Author: Peacock Carter

On the 4 October Edinburgh City Council’s Transport and Environment Committee approved a business case to improve electric vehicle infrastructure in the city. 

The business case developed for the city council by the Energy Saving Trust (EST), suggests that the city will need to install 211 charging points by 2023 at a cost of £3.3 million, in order to meet future demand for charging facilities. The points would include 111 fast chargers, 23 rapid chargers and 77 slow chargers.

A total of 68 locations have also been identified across the city to host multiple charging points to create ‘strategic charging hubs’ for users.

The running costs of the infrastructure will be £0.87m however, the council hopes to generate an estimated £1.3m a year from motorists paying to charge their vehicles. The business case suggests a 20p per kWh fee for all users along with a 30p connection fee for residents and business, £1 for taxis and private hire cars and £2 at park and ride sites.

The predicted environmental benefits are that 7,714 tonnes of carbon will be saved each year once up and running and 14.2 tonnes of NO2 will be removed from the city.

Latest figures, compiled in 2017, suggest that there are up to 500 electric vehicles currently in use in the city, with the city council predicting that this is likely to increase significantly to around 10,000 on the city’s roads by the middle of the 2023. 

Now that the business case is approved, a work programme will be developed that will detail the final list of locations, costs, timelines and associated works including liaison with Scottish Power as the Network Provider. This will also detail the delivery model and management of the project.

The council has also applied to Transport Scotland’s Switched On Towns and Cities fund for £2m towards upgrading electric vehicle infrastructure in Edinburgh.

Transport convener Councillor Lesley Macinnes said: “Edinburgh is in the vanguard of a nationwide drive to improve electric vehicle infrastructure and this business case will help us make great strides towards a greener, healthier Capital.

“Electric vehicles are only part of the solution to worsening air quality, however, alongside the other key elements of our wider sustainable transport agenda for the Capital such as promoting use of public transport and active travel like walking and cycling.”

A letter has been received by REHIS in response to the letters published in The Herald newspaper regarding the current concerns over the environmental health profession. The letters by Tom Bell and John Crawford were published on the REHIS website. The letter in response can be read below: 

Dear President,

I would like to thank both John Crawford and Tom Bell for their excellent articles that appeared recently in the Glasgow Herald, which I would have missed had I not read these articles in the REHIS Newsletter.  I welcome that the Scottish Government is undertaking a review of the Public Health function.   It is critical that the Scottish Government not only recognise the core contribution made by the Environmental Health profession, but respond with positive action at time to improve the health of our nation. Too few politicians and the general public are aware of the vital contribution that environmental health, make to improve the fabric of the society in which we live.   We as a profession need to influence the decision makers, designers, planners that make decision which impact upon the health of our customers.  We must begin to influence attitudes and behaviours.  I welcome in particular the views expressed by Tom Bell, regarding succession planning, the limited courses for students to become qualified Environmental Health Officers and the uncertainty for their future in the profession.   Succession planning has never been as critical as it is at present within our profession.  Are we doing enough work in schools to influence career advisers, to make presentations in schools to give environmental health as a viable career for the 21 Century?

Local Authorities have for the last 10 years been continually pressurised to make savings every year and the environmental health profession has now been squeezed to a point that services the public has taken for granted in the past no longer exist.  Environmental health officers are solution focused who predominantly work in the background representing the people who live and work in Scotland dealing with remedying many of the injustices in society and making a positive contribution to improve the physical and mental health of our citizens. As a profession I think we have been relied too heavily on others to promote our profession.  Each and everyone of us need to read both John and Tom's articles and then start to identify what we have done at the end of each and every day to make the voice of Environmental Health to be heard within their own local community, through the multiple networking opportunities that are available for us all to influence.  We all need to make our voice heard, to protect the public we serve, in whatever small way we can.

Regards

Neil Doherty

MREHIS Chartered Environmental Health Officer

John Crawford and Tom Bell’s letters that were published in The Herald newspaper can be read here.

