This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Executive's environmental impact report
18/12/2006
The Executive today published its annual report on the environmental performance of its estate. The report includes details on key areas of Executive operations, including:
- reductions in CO2 emissions from energy use
- progress toward recycling targets
- improvements in monitoring business travel
The report also outlines a vision for the future as the Executive publishes environmental targets to 2020 for its estate to sustain the drive for continuous environmental improvement.
Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform Tom McCabe said:
"The Executive's commitment to the environment is clear - We want a Scotland which delivers sustainable economic development putting environmental concerns at the heart of public policy.
"But the Executive will not only be judged by what we say - but by what we do. The Executive and, more importantly, our staff have a crucial role to play in meeting the ambitious targets we have set ourselves.
"This report demonstrates we are making progress towards reducing the impact of our operations. It also provides a vision for the future with a new set of longer-term targets, looking at waste reduction and setting new standards for addressing the greenhouse gas emissions from our energy use and business travel."
Ross Finnie, Minister for Environment and Rural Development, said:
"Building a sustainable Scotland needs a commitment from everyone to make the changes necessary to ensure the legacy we leave is a sustainable one. The simple facts are that what we do in our work places and in our homes and how we do it will have an effect on the quality of life for future generations. The Executive has a key role to play in ensuring that its operations are consistent with the commitments of its environmental policy."
Background:
"The Scottish Executive Environmental Performance - Annual Report 2005/06" is the sixth to be published and outlines the Executive's targets to reduce the adverse environmental impacts of its own operations, the progress towards achieving them and towards the more extensive goal of sustainable development. The report will be published on the Executive's webpage and shared with Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs), to give them an insight into the work the Executive is doing in respect of the above. It also gives an example of the type of report which other government departments may consider producing to communicate their own objectives and targets.
The Executive has been working towards achieving the targets published in December 2005. Meeting these targets requires action across many of its Departments, the co-operation of staff is vital to this process.
The Executive is in the process of establishing Environmental Management Systems (EMS) across its main buildings in order to improve the performance of the estate as a whole.
The report can be found at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/12/15112745