Scotland is leading the UK with a huge reduction in the environmental damage caused by generating electricity, and should now look to do the same for energy consumed by heating and transport.

New analysis by conservation group WWF Scotland of official government data has found that the average ‘climate change impact’ of generating a unit of electricity in Scotland is now half the UK average. Measured by the amount of CO2 released, it has fallen by almost two-fifths (38%) between 2010 and 2014, the most recent years for which figures are available.

WWF and others are now calling on the Scottish Government to now aim to repeat this significant achievement across the other areas of large scale energy consumption.

WWF Scotland’s Climate and Energy Policy Officer Fabrice Leveque, said:

“Thanks to the Scottish Government’s leadership on renewables policy, the climate change impact of producing electricity in Scotland has fallen rapidly and is now half that of the whole of the UK. The transformation in the way we produce our power is helping Scotland harness the many economic and social benefits of shifting to a zero-carbon future.

“But electricity accounts for just one quarter of our energy use, so if we’re to meet our future climate targets, the Scottish Government must build on the progress made in the electricity sector to set a 50 per cent renewables target for all our energy needs, across electricity, heat and transport sectors, by 2030.”

Star Renewable Energy director and low-carbon heat expert Dave Pearson said: “We need to stop installing gas boilers, if we are to start providing cheaper, cleaner heat. The Scottish Government should bring forward bold policies to make sure we are installing the right, future-proof technologies in our buildings.”

Meanwhile Transform Scotland director Colin Howden said:

“We need to level the playing field so that public transport, cycling and walking can compete with the private car, and have a long-term strategy that clearly shows how all transport will shift over to low-carbon."