Constitutional Relations Secretary Michael Russel has voiced his concerns on EU withdrawal plans for food safety and standards at the REHIS annual Food Update Event held on 26 September. 

He stated that more power and resources must be transferred to the Scottish Parliament to guarantee food safety and standards after Brexit.

The warning comes after the UK Government put forward plans to mitigate potential 'no deal' border delays by minimising customs checks for food and feed imports.

Speaking at the REHIS Food Update conference in Edinburgh, Mr Russell also highlighted that a 'no deal' scenario would significantly increase costs and red tape to certify Scottish produce for export.

He said:

"Public health protection is a priority in Scotland and I am deeply concerned by any suggestion that Brexit could compromise food safety.

"Staying in the EU is the best way to protect Scotland's high food standards but, if that is not possible, then all powers in devolved areas like food law must transfer directly to the Scottish Parliament.

"This must be matched by sufficient resources so we can continue to keep food safe – as well as our economy, jobs and living standards."

The third package of 'no deal' Technical Notices has been published by the UK Government, outlining preparations for a 'no deal' Brexit.

26 September marks World Environmental Health Day which has been celebrated every year since 2011.

This year’s theme of ‘Global food safety and sustainability’ aims to support the provision of more safe food, to make use of precious water and nutrient resources and for communities to increasingly value sustainable food production.

Food safety is currently being challenged by global dimensions of food supply chains, the need for a reduction in food waste and efficient use of natural resources such as clean water. As our food supply becomes increasingly globalised, the need to strengthen food safety systems in and between all countries is becoming more and more evident.

Many activities are taking place around the Globe in connection to this big event from Australia to Zimbabwe.

In Scotland, REHIS are celebrating in connection with Fife Council.

Their Environmental Health (Food & Workplace Safety) Team focused on reducing food waste for World Environmental Health Day 2018.

Following a visit to a local Primary School to talk about the importance of reducing food waste, pupils were invited to take part in a poster competition. The challenge was to produce a poster that would encourage people to reduce food waste.

The image of winning poster is above, which Fife Council are planning to incorporate in to future correspondence with food businesses. Information for food businesses in Fife Council can be found at: www.fifedirect.org.uk/foodwasteregs

For more information about World Environmental Health Day and also find out how other countries are celebrating please see the International Federation of Environmental Health (IFEH) website: www.ifeh.org/wehd/

The top winners in this year’s Scottish Green Apple Environment Awards, supported by REHIS, will have the chance to represent Scotland in the European Business Awards for the Environment.

Free entries close on September 30, and the annual campaign – which began in 1994 – aims to recognise, reward and promote environmental best practice around the world.

Any company, council or organisation can claim a free entry and be nominated for a Green Apple Environment Award – as long as they are doing something that benefits the environment.

Presentations will take place at a glittering ceremony in Edinburgh next February.

National Organiser Karl Tullett commented: “We have categories for every type of  business, plus opportunities for councils, industry, community groups, charities and even individuals.

“Everyone stands an equal chance because our judges always take into consideration the different levels of resources that contenders have available, so small companies often beat their bigger competitors.”

If you, your company or council is doing anything that benefits the environment, then you are eligible for a Green Apple Award.

The campaign is run by The Green Organisation – an international, independent, non-political, non-activist, non-profit environment group dedicated to recognising, rewarding and  promoting environmental best practice around the world.

Full details and online entry forms can be found here.

A national taskforce to advise on how Scotland achieves a carbon-neutral economy has been launched.

The Just Transition Commission, a commitment under the Programme for Government, will look at how to maximise opportunities of decarbonisation, in terms of fair work and tackling inequalities, while delivering a sustainable and inclusive labour market.

Environment Secretary Roseanna Cunningham announced that Professor Jim Skea OBE is to chair the Commission, as she spoke at the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation.

She said:
“Scotland has been widely praised internationally for our work to tackle climate change, and I am absolutely determined that there be no let-up in our efforts.

