Lochaber MSP says tackling climate change is ‘everyone’s responsibility’
In special interview with the Lochaber Times, MSP KATE FORBES talks about her views on climate change and the developing world, and how this squares with Scotland’s continuing economic dependence on the North Sea oil and gas industry.
IT WAS a fact-finding trip earlier this year to Nepal that reinforced Kate Forbes’s belief that everyone has a part to play in tackling climate change.
Her visit to the Himalyan country, one of the world’s poorest, let her see up close the consequences of climate change on farmers in Nepal, many of whom are subsistence farming and all depend on the productivity of their fields to feed their families.
But with so many Scottish jobs still dependent on the oil and gas industry, we asked the MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch how she rationalises that important economic situation for Scotland with the accepted international scientific consensus that the burning of such fossil fuels is the main driver of climate change.
‘I believe that all countries should be taking responsibility for carbon emissions,’ Ms Forbes told us.
‘In Scotland, we are making the transition from dependence on fossil fuels to investing in renewable energy, although it is worth remembering that energy is a reserved matter and so the Scottish Government’s efforts will always be hampered by Westminster’s policies.
‘A lot of jobs still depend on the oil and gas industry and so it is wise to make the transition gradually, building up skills and attracting investment in renewables.
‘However, our electricity generation from renewable energy is displacing millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
‘Renewable energy is a great opportunity, particularly for the Highlands, as renewables not only reduce carbon emissions but drive economic growth and employment.
‘Since 2007, the total output of renewable electricity has more than doubled and almost 60 per cent of our electricity comes from renewables – which is more than the original target of 50 per cent by 2015.
‘Back in 2009, the Scottish Government set world-leading targets to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 42 per cent by 2020, and this target was delivered six years ahead of schedule in 2014.
‘Last year, the Scottish Government increased the target for reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to 50 per cent as a result, and the head of the UN’s climate body has hailed Scotland’s ambition as “exemplary”.
‘I believe that all communities and households should play their part, motivated by the fact that climate change is causing hardship among the most impoverished, deprived and vulnerable people worldwide.
‘The £10 million Climate Challenge Fund provides community-led projects in Scotland with funding to improve their environment and drive down carbon emissions.
‘We are all global citizens and cannot ignore how our decisions here in Scotland have an impact on people across the world.
‘People in Nepal who lead projects on climate change adaptation, such as building longer irrigation channels to make up for erratic rain or planting new crops, told me how thankful they are for Scotland’s Climate Justice Fund.
‘Through this fund, the Scottish Government has spent £6 million to help some of the world’s poorest communities adapt to the challenges of climate change.’
However, we asked Ms Forbes if it was not a case of Scotland wanting to ‘have its cake and eat it’ by trumpeting our impressive domestic renewable energy consumption rise but while still encouraging more investment in the North Sea oil and gas fields, which sees Scottish fossil fuels being burned elsewhere in the world.
She said: ‘First, energy is a reserved matter and that means that any efforts made by the Scottish Government to shape energy policy in the North Sea would only be as successful as the UK Government wanted to make it.
‘We’ve been very clear that we want to move away from carbon intensive energy sources to renewables, and that is why we’ve done so much work to attract investment in renewables.
‘On the other hand, the UK Government has cut support for renewables and their energy policy continues to prioritise oil and gas. We cannot restrict exports and we cannot shape the UK Government’s energy policy.
‘If we are to tackle climate change, no single country can do it in isolation. That is why international agreements are so important, particularly the Paris Agreement.
‘Scotland needs to play its part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but needs to do it in partnership with others.’