Climate Change: Scottish Implications Scoping Study

Further copies of this report are available priced £5.00. Cheques should be made payable to The Stationery Office and addressed to: The Stationery Office 71 Lothian Road Edinburgh EH3 9AZ Order line and General Enquiries 0870 606 5566 The views expressed in this report are those of the researchers and do not necessarily represent those of the Department or Scottish Ministers. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to acknowledge the time and patience of the many people who have contributed to this study, particularly the expert respondents named in Annex 1. We trust that we have represented fairly, in a limited space, the diverse range of views expressed by people from a wide range of backgrounds. Andy Mcleod of the Centre for the Study of Environmental Change and Sustainability (CECS) at the University of Edinburgh provided support and editorial comments. We would also like to thank the Advisory Group, appointed by the Scottish Executive, for their constructive and warm approach to this project. The various discussions and comments were illuminating and have substantially improved this report. The Advisory Group consisted of: i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION 1. Climate Change is caused by the emission of greenhouse gases. It has wide ranging implications for people, the economy, and the natural and built environment in Scotland, and is caused by greenhouse gas emissions. This Study was commissioned to gain a clearer understanding of the implications of climate change in Scotland. The research will also inform the development of a Scottish strategy to combat the impacts of climate change and introduce measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 1. The study comprised three parts. • Identifying the key stakeholders and reviewing existing information concerning climate change issues within Scotland. • Interviewing experts from a wide range of public and private organisations affected by climate change issues. • Synthesising this expert knowledge into an analysis of the Scottish implications of climate change, together with an assessment of the implications for future work. CLIMATE CHANGE ISSUES 2. Climate change will have direct and indirect impacts: direct impacts through changes in the physical environment or in the cost of adapting to change, and indirect impacts from the changes in society required to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. These direct or indirect impacts may be beneficial, neutral or detrimental to different sectors within Scotland. Direct impacts 3. The UK Climate Impacts Programme cl imate scenarios suggest that: • Over the next …