“Our transition to a carbon-neutral economy is already well underway. With Scottish emissions almost halving since 1990, and 49,000 jobs already supported in our low carbon sector, I want to ensure we benefit fully from leading the global transition to low-carbon.

“Part of the Paris Climate Agreement, just transition is about transitioning to a low-carbon economy in a way that is socially inclusive. A key principle is that no-one gets left behind as the employment landscape shifts.

“I am delighted Professor Jim Skea has agreed to Chair the Commission and advise on how we continue the transition in a way that promotes inclusive growth, cohesion and equality, and I look forward to working with him over the next two years.”

Professor Skea said:

“The idea of a just transition is embedded in the Paris agreement. The challenge now is to turn the concept into practical action that shares widely and fairly the benefits of the low carbon transition. Scotland is taking a lead internationally, and I am flattered to be invited to chair the Commission. The challenge in two years is to come up with advice that is actionable and commands the support of stakeholders.”

A comprehensive survey of ingredients in yogurts has highlighted high sugar levels in many – particularly organic yogurts and those marketed towards children.

Scientists from the Universities of Leeds and Surrey analysed the product information for 921 yogurts available in major UK supermarkets. 

Their study, published in journal BMJ Open, examined the sugar and nutrient content of yogurts across eight product categories. Natural, ‘plain’ and Greek-style yogurts were found to have a dramatically different nutrient profile from all other categories, containing much higher levels of protein, lower carbohydrates level and the least amount of sugar, with the average of five grams per 100g – this was largely naturally-occurring lactose.

All the other categories were found to contain more than five grams per 100g. Unsurprisingly, yoghurt desserts contained the most sugar – an average of 16.4g per 100g. This category also included some products that did not contain yoghurt, such as chocolate mousse and creme caramel. 

The second most sugary product was organic yoghurts with a typical 13.1g per 100g. While, children's yoghurts typically contained 10.8g per 100g, the equivalent of more than two sugar cubes, the study found. 

For comparison a standard sugar cube weighs roughly four grams – equivalent to a level teaspoon of granulated sugar. 100g serving of a typical cola contains 9g of sugar.

The NHS recommends that children aged four to six have no more than 19g of sugar, or five sugar cubes a day, and it is advised that those aged seven to 10 consume less than 24g daily. While, the Scottish Dietry Goals recommend that sugar intake should not exceed 5% of total energy intake in adults and children over 2 years old.

To be classed as “low sugar” and carry a green “traffic light” nutritional label for sugar on their packaging, food products must contain a maximum of 5g of sugar per 100g. Only 9% of products surveyed were below this threshold.

How much sugar was in the yoghurt?

·      Desserts – 16.4g per 100g

·      Organic – 13.1g per 100g

·      Flavoured – 12g per 100g

·      Fruit – 11.9g per 100g

·      Children's – 10.8g per 100g

·      Dairy alternatives – 9.2g per 100g

·      Drinks – 9.1g per 100g

·      Natural and Greek – 5g per 100g

As part of a plan to combat childhood obesity, the UK government implemented a soft drinks sugar levy in May. Public Health England has commissioned a structured programme of monitored sugar reduction as part of a wider plan to tackle calories, salt and saturated fat. Yogurt is one of the products identified and highlighted for a 20% reduction of sugar by 2020.

Lead author Dr Bernadette Moore, from the School of Food Science and Nutrition at Leeds, said: “While there is good evidence that yogurt can be beneficial to health, products on the market vary widely in nutrient content. 

"Items labelled ‘organic’ are often thought of as the ‘healthiest’ option, but they may be an unrecognised source of added sugars in many people’s diet.”

 “Many of the products that were suggested for children’s lunchboxes were high sugar dessert yogurts, rather than lower sugar options. Retailers could play a positive role in promoting health by establishing boundaries for lunchbox recommendations and clearly labelling the amount of added sugar.” 

