Water Resource Balancing: Is a closed loop system possible that enables sustainable rural supplies?
The aim of this work was to carry out a mass balance of energy, nutrients and other potential resources at a range of scales (single house, small community and large urban scale). The focus of the study was on waste water treatment and resource recovery. The study considered whether a closed loop cycle for water and energy was possible in these situations. In doing so, the project team identified technologies, systems and approaches that may need to be adopted to make this possible. Furthermore the project team considered economic factors for selected parameters and approaches as well as taking into account factors such as environmental impact, scalability and life cycle analysis (LCA).
The fourth ‘Valuing Your Soils’ awareness raising workshop for farmers is taking place at Leitfie farms (near Blairgowrie) on 16th March. There will be machinery demos and open soil pits. For more details on the event please see the SRUC project page.
Radon in groundwater drinking water supplies in Scotland
Are radon concentrations in drinking water higher in the high-risk area, where the underlying geology is likely to deliver high radon concentrations in groundwater and indoor-air, than elsewhere in Scotland? What should the minimum allowable radon concentration (parametric value) and action level for remedial action be in drinking water to protect public health from exposure to radon?
This report presents the most recent and comprehensive evidence on radon concentrations in public and private groundwater supplies in Scotland; this evidence is essential for specifying regulations for radon in drinking water in Scotland to protect public health against radon.
Water quality and radon: Implications for Scotland of the provisions and scope of the Council Directive 2013/51/Euratom for radon in drinking water
The European Commission published a new Directive under the Euratom Treaty (Council Directive 2013/51/Euratom, hereafter reported as the Directive) laying down requirements for the concentrations of radioactive substances in water intended for human consumption. As part of an on-going review of the implications of the Directive for Scotland, the Drinking Water Quality Regulator commissioned CREW to collate evidence on the presence of radon in drinking water and, create a map of ‘areas of likely high exposure’. The evidence review and risk map will inform whether and where any surveys are required in public and private water supplies to help identify a parametric value and monitoring frequencies for radon in Scotland. The CREW output will be aligned with the results of parallel surveys by the Drinking Water Inspectorate in England and Wales before transposing the new Directive to national legislation in Scotland.
Impact Evaluator vacancy at University of Leeds: Project iCASP - Yorkshire Integrated Catchment Solutions Programme
Valuing your soils: benefits of precision agriculture workshop, 23rd February
The third ‘Valuing Your Soils’ awareness raising workshop for farmers is taking place at West Mains of Kinblethmont (near Arbroath) on 23rd Feb. There will be a drone flight and other SoilEssentials Ltd technology demonstrations. For more details on the event please see the SRUC project page.
Odour management and monitoring in Scottish wastewater treatment plants
Wastewater treatment works in Scotland have evolved substantially in the past 20 years. During the 1990s, major investments were made to comply with the Urban Wastewater Treatment directive. These investments were designed to protect the environment from the adverse effects of urban waste water discharges, and were not specifically focused on odour control. Odours continued to present issues at some sites, and in 2005, a statutory Code of Practice (CoP) for odour control at sewage works in Scotland was published by the Scottish Executive.
Effect of Soil Structure and Field Drainage on Water Quality and Flood Risk
This report provides a broad assessment of the state of soil structure and drainage on commercial farms in four selected catchments during autumn/winter 2015/2016. We describe the policy implications of the findings. Similar UK studies are used to discuss our results. This project was commissioned by SEPA and addresses its Land Protection objective “make links between soil management and water protection measures to ensure maximum benefit for both soil/land and water quality” (SEPA, 2015). It also begins to address a need identified in the Supporting Material of the Scottish Soil Framework Directive (Scottish Government, 2008) to assess soil compaction in the field to assess its occurrence in Scotland and its effect on soil functions, and similar desires in the EU Soil Framework Directive (Loj, 2009).
We found severe soil structural degradation in 18% of topsoils and 9% of subsoils for 120 fields in four catchments across Scotland.
Assessing the combined effectiveness of Scotland's rural diffuse pollution measures in reducing FIO from a livestock catchment
SEPA are proposing to adopt monitoring to show effectiveness of rural diffuse pollution measures in reducing FIO from a livestock catchment. This will draw from the recommendations in the CREW report “Monitoring guidance to assess the effectiveness of the Rural Diffuse Pollution Plan”. Before SEPA embark on an extensive monitoring programme to confirm the current modelling predictions, they would like to ensure that similar work has not already been carried out that could provide the information needed to evaluate and verify the models.
Valuing Your Soils: Improving Farm Efficiency workshop - 14th February, Brechin
This workshop is supported by CREW at the request of SEPA. The programme includes talks from Neil MacLeod from Southesk Farms and experts from SRUC and SEPA on improving farm efficiency, the challenges associated with cultivating heavier ground and practical guidance, a farm tour with open soil pits and practical demonstrations of soil visual evaluation. Attendees will also receive a copy of the recently released ‘Valuing Your Soils’ brochure.
To book a place please email Joanna Cloy or telephone 0131 535 4155.
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