Net Zero Transition Requires Significant Public Investment and Support for Rural Sector

Press Release

Scottish Land & Estates (SLE), the rural business organisation, has urged the Scottish government to set out its funding and support schemes for rural businesses if Scotland is to achieve a 94% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2045.

The Climate Change Committee (CCC), published its advice on the level of Scotland’s four carbon budgets (emissions targets) covering the period 2026 to 2045. CCC recommends that emissions should be 94% lower than 1990 levels by 2045.

Eleanor Kay, Senior Policy Adviser (Agriculture & Climate Change), for SLE said: “These recommendations from CCC highlight the need for the Scottish government to be clear with land managers and rural businesses on the challenge ahead and ensure there is a new policy and support scheme in place to ensure a successful transition.

“SLE has consistently supported the Scottish government’s intention to reduce emissions and adapt to our changing climate. However, the pursuit of net-zero must not result in rural businesses and communities being negatively impacted by urban-centric policies. We remain concerned that policy proposals to achieve Scottish government objectives do not take into account the disproportionate impact of climate change on rural businesses, nor the immense contribution they make towards reaching net zero, with rural estates alone delivering more than half of Scotland’s renewable energy generation and peatland restoration. 

“We agree with CCC that long-term certainty is needed on public funding for farming practices and technologies to reduce emissions but are concerned by the proposed reduction of 26% in cattle and sheep numbers  by 2035. It is essential to recognise the role of agriculture in food security and in maintaining biodiversity, protecting soils, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

“If farmers and rural communities are expected to diversify their incomes away from livestock farming and towards woodland creation, peatland restoration, agroforestry, and renewable energy schemes, a full package of guidance and support must be available.

“We cannot stress enough the importance of taking an integrated approach to land use policy, rather than looking at activities such as forestry, food production, carbon sequestration and natural capital in silos. Integrated land use, in addition to creating employment and producing food, provides benefits such as habitats for wildlife, improved water quality, natural flood management, carbon capture, and natural capital for public good. Integrated land management is at the heart of what our members do, and we are supportive of a move towards outcome-based approaches.”

Scottish Land & Estates also highlighted the following challenges:

• As of 2022, the latest year for which there is data, emissions in Scotland were 50% below 1990 levels, so 57% is technically achievable by 2030. However it is expected that the data from 2022-2025 will show a tailing-off in reductions, since many of the easy wins have been achieved, but more intransigent problems remain. All targets must be rural-proofed.

• The Scottish government will need to make significant public investment, and attract private investment, if it is committed to the pace of change set out by CCC.

• Energy infrastructure and renewables targets cannot be delivered without rural businesses and estates.

• Agriculture and land management are essential components of our economy and society, and we must support our farmers and land managers to play their part in achieving our climate and biodiversity goals while ensuring their livelihoods are sustained, and the communities developed around them thrive.

• There is an opportunity to create new policies which deliver for Scotland, recognising the significant potential of an integrated approach to land management in producing sustainable food, contributing to food security, sequestering carbon, improving biodiversity, securing a sustainable supply of timber and fuel, and delivering wider ecosystem improvements for the benefit of all in Scotland. 

• It must be noted that rural communities are often disproportionately affected by the impact of climate change, including increased flooding, drought, and extreme weather events. Therefore, adapting to the changing climate is just as important as reducing emissions.

Farming and Land Management

• It is essential to recognise the role of agriculture in food security and in maintaining biodiversity, protecting soils, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

• We remain concerned that the emissions linked to agriculture and land use do not accurately reflect the natural carbon cycle, this is partly due to a lack of high quality data and rather significant reliance on assumptions for land-based emissions, which is not comparable to the highly instrumented heavy industries which have more accurate data to prove emission reductions. The current baselining work of AHDB should help Scottish agriculture to demonstrate its green credentials.

• We must be careful not to offshore our emissions to countries with lower environmental standards in pursuit of domestic net-zero targets. 

Energy and Housing

• The rural sector faces unique challenges, including limited access to energy infrastructure, dispersed populations, and the need for energy-intensive land management practices. However, with the right investments and policies, we can transition rural Scotland to a sustainable, net-zero energy future. It must be acknowledged that rural solutions will not be the same as urban solutions and the costs will certainly be different.

• Homes in rural Scotland are often older, on average 30% larger, and deemed to be less energy-efficient than urban homes, based on the current methodology for energy efficiency measures. This presents a significant challenge in achieving net-zero emissions from homes. The range of suitable alternatives for rural homes seeking to improve energy efficiency will not be as broad as those for urban properties. Equally there is limited availability of skilled labour to make the necessary changes, and provide ongoing maintenance.