Sustainability & Environment

The knock-on effects of eradicating stoats have been revealed

Ben Lawers is now believed to be the last remaining site in Britain where the alpine gentian survives

Campfires and barbecues are to be banned from a national park amid fears over wildfires.

Believe me when I say I have done my bit for the great Scottish ticket mountain. Driving into the LEZ in Glasgow (it was a genuine mistake, officer): £60. Doing 47 in a 40 (I didn’t see the sign, officer): £100. Pulling away in my car without wearing my seatbelt (I was just about to put it on, officer): £100.

The vast wildfire that tore through areas of dramatic Cairngorm  countryside last year has become the catalyst for Scotland’s first national park fire ban.

Chris Packham has signed a letter calling for the Soil Association to withdraw organic certification from Scottish salmon farms

CAMPAIGNERS are urging action over livestock wandering around a Greenock housing estate.

Scotland needs to expand its commercial forestry, says the author of a new report, and public funding should be continued.

Ross Greer has denied the Scottish Greens are making a Holyrood election win easier for the SNP by his party’s decision to stand in just six constituency seats.

Public trust in Scottish politics is eroding, the Royal Society of Edinburgh warns, as frustration grows over missed targets, weak economic performance and overstretched public services.

High levels of cancer-causing benzene found in UK home gas supplies, with leaks underreported. Study warns of serious health risks and calls for urgent action.

A sapling grown from the illegally felled Sycamore Gap tree has found a home in a Scottish national park.

John Swinney has accused the UK Government of political timing after it blocked a £1.5bn Chinese-backed wind project in the Highlands.

MSPs have written to the Scottish Government saying lack of progress in tackling the problems in salmon farming risks “eroding public confidence” in the sector.

A Scottish port is set for a significant upgrade after winning a vote of confidence from a giant Japanese conglomerate

An award-winning project to restore European flat oysters to their natural habitat in the Firth of Forth is celebrating doubling its original target.

A North Sea-focused oil and gas heavyweight has highlighted the value of fields in the area as countries grapple with the fallout from the Iran war

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of bailing out those on benefits by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, as she claimed he is at fault for rising energy costs

A Perthshire gamekeeper who has self-funded his own DIY project to help save one of Britain’s rarest birds is celebrating record winter survival on his rearing grounds.

The circular economy is a fantastic idea. But some of what’s happening under its name is just adding to the pollution

A Lanarkshire company which manufactures collagen casings for use in sausage products has been fined £48,000 after admitting discharging a large quantity of industrial effluent into a burn.

The new building “will be utilised for cutting processes to aid submarine dismantling”.

The University of Edinburgh launches a 15-year regenerative environmental strategy aiming to cut carbon, restore Scottish habitats, and lead UK higher education on sustainability.

It is hoped seabirds will nest on the raft – and hatch eggs on its shingle surface

The was in Iran has sparked a push for domestic production

First minister John Swinney’s accusation that UK ministers have dithered in response to Iran War surge in energy bills is rich amid Government failings

Ministers face legal action after their own officials found they broke their own rules on protecting Scotland’s seas.

I was speaking to some people who remember Watt Brothers in its heyday and as they listed off all the things the famous Glasgow store used to sell, in my head their voices started to morph into the words of a familiar song: ground floor perfumery, stationery and leather goods, wigs and haberdashery, kitchenware and food, going up. There’s a chance the tune is in your head right now and will stay in your head all day. You’re welcome.

Environmental charities are calling for a moratorium on the spreading of sewage sludge on farmland till the risks are understood

18 years ago two concerned locals began to fight the spreading of sewage sludge on farm land. Will they get the ban or moratorium they would like to see?

A man who found a 4,000-year-old Bronze Age arrowhead as a child has been reunited with it decades later in a remarkable twist.

Keep Craigmillar Clean launches in Edinburgh with City Council, Paws on Plastic, and Litter Busters to tackle litter, protect green spaces and boost community pride.

First penguin eggs of 2026 laid at Edinburgh Zoo, with gentoo and northern rockhopper penguins starting the breeding season.

Puffins return to the Firth of Forth as breeding season begins. Scottish Seabird Centre and volunteers boost puffin numbers on Craigleith and Isle of May.

Today’s cartoon is on the story about the Library of Scotland exhibition that reveals how rain has shaped us.

Long after Scotland’s Victorian trams, the tracks roll on

North Sea oil giant moves closer to approving plans for controversial Shetland field development amid surge in profits

Earth Blox uses data from the Google Earth engine to allow anyone to analyse images gathered by satellite

A new 850m cycle path has opened in Edinburgh, linking Leith with key routes across the city as part of a £4.6m active travel project.

An influx of visitors has caused problems at the site

12,000 people have signed a petition to stop the development of Berwick Bank offshore wind farm, because of its impact on seabirds. Are they right?

A broken propeller found on one of the two over-budget and much delayed CalMac ferries sums up perfectly the whole sorry saga, argues Herald columnist Alan Simpson.

A £150 fine. Plans for a cull. And volunteers checking on the birds in Central Station. What should we be doing with the pigeons in public spaces, asks Herald columnist Mark Smith

Charity report claims UK Government job projections for hyperscale data centres are hugely inflated, warning they deliver far fewer long-term jobs.

Potting sheds stand in orderly rows as Sandy McDougall ambles his way past, before pausing to admire two domed archways which are rapidly taking shape.

Ask anyone in Glasgow right now for ideas on how to make the city a better place and I guess the first thing they’ll do is think of the flames on the streets and the smoke in the air and the sound of another building cracking and burning and dying, and say: protect what we have. Stop the fires. Enough.

SRUC Oatridge student Ollie Kwan wins 2026 Young Conservationist of the Year award for voluntary work at Edinburgh Zoo, recognised by the RZSS.

Major investment to improve odour at Edinburgh’s Seafield Waste Water Treatment Works announced, with upgrades to benefit local communities and boost green energy.

Some locations are special and demand a property to match rather than distract – and in the wooded landscape near Nethy Bridge within the Cairngorm National Park, Mountain Bear Lodge is completely at one with its natural surroundings.

The park has launched a new herbivore management strategy