The Queens award for Enterprise (International trade Category)

• Fourth Queen’s Award for Bridge of Weir Leather Company, following previous honours in 1985, 1996 and 2000
• Congratulated for export sales performance, technological development, increased global presence and environmental sustainability with its unique brand of Low Carbon Leather
• Total Bridge of Weir Leather Company sales increased by 150% during the three years to September 2011, and 90% of production exported

Bridge of Weir, Scotland, 21 April 2012 – Bridge of Weir Leather Company, for the fourth time in its illustrious history, has been recognised with a Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

The award, for international trade, was announced today, 21st of April – The Queen’s birthday, and the year Her Majesty celebrates the Diamond Jubilee (1952 – 2012). Bridge of Weir Leather Company will hold the honour for the next five years.

Hanson’s King’s Dyke nature reserve at Whittlesey near Peterborough took top honours in the biodiversity category at the 2012 sustain’ magazine awards.

The former clay quarry adjacent to the Hanson brick works has been developed into a community nature reserve over the last 17 years. More than 140 species of birds have been recorded on the site, including the marsh harrier and bittern, along with butterflies, dragonflies and various mammals, including water voles and otters.

Kings Dyke is particularly important for its invertebrates, with over 2,500 species recorded, one of which is thought to be new to the UK. The large numbers of ponds support more than 5,000 great crested newts, while common lizards, grass snakes and slow worms are also found in good numbers.

Ultra-long leases should no longer exist in Scotland according to a report published today by the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee. The Committee has supported the proposed restructuring of this aspect of land law in Scotland by recommending the general principles be agreed to of the Long Leases (Scotland) Bill. The Bill will now go forward for debate by the full Parliament.

The Bill is the same as the bill in the last session of Parliament, which, owing to lack of Parliamentary time, fell at the dissolution ahead of the 2011 election.

It seeks to convert ultra-long leases into ownership, unless the tenant choses to opt out. It follows work done by the Scottish Law Commission on its series of legislative reforms to Scotland’s property law.

Committee Convener Rob Gibson MSP said:

“Our Committee is recommending that Parliament supports the general principles of this Bill. Tenants’ rights under these ultra-long leases (which were let for 175 years and have more than 100 years left to run) are virtually the same as if they owned the properties in question, and this Bill will automatically convert them to ownership. The Bill allows for the landlords to be compensated when the properties convert.”

The Scottish Government estimates there are around 9,000 ultra-long leases in Scotland, most of which are for 999 years.

During the consideration of the Bill, questions around common good (a fund of money and assets owned and administered by each local authority in respect of each former burgh within the area of that local authority) were raised. Evidence was also received on the status of Edinburgh Waverley Market and also whether this site specifically could be exempted from the Bill

Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader Elfyn Llwyd criticised the government's decision to cut funding for feed-in tariffs saying that green business confidence had been "shattered" in Wales.

On 29 February 2012 during Wales Office questions Mr Llwyd said that green technology was a "key industry" in Wales and that businesses would be deterred from investing if "Whitehall can remove funding with the flick of the pen".

NEBOSH is showcasing an introductory health, safety and environmental qualification for people working anywhere in the world in the process industries

The NEBOSH Health, Safety and Environment for the Process Industries qualification has been developed for people who work in the chemical process industries. People who are process operators, technicians and line supervisors.

"Safety, health and environmental know-how is a must-have for anyone working in these major hazard industries," said NEBOSH Chief Executive Teresa Budworth. "Process operators, technicians and line supervisors must all be competent in these areas on order to ensure compliance."

Newly appointed energy secretary Edward Davey visited BRE’s Innovation Park in Watford today in his first official appointment since replacing Chris Huhne on Friday.

Joined by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on his tour of the Innovation Park he said ‘My priorities are very simple: green jobs, green growth and getting the best deal for energy bill payers. My department is already implementing bold and ambitious reforms – like electricity market reform and the Green Deal – to unlock private investment, drive innovation and build a resilient, green competitive economy. It’s now my job to see those through.

The water shortages already threatening East Anglia’s parched countryside could worsen drastically in future unless urgent action is taken to mitigate the twin threats of climate change and population growth.

That stark warning comes in an Environment Agency (EA) report which suggests river levels could plunge by as much as 80pc if rainfall dries up and demand for water continues to rise unchecked by 2050.

The spectre of the regions’s finest waterways being reduced to muddy trickles is the most pessimistic scenario among several analysed in the report, with other models predicting less severe outcomes.

Following the submission of information to the Green Deal consultation paper, Garry Worthington, Head of Green Deal at Climate Energy says:

“There are a number of challenges facing the Government if the Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation (ECO) are to deliver cost-effective emissions reductions and meet the carbon reduction targets which have been set.

