be moving on to a new phase of the campaign in September featuring waste."
The Minister also commented on today's publication by SEPA of draft guidelines to control the creation of energy from waste plants.
He said:
"Incineration must not be seen as an easy alternative to landfill. That is not our policy and it is not what is emerging from the waste planning process. First and foremost we want to see waste reduction and recycling. Energy from Waste should only be considered as part of an integrated waste management solution. SEPA's guidelines mean that Energy from Waste plants will be granted authorisations only where their development complies with the National Waste Strategy."