“Our study highlights the challenges and mixed messages that come from the marketing and packaging of yogurt products,” she said. 

Dr Moore explained that while yogurts contained their own naturally-occurring sugar – called lactose or milk sugar –current UK labelling laws do not require the declaration of added sugars on nutrition labels: ‘total sugar’ on the package indicates the weight of lactose as well as any added sugars.

Study co-author Dr Barbara Fielding, from the University of Surrey, said: “Diets high in added sugars are now unequivocally linked to obesity and dental problems. An alarming 58% of women and 68% of men – along with one in three of UK children aged ten to eleven – were overweight or obese in 2015. 

“In the UK, on average, children eat more yogurt than adults, with children under three years old eating the most. It can be a great source of protein, calcium, and vitamin B12. 

"However, we found that in many of the yogurt products marketed towards children, a single serving could contain close to half of a child’s recommended daily maximum sugar intake. Many portion sizes for children’s yogurts were identical to adult portion sizes.”

Study co-author Annabelle Horti, who conducted this research while at the Leeds’ School of Food and Nutrition, said: “Changing the public desire for ‘sweeter’ yogurts may be a real challenge when it comes to reducing its sugar content. In general, consumers’ liking for yogurt is often correlated with sweetness. 

“Sugar is often used as a sweetener to counteract the natural sourness from the lactic acid produced by live cultures in yogurt. These live cultures – or microorganisms – are what make yogurt a ‘good for your gut’ food and tend to be found in higher amounts in organic yogurts. This may be why these products had higher amounts of added sugar to offset the sourness. 

“Helping people to understand the quantity of sugar that is in their yogurt and its possible ill effects on health may go a long way to smoothing the road for when the sugar is reduced.” 

More than 15,000 empty homes have been charged double council tax in an attempt to cut the number of unoccupied properties in Scotland.

BBC Scotland has found that some councils are earning over £1 million per year from the powers to charge extra levies on those with empty properties, while others had not used the powers at all.

Since April 2014, Scotland's local authorities have had the powers to charge 200% council tax on properties that have been unoccupied for more than a year. It does not apply to second or holiday homes, where the owner can prove they are used for more than 25 days a year.

The aim of the law change was to reduce the estimated 37,000 homes lying empty across the country. The discretionary charge was intended to encourage owners to bring empty properties back into use and reduce the blight of unoccupied homes.

Freedom of Information requests to all 32 Scottish local authorities showed that almost £36million of additional revenue has been raised in the past four years – about £12million last year.

Edinburgh, Fife and Perth and Kinross councils are earning more than £1 million per year from the powers to charge extra levies, while Aberdeen City Council claimed the most additional revenue under the policy with £2.4 million.

Glasgow City Council has just begun to use the levy in April. It said: "The premium exists to try to discourage owners from leaving properties vacant, which can have a detrimental impact on communities and encourage anti-social behaviour." The council has no figures for how many times it has used it so far.

South Ayrshire and West Lothian have also just started to use the powers.

East Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire, East Dunbartonshire, South Lanarkshire, Orkney and Shetland do not currently charge extra council tax on long-term empty properties. 

However, East Ayrshire Council will introduce the empty homes levy in October.

Depute leader Elena Whitham said it had been important to get support mechanisms in place to offer help to owners faced with the threat of double council tax.

She said: "We've now created a full team to support this endeavour so we've got an empty homes officer, we've got teams to help people with restoration and a team to help seek funding.

"I think it really would have been counter-productive had we employed these measures before we had a team like this in place to make sure we can support owners."

She said bringing buildings back into use worked for everyone – providing extra income for the local authority, and improving the environment for neighbours. 

Angus Council has operated the policy of charging 200% council tax on long-term empty properties since 2015, and has so far claimed more than £866,000 through the levy. The BBC data showed there were 286 properties in Angus which could have double council tax levied on them in 2017. 

