Edinburgh wave energy company teams up with Irish University
Rabbie’s gets the Royal seal of approval!
New waste plant given go-ahead at Millerhill
Apply now for a share of the Coop Local Fund
New term at Edinburgh Drawing School
One of the world’s leading wave energy firms has teamed up with a top Irish university to accelerate the development of a commercial wave energy technology.
Edinburgh-based Aquamarine Power and the National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM) have together secured an €800,000 (£580,000) EU Horizon 2020 grant to improve the performance of Aquamarine Power’s Oyster wave energy converter. The company has already built and operated two full-scale Oyster machines at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney.
The new Brussels-backed programme – called INNOWAVE – will enable three PhD researchers to explore ways to optimise the energy capture and economic performance of Oyster. As part of the three-year programme, each researcher will split their time between Aquamarine Power and NUIM’s Centre for Ocean Energy Research in County Kildare, west of Dublin.
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Rabbie’s Small Group Tours has been given a Queen’s Award for Enterprise.
The company was presented with the Queen’s Award for International Trade at a ceremony today in recognition of outstanding overseas sales growth over the past three years.
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Midlothian Council unanimously approved planning permission to FCC Environment (UK) Ltd for the construction of a waste recycling and combined heat and power plant on former railway marshalling yards at Millerhill in Midlothian.
FCC Medio Ambiente SA was appointed preferred bidder in December 2014 for the contract to design, build, finance and operate facilities to treat and recover value from all the waste collected by both The City of Edinburgh and Midlothian Councils that currently goes directly to landfill.
This 25-year contract will involve the thermal treatment of up to 135,000 tonnes of mixed waste annually to produce electricity for the National Grid and heat suitable for a district heating scheme, with less than 5% of all waste going to landfill in line with Scottish Government targets.
Councillor Lesley Hinds, Environment Convener for City of Edinburgh Council, said: “This decision takes us a step closer to our goal of achieving the highest possible public participation in recycling while having dedicated, competitively priced facilities that will use all the remaining waste that cannot be readily recovered as a valuable resource.”
“In combination with the food waste treatment plant which is nearing completion, these facilities will boost our recycling rate, guarantee we would meet our landfill diversion targets and make a significant contribution towards Scotland’s renewable energy targets.”
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Good causes across Scotland are set to “bag” a funding boost of more than £750,000 as The Co-operative today launches its Local Fund to share the money raised through carrier bag charges and sales in its food stores.
The community retailer is calling on local causes or community groups in Scotland interested in “carrying” away a share of the Co-op Local Fund to apply online by Wednesday, 7 October.
It is envisaged that approaching 1,000 organisations and groups across Scotland will receive grants of between £200 and £2,500 from The Co-op Local Fund to make a difference in their community.
In addition to the 5p minimum charge on single-use bags, The Co-op has also pledged to go further and top-up the fund with proceeds from its entire range of carriers, including sales of its bags-for-life and its new woven reusable shopping bags.
Applications can be made until midnight on Wednesday, 7 October. Then, between 16 November and 11 December, the community retailer will give its one million members in Scotland a chance to vote and have a say, from a shortlist of organisations, on how the fund will benefit local communities.
John McNeill, Divisional Managing Director for The Co-operative Food in Scotland, said:
“The Co-operative is a community retailer with a strong heritage and commitment to the environment and to supporting its local communities.
“We are asking the Scottish public to nominate those causes that they care about and would like to see supported through The Co-op Local Fund. The Co-operative’s one million members in Scotland will then have a unique opportunity to vote and say how the money should be shared.
“The Co-op shares the aspiration of reducing the number of single-use carrier bags in use. It is also encouraging shoppers to further reduce their reliance on single-use carriers by donating proceeds from its reusable bags to good causes too. The money raised will enable organisations across Scotland to make a difference in their community – together, we will reduce, reuse, recycle, and reinvest in our communities.”
For further information or to make an application visit www.co-oplocalfund.co.uk
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Still some places left at The Edinburgh Drawing School Ltd where the new term starts on Monday.
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