The fifth annual edition of the State of Green Business report continues efforts to measure the environmental impacts of the emerging green economy. In addition to documenting what progress companies are making -- if any -- in improving their environmental performance, we track larger trends that will affect corporate America in 2012.

This free, downloadable report measures 20 aspects of environmental performance, from carbon emissions to paper use and recycling, and attempts to answer the question, "Are we bringing a green economy into being?"

whg’s Skills Centre has expanded its offering to now include the very latest in renewable energy technology installation and maintenance.

Industry professionals can learn how to install and maintain solar and photovoltaic panels, designed to generate heat and electricity, at the dedicated training centre in the heart of the Midlands.

whg has teamed up with sector leaders Ubbink and Worcester Bosch, who jointly sponsor the newly opened renewable energy facility, to equip it with hi-tech equipment so learners have the most up-to-date technology at their fingertips.

The Countdown has begun: the Green Deal represents a bright spot in our industry’s future, but industry, Government and training providers must work together to put qualification frameworks in place as a matter of urgency. Small and medium sized contractors need to prepare now if they are to benefit when the Green Deal launches in Autumn 2012.

This was the message from Mark Farrar, Chief Executive of CITB-ConstructionSkills, at a roundtable discussion on the construction industry’s future green skills needs hosted by The Guardian earlier this month.

Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Caroline Flint MP and Shadow Energy Minister Tom Greatrex MP tour Glasgow House, which could reduce fuel bills by two-thirds

Scotland’s first generation of ‘renewables apprentices’ were unveiled to UK Shadow Ministers on Tuesday (15 November).

One of the largest “green” training centres in the country opened its doors in Liverpool this week. The centre – which features a full-size ‘indoor house’ – has been opened by Liverpool Community College as part of its drive to invest in the sustainable sector.

The £250,000 facility at the College’s construction and engineering faculty on Vauxhall Road is seen as vital to ensure that Liverpool and the wider North West economy can benefit from the high growth levels in that sector.

Instrumentation company Quantitech has announced the launch of two new hydrogen analysers from H2scan which can uniquely operate in high levels of Carbon Monoxide (up to 20%) and Hydrogen Sulphide (up to 10%).

Commenting on the market potential for these new sensors, Quantitech MD Keith Golding says: "Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S) and Carbon Monoxide (CO) are common contaminants in the Oil and Gas sector, so the ability to measure hydrogen at such high levels of contamination will be a major advantage to this sector, particularly in work with Syngas."

Ministers will meet in Astana, Kazakhstan, today to discuss water issues and greening the economy at the seventh ‘Environment for Europe’ Ministerial Conference, running from 21 - 23 September 2011. To support the Conference, the European Environment Agency (EEA) is launching an innovative Assessment of Assessments report, which recommends ways that environmental information and policy making can be more closely aligned.

BSW Timber, the UK’s largest sawmilling group, has expanded its national and regional sales teams with appointments from executive to director level.

The new team will support BSW’s investment and expansion plans across the business, ensuring customer service is at its highest and new business opportunities are secured.

Leading Hampshire-based waste management company L&S Waste has welcomed a proposal by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to investigate competition pressures in the aggregates, cement and ready-mix concrete industry.

On 16 August, the OFT released its market study into the sector, which proposes referring the sectors to the Competition Commission for a more detailed investigation.

Leading environmental firm SLR Consulting has helped STEAG New Energies UK Ltd gain planning permission for a Waste Incineration Directive compliant (WID) biomass Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant at Ridham Dock in Kent.

SLR prepared and submitted a planning application and Environmental Permit application for the CHP plant which will be capable of processing approximately 160,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste wood a year to produce renewable energy in the form of both heat and power.

The heat and power will be used to power the CHP plant and will be supplied to adjacent energy intensive industries which are currently powered by fossil fuels. The remaining energy will be transferred to the National Grid.

The Millennium Stadium has successfully achieved certification by BSI to BS 8901 making it the UK’s first certifiably sustainable event stadium.

The standard for Sustainability Management Systems for Events confirms the venue’s commitment to managing the social, economic and environmental impact of events at the Millennium Stadium.

Achieving BS 8901 is a major feat for Cardiff’s iconic stadium which was built in 1999 without many of the innovative design elements in new stadia. 

The certificate comes less than one year after the stadium bid to improve its sustainability credentials in line with the standard – which was launched in September 2010.

Ground-breaking UK based eco-manufacturing company Remarkable, who recycle UK waste into fun and original everyday products, have launched an exclusive new “back to school” range of stationery with popular retail store Paperchase, which is now stocked in 70 stand alone stores within the UK, including their largest flagship store in Tottenham Court Road.