This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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South Africa and environmental justice
01/09/2002
In South Africa tomorrow First Minister Jack McConnell
will appeal for a more outward approach to becoming more
environmentally aware.
He will deliver a major speech on environmental justice
at a Friends of the Earth International seminar in
Johannesburg where he is taking part in the World Summit on
Sustainable Development.
Mr McConnell will say:
"Our ambitions for Scotland - to develop socially,
culturally and economically in a sustainable way - mean
that even at a devolved and local level we must to look
beyond our borders and be internationalist in our
outlook.
"We in Scotland will not be all that we can be unless we
lift our eyes to the horizon and look beyond our own set of
circumstances.
"Consumption, greenhouse gasses and waste have all
increased, mainly because of the behaviour of those from
rich countries. The result of this affects those in
countries with the least. The very natural resources that
have sustained civilisations for many thousands of years
are disappearing ever faster.
"But I want to be clear - just because we haven't
changed our habits in the last decade doesn't mean to say
we can't change them in the next decade."
Mr McConnell will point to number of ways in which
Scottish Ministers are working to improve the country's
environmental record.
These include:
- Raising the recycling target from 6 to 25 per cent
in the next few years.
- Increasing the target to produce renewable energy
to 40 per cent.
- Working on developing good neighbour agreements
between business and industry and local
communities.
- Developing a strategy on how to deal with derelict
and contaminated land.
Today the First Minister visited an environmental
justice project at Soweto Mountain of Hope where he met
members of a community which has transformed waste land for
public use.
He said:
"Mountain of Hope is a powerful symbol of community
regeneration in an area starved by decades of injustice and
poverty. Local people in Soweto are taking responsibility
for environmental improvements and positive action for
young people.
"This kind of action should inspire us in Scotland to do
all we can to close the gap at home and abroad and deliver
change for those who need it the most."