Project Title: Sustainable Development Casework: Moray Forest District Ecological Footprinting and Establishment of EMS Baseline
Project Manager: Professor Stephen Tinsley
Project Researcher: Heather George, Karen Nash
SDRC was approached by Forestry Commission Scotland to examine the ways in which existing tools, such as ecological footprinting might be used to complement existing initiatives within the Forestry Commission to measure the sustainability of non-forest (back-office) activities. This project worked with the Moray Forest District site at Balnacoul, near Fochabers. Three methods were chosen to be trialled at Balnacoul: a simplified method of Ecological Footprint analysis; baseline review in preparation of implementing an Environmental Management System; and a review of current best practice. The Business Efficiency Model developed by SDRC was used as the simplified ecological footprinting tool for measuring the key environmental impacts (waste, energy and transport) of the District activities, and can be used to monitor the environmental impacts over time and demonstrate where improvements have occurred. A more standard environmental management system approach was also used to undertake a broader evaluation of the sites’ aspects and impacts to gather wider baseline data. A review of best practice was undertaken as well as a review of other sustainability measurement methods which could be employed by the Forestry Commission. Through the combination of methods, SDRC made recommendations to the site for improving sustainability. Based on the project and the review, SDRC demonstrated that the tools used were effective for measuring and improving sustainability and could be applied to sites throughout the Forestry Commission.
Completion Date: August 2007
Project Title: Business Efficiency Model Pilot Project
Project Manager: Professor. Stephen Tinsley
Research Assistant: Heather George
Project Description: The SDRC Business Efficiency Model pilot project was designed to assist businesses with no prior environmental awareness in measuring their resource efficiency. The project was funded by the Highlands and Islands Enterprise and worked with 26 small and medium sized businesses in the Moray and Highlands and Islands area between summer 2004 and summer 2006. The project concentrated on Waste, Energy and Transport (WET) as the main areas of resource use within a business and used the principal of ecological footprinting to quantify this use. This technique quantifies how much energy and raw materials are used, and how much waste is generated and then converts this into a measure of land mass (hectares per employee) which is easily visualised. A ‘scenario manager’ is also used as part of the model to determine how changes in current resource use will affect overall efficiency. Reducing the businesses footprint will lead to cost savings and improve the quality of the workplace.
Publication: The final report for the Business Efficiency Model pilot project has now been completed for the Highlands and Islands Enterprise.- report
Completed Date: July 2006.
Project Title: Ecological Footprint of the Findhorn Foundation and Community
Project Manager: Professor Stephen Tinsley
Research Assistant: Heather George
Project Description: The Findhorn Foundation and Community is an eco-village in the North East of Scotland. SDRC have undertaken an ecological footprint study that was funded by HIE Moray, to determine the environmental impact of the community. SDRC collected data in collaboration with the Findhorn Foundation and used the modelling expertise of Stockholm Environment Institute at the University of York to calculate the footprint. Ecological Footprinting is a tool that takes into account the energy use, transport, food, general purchasing and building materials of the community and converts this into the land area, measured in hectares, required to support these activities. The overall sustainable earth share per person is calculated to be 1.9 hectares (Loh et al 2004) and the Findhorn Foundation ecological footprint was calculated to be 2.71 hectares per resident. When the guests to the community are also taken into account the footprint is 3.86 hectares per person. SDRC are currently looking for another community to calculate the ecological footprint of in order to compare the results to the Findhorn Foundation.
Publications: Final Report
Completion date: August 2006.
Project Title: An integrated development strategy for a social enterprise .
Project Manager: Heather George
Project Description: A computer recycling social enterprise in the North of Scotland approached SDRC to develop a five-year business plan. The primary aim of the project was to determine the feasibility of expansion into the recycling of Waste Electrical and Electronic equipment (WEEE) when the regulations came into force. SDRC worked with the business to develop an understanding of their current activities. SDRC then undertook a study into the potential volumes of WEEE that would be available when the regulations were in place and the compliance schemes that were forming. From this the cost of expansion and number of additional staff required were taken into consideration and a five-year projection of accounts for the business was calculated. SDRC also provided the business with a five year projection if they were to expand only their current computer recycling activities.
Publication: Not available
Completed: February 2006.
Project Title: Ecological Footprint of conference at the Scottish Parliament
Project Manager: Professor Stephen Tinsley
Research Assistant: Heather George
Project Description: The Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) approached SDRC to calculate the ecological footprint of a three-day conference held at the Scottish Parliament during July 2005. SDRC in collaboration with SPICe collected data on transport, food, energy and waste from the conference. This data was then converted into an ecological footprint using a modelling tool provided by the Stockholm Environment Institute at the University of York. The footprint was calculated to be 2.17 hectares in total, which equates to 0.031 hectares per person attending the conference. Calculating the footprint enables SPICe to compare their resource use during the conference with other events and provides them with the opportunity to try and reduce their footprint at future events.
Publications: Final report
Completion Date: January 2006.
Project Title: Evaluation of the Commercial Viability of the anaerobic digestion of animal by-products and other food waste in the North of Scotland.
Project Manager: Heather George
Project Team: Karen Nash
Project Description: SDRC are the lead partner on a project to evaluate the commercial viability of the anaerobic digestion of animal by-products and catering waste in the North East of Scotland. The anaerobic digester is to be installed in November 2006 and the project is to review the likely waste sources in the area and their behaviour under anaerobic conditions. This will involve laboratory tests undertaken on a number of representative waste samples and the determination of the most effective combinations. The project will also examine the legislative and regulatory requirements of the anaerobic digestion plant and carry out a cost-benefit analysis.
Publications:
Completion Date: Anticipated January 2007.
