sea changes; The environment under threat: devastating floods this

The medieval statues that line the world-famous Charles Bridge in Prague have seen a lot of history in the past 650 years. But this year must have been one of their most frightening.

For the waters of the Vltava river that tumbled down in their direction in August were the heaviest and fiercest that anyone can remember. There were fears that the 14th-century bridge, or parts of it, would be swept away.

Thankfully, it survived, though it had to be closed to visitors for two weeks while the city around it tried to recover from devastating floods. Thousands were forced to flee their homes and damage to property was estimated at many millions of pounds.

The images of Prague, perhaps Europe's most beautiful city, under water will be one of the most enduring of 2002. Yet the same fate, or something similar, befell many other cities and regions across the continent: Dresden, Budapest, southern France, southern Russia and in Britain: Devon, Cornwall, Inverness, Elgin, Glasgow and Brechin.

And, for the first time, there was no real dispute that the floods were at least partly due to the climate chaos being caused by pollution. Europeans are getting used to the idea that unless they cut their emissions of the greenhouse gases that are bringing about climate change, they can expect more rain, more storms and more floods.

Hence the European Union, when it comes to global arguments about reducing pollution, has been one of the good guys. For the most part this was the role it played in September at the most important international gathering on the environment for a decade - the 190- nation World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg.

The EU pushed hard, for example, for a firm target to increase the amount of energy provided by clean, renewable sources such as wind power. But, opposed by the US and oil-producing countries, it lost, leaving the world with only a vague commitment to "a substantial increase".

Because of the entrenched opposition of the Bush administration on other issues, the earth summit didn't really make any significant advances. Apart from an agreement to halve the number of people without adequate sanitation by 2015, other vital decisions - on aid, on wildlife, on pollution - were fudged.

Less than two months after the Johannesburg summit, the world was forcefully reminded of the drawbacks of relying on dirty old energy sources. In November, the Prestige oil tanker broke and sank off northwest Spain, disgorging its thick black cargo along 900 kilometres of coastline. According to the latest reports, the wreck is leaking at the rate of 125 tonnes a day.

Although environmental policy was little improved internationally, there was more cause for optimism in Scotland. For the first time the First Minister Jack McConnell seemed determined to bring the environment into the heart of policy-making in government.

This was symbolised by his attendance at the Johannesburg summit, and was given weight by a series of mould-breaking speeches on the subject of environmental justice. The first, on 18 February at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, was arguably one of the most important political speeches of the year.

"We are living lifestyles and building economies which waste the world's limited resources," proclaimed McConnell. "Unless we change these habits in our lifetimes, there will be insufficient natural resources to meet the needs of the poor in our generation; and we will leave a shocking legacy for our children and our children's children."

Late last century the key task for democrats on the left had been to ensure that economic prosperity went hand-in-hand with social justice, he argued. "I believe the biggest challenge for the early 21st century is to combine economic progress with social and environmental justice."

It was, in its way, a historic moment. The First Minister was making a powerful personal commitment to tackle waste and pollution, which affect the poor more than the rich. He was signalling a major shift in the thinking of the Scottish Executive, and foreshadowing a raft of policy changes.

But those watching McConnell's performance were struck by something very odd. On the platform next to him was the environment and rural development minister, Ross Finnie. He uttered not a word. He just sat there nodding and occasionally grinning.

Over lunch afterwards there was a cruel joke circulating among the environmentalists present. "Who was that wee man on the platform with the moustache and glasses who looked like Captain Mainwaring from Dad's Army?" they demanded.

Though it was treated lightheartedly at the time, the sight of Finnie being publicly sidelined by his boss presaged one of the underlying, if unremarked, themes of 2002. Environmental achievements always seemed to be associated with Jack McConnell, while environmental failures tended to be blamed on Ross Finnie.

This was, of course, no accident. McConnell belongs to the Labour Party, while Finnie is a member of the Liberal Democrats. Although they work together in a coalition government, there is an election coming up next year and McConnell wanted to carve out some vote- winning green credentials for himself, if necessary at the expense of Finnie. It was a strategy that was, in retrospect, remarkably successful. It was McConnell, for example, who unveiled the target to increase the amount of waste recycled in Scotland from 6% to 25% over the next three years. More than (pounds) 230 million has been allocated to a fund to help local authorities shift from dumping waste in landfill sites to recovery, recycling and composting.

It was McConnell who claimed credit for setting a target to increase the proportion of electricity generated by clean, renewable energy by 40% by 2020. He unveiled a (pounds) 20m plan to clean up contaminated and derelict land in Glasgow, North Lanarkshire and Dundee, as well as action to improve the green spaces in and around Scotland's urban areas. And it was his promise that all spending by the Executive will be assessed for its impact on sustainable development.