The local authority's Empty Homes Officer, Sean Maxwell said the policy had already paid dividends.  "Not only does it improve housing demand, it also has positive impacts on the local community," he said. 

"Obviously within Angus, we don't want to see unoccupied properties, we'd rather see these brought back into residential use and ultimately local families and local individuals staying in these houses."

The leader of Orkney Islands Council said it was time to reconsider the policy. 

Councillor James Stockan told BBC Radio Orkney that in the past the authority decided relatively low numbers of empty homes in their area meant it was not worth the effort of collecting the levy.

He said: "It's really good the BBC has done this piece of work because it has made us aware of where everybody else is now, and I think there is a real opportunity in the next year or two to reconsider this."

Shaheena Din, national manager for the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership, said the empty homes levy could bring revenues which would fund service to help owners get properties back into use.

She said: "On its own empty homes work won't fix out broken housing system.

"But it does have a part to play and it also contributes to a wide range of other council policy areas including safer communities and stronger local economies."

What does each council do?

• Aberdeen – 1,063 empty houses charged double last year – £2.37m raised
• Aberdeenshire – 677 empty houses charged last year – £520,642 raised
• Angus – 286 empty houses charged last year – £270,165 raised
• Argyll and Bute – 744 houses charged last year – £552,789 raised
• Clackmannanshire – 76 houses last year – £45,000 raised
• Dumfries and Galloway – 1,748 houses last year – £457,462 raised
• Dundee – 275 houses last year – £279,888 raised
• East Ayrshire – starting policy next month
• East Dunbartonshire – starting April 2019
• East Lothian – 256 empty houses charged last year – £78,590 raised
• East Renfrewshire – No policy 
• Edinburgh – 1,181 empty houses charged last year – £1.14m raised
• Falkirk – 381 houses last year – £377,974 raised
• Fife – 1,741 empty houses charged last year – £1.14m raised
• Glasgow – Started charging in April 2018
• Highland – 744 empty houses charged last year – £764,249 raised
• Inverclyde – 731 empty houses charged last year – £122,000 raised
• Midlothian – 249 charged last year (the first year it charged) – £127,567 raised
• Moray – 339 houses last year – £298,715 raised
• North Ayrshire – 465 houses charged last year – £279,930 raised
• North Lanarkshire – 867 houses last year – £283,412 raised
• Orkney – No policy
• Perth and Kinross – 843 empty houses charged last year – £1.48m raised
• Renfrewshire – 378 houses last year – £299,000 raised
• Scottish Borders – 1,316 houses charged last year – £611,881 raised
• Shetland – no policy
• South Ayrshire – Started from April 2018
• South Lanarkshire – no policy
• Stirling – 319 houses last year – £282,781 raised
• West Dunbartonshire – 65 houses charged last year – £23,031 raised
• West Lothian – started from April 2018
• Western Isles – 336 houses last year – £174,488 raised

Scottish Water is to step up its fight against fatbergs which can cause major flooding and pollution with the launch of a new project.

A new project being trialled aims to substantially reduce the number of blockages in the sewer system which occurs when fats, oils and grease (FOG) are poured down drains then combine with other waste and congeal into a solid mass.

The new Fat Free Sewer project, the first of its kind in Scotland, is being tested in St Andrews. 

The pilot scheme will see every food service establishment, including takeaways, cafes, restaurants and hotels, visited by Network Protection Officers from Environmental Compliance & Services (ECAS) on behalf of Scottish Water.

Where they find a grease management system in a kitchen which is inefficient they will offer advice what improvements should be made this and return at a later date to see if the necessary action has been taken.

It is estimated that Scotland-wide that around eight in ten establishments have inadequate or no systems in place at all.

St Andrews was picked for the six-month initiative as it has more than 100 establishments that serve food, all within close proximity, and is a busy university town popular with tourists.

If the project succeeds in cutting blockages due to FOG it is set to be rolled out to other parts of Scotland.

