REHIS News

At the recent REHIS Annual Environmental Health forum at New Lanark delegates had the pleasure of welcoming Lawson Wight from the Burnright campaign.

Burnright is the national consumer awareness campaign to promote efficient domestic burning.

Many consumers are unaware that the way they use their fuels and fires can make a big difference to air quality. Burnright has created a website with lots of useful information, videos etc. where consumers can learn how to “Get it Right” and make a big difference.

Levels of second-hand smoke in Scotland’s prisons fell by more than 80 percent in the week after smoking was banned, according to new University of Stirling research.

The study confirms the positive impact of the smoke-free policy, introduced in November 2018, on the air quality within Scotland’s 15 prisons. The researchers compared smoke levels to measurements taken in 2016.

The study was led by Stirling’s Institute of Social Marketing (ISM), and involved the University of Glasgow and conducted in partnership with the Scottish Prison Service

Scotland is the first country in the UK to announce its plans for a deposit return scheme for drinks containers.

Scotland’s new Deposit Return Scheme will include aluminium and steel cans as well as drinks containers made of glass and Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic with a 20p deposit as part of plans to combat climate change.

The ambitious scheme is based on successful international equivalents and will be widely accessible, with all shops which sell drinks offering deposit refunds to customers.

Renewable electricity generation in Scotland reached record levels in 2018. The latest figures from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) show, the equivalent of 74.6% of gross electricity consumption was from renewable sources.

Generation in Scotland was 26,708 GWh, a 6.1% increase on the previous record in 2017. This output of electricity is the equivalent of powering all households in Scotland for more than two-and-a-half years.

The latest statistics also show:

The health claims made on the product packaging for a large proportion of foods marketed to children in the UK are 'confusing', and could be contributing to increases rates of childhood obesity, suggests research published online in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood.

University of Glasgow researchers examined products with child-focused imagery and health and nutrition claims on the product packaging.

The world’s first Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) came into force in London on Monday 8 April.

Shortly after it came into operation in London the Mayor, Sadiq Khan, revealed it has already reduced harmful pollution levels.

The Mayor’s office reported that concentrations of roadside N02 have been reduced in the zone by 20% and the scheme, which started on 8 April, is predicted to reduce it by 45% eventually.

Anstruther beach in Fife was closed to the public at the start of the Easter weekend as Scottish Water worked to contain a sewage spill. This was the second time in the space of a week that access to the beach was restricted due to a spill.

On 15 April, people were told to avoid the beach and water on the beach near Castle Street and Shore Street after sewage leaked on to the beach as a result of a privately-owned drainage system being blocked by wet wipes.

Thursday June 20, 2019, marks Clean Air Day (CAD) – a red letter day for air quality

That’s when people and organisations will come together across Scotland for the annual event to raise awareness of the difference we can all make to the air we breathe.

Environmental Protection Scotland (EPS), is once again coordinating Clean Air Day on behalf of the Scottish Government’s Cleaner Air For Scotland (CAFS) strategy. The CAFS strategy aims to make Scotland’s air quality the best in Europe.

Parakeets are causing concerns in a park in Glasgow– leading to a potential ‘cull’ as has been the case in London and also in Spain,

About 20 or 30 of the birds have made their home in Victoria Park in the west of the city, leading to the Scottish Natural Heritage deeming them the most northerly flock of parrots in the world.

A parakeet is any one of a large number of small to medium-sized species of parrot that generally have long tail feathers. It is believed the parakeets were kept as pets – and either escaped – or deliberately released.

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has launched a new food allergy alert service, offering consumers on-the-go updates on missing or incorrect allergen information on food labels. 

The free service, available through the FSS homepage, gives the option to receive specific alerts via text message or email on issues involving any of the 14 allergens that must be declared on labelling in the UK.