But when it came to the policy failures it was Finnie who was usually in the frame. Perhaps the most troublesome issue has been the trials of genetically modified (GM) crops in Ross-shire, Aberdeenshire and Fife. They have provoked one of the most sustained and widespread public protest campaigns for a decade.

Yet it has always been Finnie who has been in the limelight doggedly defending the trials, and who has been the butt of the fiercest criticism.

McConnell has been careful to say little - and when he has been persuaded to make a comment the result has been distinctly doubled- edged.

In August the Sunday Herald asked the First Minister about the way in which his environment minister was handling a potential problem with GM contamination. "In the past 10 days," he replied, "Ross has done exactly the right thing."

Finnie has also taken flak for the contamination of drinking water, the deep-seated problems of the fishing industry, and the failure to make farming more environmentally friendly. Even when a step forward was made - by deciding to draw up an action plan to boost organic farming - it turns out it was only because Finnie was forced into a U-turn by McConnell.

Throughout 2002 the Sunday Herald has made its own contribution to the agricultural arguments by running a Safe Food campaign. This has highlighted the toxic pesticides present in conventionally farmed fruit and vegetables, as well as in farmed salmon.

On a few issues, Finnie's Labour deputy, Alan Wilson, has bravely stepped into the breach. It is Wilson who has been dealing with the two new national parks, which have become something of a mixed blessing.

While the first, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, has been heralded a success, the second, in the Cairngorms, has prompted scathing criticism.

"The Executive seem determined to push ahead with a slimmed-down park with a reduced area, no ranger service and a very restricted budget," says Dave Morris, director of Ramblers' Association Scotland.

Plans for a statutory "right to roam" have made progress over the year via the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill, but it has been watered down by landowners and farmers anxious to protect their privacy. According to Morris, children have golfers to thank for depriving them of a legal right to sledge over snow-covered golf courses.

Wilson has also popped up in defence of Scotland's polluted beaches, another topic on which the Sunday Herald has focused attention.

Unfortunately, there were still two dozen popular bathing waters that were so contaminated with sewage in 2002 that they breached the basic safety limit.

Attempting to balance the achievements against the failures over the year, most environmental groups seem pleased at the progress that has been made, particularly by McConnell. But, to varying degrees, they argue that it is not enough.

Kevin Dunion, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, points out that there were major problems with transport, which could create more than enough climate-wrecking pollution to wipe out any gains made by renewables.

"Economic development and transport are following a conventional path," he says. "There is a lack of certainty about how the Executive is going to tackle road congestion. Subsidies are being given to air travel and plans are being laid for the number of passengers going through Scotland's airports to increase to 50 million by 2030."

Simon Pepper, director of WWF Scotland, suggests that 2002 had been "long on words, short on action".

The moves that the Executive had made on recycling, energy and environmental justice were "pretty basic catch-up actions," he adds.

He says he wants to see the creation of "green jobs" at the centre of economic policy, and sustainability in education. "2002 will be remembered for the strongest rhetoric yet on the environment," he adds. "The words are stronger than ever, but the jury is still out on whether this will amount to real action."

Not surprisingly, Scotland's sole green MSP, Robin Harper, is the most sceptical. Although McConnell's speeches were now full of "warm green words" they could amount to little more than "greenwash", he claims.

"Jack McConnell knows that the environment is a hot topic at New Labour focus groups and is understandably keen to claim green credentials. But the real proof of the pudding will be whether the First Minister truly understands and can achieve the sea-change that has to be made within his administration, among his ministers and their civil servants, before sustainable development and environmental justice can be delivered."

SCOTLAND'S GREEN REPORT CARD FOR 2002 Waste: new target to recycle 25% of waste by 2006, backed by (pounds) 230 million investment, but no improvements on the ground yet.

Energy: new target to generate 40% of electricity from clean, renewable sources by 2020, but controversy over some wind farms.

Transport: a massive (pounds) 500m road-building programme and plans for a huge increase in air traffic, which will both increase pollution.

Farming and food: continued support for chemical-intensive farming, but promise of a new action plan to boost organic production.

GM: dogged perseverance with programme of crop trials despite widespread opposition and scientific doubts.

Sustainable development: progress in publishing indicators and gauging departmental spending, but outcome difficult to assess.

Environmental justice: promises to tackle contaminated land and increase green spaces in urban areas, but more required.

National parks: successful creation of a park in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, but plans for the Cairngorms national park shrunk and neutered.

Access to the countryside: progress on a statutory "right to roam", but legislation watered down by farmers and landowners.

Beaches: despite huge investments in sewage treatment, still 24 popular beaches polluted in breach of the basic safety limit.

Copyright 2002 SMG Sunday Newspapers Ltd.
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