Mike Will, Waste Water Operations General Manager at Scottish Water, said: “Many blockages in our sewer network occur as a result of the incorrect disposal of fats and oils into the sewer system. The consequences on the environment can be huge – it can cause flooding to properties and roads and pollute rivers, as well as impacting valuable assets such as bathing waters. 

“Currently Scottish Water visits food service establishments on a reactive basis, once blockages have occurred. In some cases these are a one off events, but sometimes we do get called to the same locations. 

“This pilot project, for the first time, will see us proactively visiting food serving premises, giving them advice and guidance on what they can do to protect and preserve our valuable sewer network. We are effectively attempting to put St Andrews’ drains on a diet.

“Even the way businesses wash pots, plates and utensils with greasy residue on them can have a profound impact on our sewers. FOG congeals in our sewers and causes blockages. Additionally if you combine FOG to other things which should not be in our network – such as wet wipes and sanitary items – the consequences can be catastrophic in terms of flooding and pollution.

“The best way to tackle blocked drains and sewers is prevention and projects like this, combined with our customer campaign Keep the cycle running smoothly –  which asks that only pee, poo and (toilet) paper enters the sewers – is the best way to do this’.”

Scottish Water will work with the environmental health team at Fife Council on the project to encourage businesses to dispose of FOG responsibly.

Councillor Ross Vettraino, Fife Council's environment spokesman, said: "An efficient sewerage system is an unseen but essential component of an environment, which we can enjoy and of which we can all be proud. 

"Scottish Water is to be applauded for this initiative and I am confident the council's environmental health resource will be pleased to work with Scottish Water to ensure its success."

It is an offence under the Sewerage (Scotland) Act 1968 to interfere with the free flow of the sewers – fat, oil and grease do this when they congeal. Under the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012, urban food businesses – such as cafés, restaurants or food takeaways –  which produce over 5 kg of food waste per week also have to present food waste separately for collection unless excluded by a rural location. 

Scottish Water attends an average of 95 blockages every day in Scotland at a cost of £6.5 million a year. More than half are caused by fat, oil and grease being being disposed of incorrectly down drains and sinks and clogging up the sewer system.

To watch a video on the project, click here.

A statue has been unveiled in Paisley to a pioneer of Scottish legal history following a landmark case featuring a snail and ginger beer.

May Donoghue was at the centre of a case law Donoghue v Stevenson, involving the snail in the bottle which laid down the foundation of the modern law of negligence.

The tale of the 'Paisley snail in the bottle' is one of the first cases taught to law students around the world and also covered was covered in the Environmental Health course at University of Strathclyde.

The bronze statue has been erected close to the site of the Wellmeadow Cafe in Paisley where May Donoghue was a customer in August 1928.

The shop assistant was there with a friend, who bought May a ginger beer ice cream float. As she was finishing her drink, the decomposing remains of a snail dropped out of the bottle.

May fell ill and, after a doctor diagnosed gastroenteritis and shock, a solicitor took up her case, offering his services for free to raise an action for damages.

The shop assistant had to declare herself a pauper during the legal proceedings.

Artist Mandy McIntosh, who created the statue of the Paisley Snail, was moved by May's story.

Mandy said: "She came to Paisley with her pal for a treat. She ordered an ice cream float and then the snail came slithering out of the bottle. 

"What I learned about her is that she wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. She knew it was negligence that had led to the snail being in there and she just wouldn't let the issue go. 

"She eventually won her case four years later, so that shows you how determined she was. "

The initial hearing of Donoghue v Stevenson came before the Court of Session in 1930. The drinks manufacturer, David Stevenson, appealed and the case was dismissed. 

May and her lawyer persevered and took her claim to the House of Lords. The case was eventually settled out of court, but the action changed the laws on negligence around the world.

Lord Atkin, who gave the leading judgment, held that the manufacturer owed a duty of care to Mrs Donoghue, which was breached because it was reasonably foreseeable that the manufacturer’s failure to ensure the product’s safety would lead to harm being done to consumers.

