Families allowed on Fife beach awash with radiation

THE clean-up of a Fife beach has been halted putting families at risk of potentially lethal radiation.

For years radioactive waste has been found at the beach in Dalgety Bay which is thought to come from the luminous dials of wrecked warplanes.

Defence Estates, the MoD’s land agents, began removing the material two years ago after experts warned it posed a serious risk.

But now the clean-up has been halted and no agreement has been reached with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to resume, despite warnings the problem is set to get worse.

Flood warning as rain hits Scotland

Tourists sheltering from the rain

By Amanda Keenan

SCOTLAND was put on flood alert last night as heavy rainfall swept in across much of the country following weeks of sunshine which had caused some areas to issue drought warnings.

Flash warnings of heavy rain have been issued by the Met Office for large parts of Aberdeenshire, Moray, Tayside, Fife, Lanarkshire and the Lothian’s.

Persistent and heavy rain saw around 15mm fall within just three hours in some places early on and as much as 35mm was expected in others.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency said it was monitoring water levels on rivers across Dumfries and Galloway – just weeks after the region was subject of a drought order application.

Environment watchdog uses flights three times per day

By Rory Reynolds

SCOTLAND’S environmental watchdog has come under fire after it emerged that staff took nearly three flights a day last year.

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency used planes for 536 work-related journeys last year – the vast majority of them return flights – with 389 of those being short domestic trips within the UK.

The government quango also spent more than £500,000 on flights in the last five years, with some tickets costing as much as £3700.

The figures, released under Freedom of Information legislation, come as the SEPA looks to axe around 10 per cent of its staff to cut costs.

The activities of the government agency, which monitors and regulates air pollution, have been branded “absurd” by critics.

Edinburgh to be rid of famous Auld Reek

By Rory Reynolds

A HISTORIC Scots distillery is to have its famous scent extinguished by an artificial emissions tower.

The North British Distillery’s distinctive roasted malt smell has given the city of Edinburgh the nickname Auld Reekie for hundreds of years.

But famous pong is to be rid from the city’s streets as part of a new plan between environment agency SEPA and the distillery to build a 30-metre odour control tower.

Previous improvements have dampened the once heavy malt smell, but now it is to be eradicated altogether.

Ian Ford, company secretary with the distillery said: “This is just one part of an overall strategy to reduce our impact on the local environment, as we are a major industrial unit close to the city centre.”

Floods hit Scotland

By Cara Sulieman and Rory Reynolds

TORRENTIAL rain and flooding across parts of Scotland were feared to have claimed the life of at least one man today (thurs) – with forecasters warning of more bad weather to come over the weekend.

At least 20 rivers were last night subject to flood watches as heavy rainfall led to considerable train disruption and several key roads – including the A1 between Scotland and England – being closed to traffic.

In West Lothian police and RAF search and rescue teams spent several hours searching the swollen River Almond near Livingston after reports of a man falling into the fast-flowing waters.

A distraught member of the public called Lothian and Borders Police at 9am to say that they had seen the man fall into the river from a footbridge in the Kirkton area of the town.

Green graves given the go-ahead

By ALEXANDER LAWRIE

A NEW eco-friendly cemetery where up to 1,000 nature lovers can be buried has finally been given the green light.

The recently deceased will be laid to rest under a “cathedral of trees” at the site at Binning Wood, near Tyninghame, East Lothian.

Only biodegradable coffins will be allowed, while headstones will be banned in a bid to maintain the woodland’s natural setting.

In their place, relatives can place small, locally-sourced stones featuring an inscription to mark their loved ones graves.

Lothian power station is the worst polluter in Europe

By Oliver Farrimond

A SCOTTISH power station has been branded the filthiest in Europe.

The coal-fired plant at Cockenzie belches out pollution that causes acid rain.

A new report by energy watchdog Entec found the East Lothian power generator spews out 50 per-cent more nitrogen oxide than its nearest offender.

Longannet power station near Fife was also named as one of Europe’s worst polluters.

This is despite new technology being introduced to the plant – once Europe’s largest – to reduce emissions in 1999.

Richard Dixon, director of environmental group WWF, said: “NOx emissions add to acid rain problems all over Europe and create local air pollution problems.

“It’s very bad news for those with complaints like asthma or emphysema.”

Nitrogen oxide – or NOx – is a deadly gas that causes breathing difficulties, stunts the growth of crops and can even form smog.

The Institute of Occupational Medicine estimates that air pollution from traffic and industry kills more than 600 Scots every year

Scottish Power insisted that they are investing over £35 million pounds to reduce emissions levels from Scotland’s polluting power stations.

A spokesman for the energy giants said:” We are trying to ensure that harmful emissions do not impact local air quality.

“Scottish Power carries out air quality modeling annually at Cockenzie, using the latest software.

“The station also complies with legislation on emission controls.”

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency agreed, saying the improvements were underway at both plants to reduce the spread of deadly pollutants.

The UK dominates the environmental hall of shame – the top three of Europe’s worst polluting power stations are based in Great Britain.

Plants in the UK released 385,000 tonnes of NOx between 2004 and 2006, almost 100,000 more than the Spain, the nearest offender.