By Paul Homewood
Forget about climate emergencies, Scotland is heading for climate apocalypse!
Scotland faces numerous catastrophic impacts from the climate crisis which could leave the country with polluted waters, abandoned villages, dying forests and few remaining birds, the head of the country’s environment agency is to warn.
Outlining the apocalyptic scenario the country could face within the next decade, Francesca Osowska, head of Scottish Natural Heritage, will call for urgent action to tackle the environmental degradation already taking a heavy toll on Scotland.
Some of the biggest impacts include enormous wildfires which burned across swathes of the country in April and May, with one in Moray described as one of the largest wildfires seen in the UK in recent years.
Firefighters said lack of rain meant fires have quickly spread through peat and heather.
The country also faces the twin perils of both lack of water, and heightened risks of flooding, due to less rainfall, but rising sea levels which threaten low-lying coastal regions.
Warming temperatures have already changed the timings of spring events such as leaf unfolding, bird migration and egg-laying, as well as fish abundance and spawning locations, according to the Scottish government.
The country is failing to meet its own target to plant more trees with more land being given over to agriculture, while the salmon industry is already dealing with the impact of algal blooms due to climate change and pesticide use, and a surge in oil and gas exploration in the North Sea is expected to soon be under way which will further compound the problem.
“Let me paint you a picture of what we could have in Scotland in 2030,” Ms Osowska will say in her address at the Royal Society of Edinburgh this evening, according to The Times.
“Imagine an apocalypse – polluted waters; drained and eroding peatlands; coastal towns and villages deserted in the wake of rising sea level and coastal erosion; massive areas of forestry afflicted by disease; a dearth of people in rural areas and no birdsong.
“All of this is possible, and there are parts of the world we can point to where inaction has given rise to one or more of these nightmare landscapes.”
Even the readers of the Independent felt this was rather going over the top, judging by comments like this one:
And as another pointed out, the Scottish Government, which has already declared a climate emergency and pledged to cut net carbon emissions to zero by 2045, has no plans to shut down its North Sea oil industry. Far from it, the industry is crucial to Scotland’s economic plans.
As for the Independent’s claims, let’s have a look at a few.
The recent Moray wildfire is supposed to be a glimpse of the future, which will bring Scotland drier springs.
Perhaps the Independent should look at the actual rainfall data before making such ridiculous assertions:
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/summaries/actualmonthly
Lack of water?
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/summaries/actualmonthly
Rising sea levels?
https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends_station.shtml?id=170-011
Polluted waters, dying forests, deserted villages, environmental degradation?
Galloway 2018
Scottish National Heritage receives most of its funding from the Scottish Government, to the tune of £46.5m last year.
Its boss, Francesca Osowska was previously director of the Scotland Office in Westminster, and also served as principal private secretary to Alex Salmond during his tenure as first minister of Scotland.
So we have a neat self contained circle, where SNP hacks are sent to run quangos on a nice fat salary and with the help of government funding. The aforesaid quango then comes up with whatever ridiculous propaganda its political masters decree.
via NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT
June 3, 2019 at 12:17PM
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