He based his judgment on the Golden Rule as found in the Gospel of Luke: “The rule that you are to love your neighbour becomes in law ‘You must not injure your neighbour’; and the lawyer’s question: ‘Who is my neighbour?’ receives a restricted reply.

“You must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour.”

This neighbour principle is the foundation of the law of consumer protection, aw law on which we all depend on that we make sure we are getting safe products. 

The 1 January 2019 will bring an end to the practice of burning most types of agricultural waste on farms, including farm plastics. 

Ending the exemption follows extensive engagement between the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA), Scottish Government, Zero Waste Scotland, National Farmers Union of Scotland(NFUS) and recycling service providers. SEPA have worked closely with NFU Scotland to roll out the change which will feature ongoing dialogue with farmers and crofters over the coming months.

SEPA strictly enforce the requirements of waste legislation and compliance with this is non-negotiable. 

To give the sector time to make alternative arrangements, land managers may continue current practices until 31 December 2018 as part of the transition. However, this will only be tolerated, if it is carried out in a manner that does not cause problems for neighbouring communities. If the burning of agricultural waste has an impact upon neighbouring communities during the transitional period, up to and including the 31 December 2018, SEPA reserves the right to take enforcement action.

From 1 January 2019, there are some farm wastes that can continue to be burned under the terms of the paragraph 29 of Schedule 1 of the Waste Management Licensing (Scotland) Regulations 2011. It is important to note that even these wastes can only be burnedif the activity does not cause pollution of the environment or harm to human health.

These wastes include biomass such as:

• Vegetable waste from agriculture and forestry
• Vegetable waste from the food processing industry, if the heat generated is recovered
• Fibrous vegetable waste from pulp-making, if the heat generated is recovered 
• Uncontaminated wood waste (but not paper or card)

For further advice please see the SEPA website here.

A couple of letters have been printed in The Herald newspaper regarding the current concerns over the Environmental Health profession. 

John Crawford past president of REHIS wrote a letter titled “Agenda: Councils must give more prominence to role of environmental health” and was published 13th August 2018. Tom Bell, Chief Executive of REHIS replied to this letter titled “We must fight for a professional environmental health service” and was published on 3 September 2018. 

Both letters can be read below. 

Agenda: Councils must give more prominence to role of environmental health

By John F Crawford, environmental health officer and past president of the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland

“Moses was said to be the first public health officer. Faced with leading a large community across the wilderness (at a time when pork was infested with tapeworm) he set out rules for minimising outbreaks of infectious disease. Today many of his rules have been overtaken by time and circumstance, but communities still need access to clean food, water, air and efficient waste collection and disposal services.

Our public health protection traditions began in the Victorian age due to rapid expansions in the cities. The Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1892 and The Public Health (Scotland) Act 1897 were consolidations of earlier legislation. By the 1920s the appointment of chief sanitary inspectors in our cities, counties and burghs had to be approved by the Secretary of State for Scotland, who paid a proportion of their salaries to prevent politicians from meddling in public health matters or sacking the individual concerned.

This situation continued until the 1975 reorganisation when the new Scottish district councils had to set up separate environmental health departments with their own directors. There followed the halcyon days of the service with an all-graduate profession from the mid-80s coupled with specified on-the-job training. Environmental health directors were members of their councils, senior management teams and had the ears of the senior politicians. Councils made a lot of investment in training environmental health officer (EHO) students who then worked all over Scotland and further afield in both the private and public sectors. And to some extent, the EHOs afterwards became a victim of their own successes as coupled with improved standards of nutrition, better healthcare and housing, the traditional work of the EHO focused more on food safety, health and safety and pollution control. The sale of council houses together with a reduction in rented housing meant less involvement in identifying sub-standard properties, slum clearance and so on.

