Scottish Water has welcomed the new Programme for Government which sets out opportunities to deliver net zero emissions ahead of national targets.

The plan sets out national priorities for the coming year and places a focus on how the country will respond to the climate emergency, highlighting the important role Scottish Water will play in leading on renewable technologies and energy efficiency.

Scottish Water's track record over more than a decade has already delivered significant reductions in carbon emissions from our activities, increased energy efficiency and developed renewable technologies.

Now the organisation will seek to transform its activities to reach net zero emissions five years ahead of national 2045 targets – and go beyond.

Scottish Water will develop a route map for progress working with both the water sector and wider public sector.

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Activities will include increasing the amount of renewable energy generated and hosted to 300 per cent more than the energy consumed, leading on biogas generation and recovering energy from waste water to convert into heat.

They will accelerate their strategy to minimise emissions through reducing demand and leakage, investing in energy efficiency and renewable power, and transforming our treatment works and processes to lower emission technologies.

At the same time, they will invest in the management of their catchments to restore peat, increase woodland and turn our landholdings into a 'carbon sink', removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Douglas Millican, Chief Executive, Scottish Water, said: "This will be a big challenge – it presents a massive opportunity.

"We're absolutely committed to doing all we can as a major public body providing vital water and waste water services throughout the whole country to reduce the impact we have on the environment. It's not just our duty and our responsibility – it's the right thing to do.

"Our aim is to go further than just meeting the targets already laid down. We want to meet our net zero milestone by 2040, five years early. And once we achieve that we want to go beyond, to go further in ensuring all of our activities have an overall positive impact on the planet.

"This will have a transformative impact on everything we do.

"I'm enormously proud of the positive contribution we've made in the water sector in Scotland to date. There is clearly more we can all do and Scottish Water will lead the way in delivering better and more sustainable services for our communities."

(MH/JG)