But new problems emerged such as noise complaints, food quality issues and the like as more people dined out as well as an exponential increase in car ownership. But by the next reorganisation in 1996, there had been no significant outbreaks of communicable disease in Scotland (such as the typhoid outbreak in Aberdeen in the early 1960s) and complacency crept in. So the new unitary councils formed in 1996 weren’t given a template for their organisational structures apart from merging the services delivered by the former Regions and districts. Since 1996 most councils now have a very small number of multi-disciplinary departments headed by directors who can’t be expected to understand every aspect of the services they’re responsible for delivering. The last published research (nearly a decade ago) indicated that in many councils the most senior qualified EHO is at best at third tier level: not really well-placed to influence council policy.

The most worrying thing however is that training posts have been ruthlessly cut since the turn of this century, the usual excuse being ‘pressure on budgets’. But recent research shows that 47 per cent of the EHOs currently working in Scotland are over 50 and there aren’t enough trainee posts to fill the gaps created when they’ll retire. It takes four years (assuming the practical training is undertaken in university recesses) to become a qualified EHO and there are no short-cut routes to qualification so why hasn’t Scottish Government and Cosla (who’ve both known about this problem for more than a decade) not instructed the councils to take on more trainees? Will it take another outbreak such as occurred in North Lanarkshire some years ago before something is done?”

The letter can be read on The Herald website here.

We must fight for a professional environmental health service

By Tom Bell, Chartered Environmental Health Officer, Chief Executive, The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland

“I read with interest John Crawford’s recent informed Agenda article ("Councils must beef up environmental health, The Herald, August 13). Although now retired from senior environmental health and waste management posts within local government and from lecturing on environmental health at the University of Strathclyde he remains an influential and highly respected voice within Scotland’s environmental health community.

Environmental health officers (EHOs) are educated, trained and qualified to protect and improve the health of Scotland’s people from adverse health effects that they encounter day and daily from the environments they live and work in. They are generalists on qualification and deemed competent by the institute following academic success on an accredited BSc (Hons) Environmental Health degree course, on the institute’s Scheme of Professional Training and in the institute’s professional examination for the Diploma in Environmental Health.

Local authorities, the home of the service for around 150 years, have been actively shedding EHO posts, along with food safety officer and technical support staff posts, since local government reorganisation in 1996. The situation is now critical.

With the reduction in EHO posts came the reduction in the number of training placements for student/graduate trainee EHOs within local authorities. School leavers realising that career paths into the profession are now few and far between realise that a future career in the service is, at best, uncertain and opt to follow different careers with the result that degree courses struggle to remain viable. In the past few years three courses accredited by the institute (the BSc Honours degree courses at the universities of Edinburgh and Strathclyde, and the MSc degree course at the University of Strathclyde) have closed due to the lack of students. Only one degree course accredited by the institute, the University of the West of Scotland) is currently presented in Scotland.

Working groups have been convened, seminars presented, reports published, articles written and questions asked at the Scottish Parliament on the future delivery of the Environmental Health Service in Scotland. All outcomes have pointed to the importance of the profession and the local authority-based service to the protection and improvement of public health but when it comes to resolving the issues no one organisation has full autonomy to turn the situation around.

Local authorities are cash strapped and the environmental health service is one of many struggling to deliver. The Scottish Government and Cosla have been discussing the wider issues surrounding improving the health of Scotland’s people and how the various services can co-operate to deliver improvement but progress appears to be slow.

The Scottish Government’s ongoing review of the public health function has identified the environmental health service as a core contributor to the delivery of public health. However, for the service to positively influence public health EHOs and the service will have to be placed at the centre of the decision making process within local authorities and not be left on the periphery being viewed solely as regulators and not as key public health professionals with a wide range of professional competencies all of which are geared towards carrying out interventions which will more effectively improve and protect public health in Scotland.

The outcome of the ongoing deliberations between all interested parties is awaited with optimism.

The question our politicians and society as a whole need to ask themselves is: how much do we value a properly resourced competent environmental health profession and service and support them to continue to effectively protect and improve the health of the public on the frontline?”

The letter can be read on The Herald website here.