Environment News:

Storm Eowyn: We were fortunate in Burntisland to escape the worst of this though some properties had damage to roofs and fences and a few trees brought down. Of concern, more damage was done to the roof of the old BiFab shed at the west docks. Forth Ports advised the CC that Fife Council Environmental Health reassured there had been no risk to the community from asbestos. Forth Ports plan to arrange demolition of the shed.

Damage to the seawall: Following storm damage to the rock faced railway embankment east of the beach in 2023 (storms Babet and Kieran), Network Rail made repairs. They were also requested to consider additional rock armour but have not taken this forward. Climate chaos puts us more at risk of storm damage and rising sea levels. Fife Council have a Coasts, Floods, and Harbours Team who are aware of the issues. 2024-25 Fife Council with Scottish Rural College are running an assessment and community consultation on coastal change and adaptation that includes this section of local coast. A community workshop was held at the Toll Community Centre January 2025.

Recurrent flooding: We await a full assessment and modelling of possible solutions from Scottish Water to prevent the recurring flooding on Haugh Rd and at Kirkton Rd into the Dick Cres play park. This is due to a lack of capacity in the Combined Sewers when there is heavy rain and resulting surface water run off. This has been going on for many years and is not acceptable. Do not allow children or pets to play in flood water that may be contaminated with human waste. Do not attempt to drive on flooded roads due to risk of engine and brake failure, and risk of hitting dislodged manhole covers or other debris. At the end of 2024, Scottish Water said they are still working on assessing and modelling solutions.

Whinnyhall landfill site: This and the Whinnyhall water treatment facility are owned and managed by British Aluminium Alcan, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto. BAA are currently doing site investigation as part of a global safety strategy and have recently written to local residents (see letters in column right). If you have any concerns please contact their free helpline number: 0800 029 30 29. We are advised that nothing of concern as so far been found (personal communications from RioTinto/BAA on 23/11/23 and 17/07/24.)

Herbicides: We met with Fife Council Grounds Maintenance Services (GMS) and members of Burntisland Community Development Trust (BCDT) on 6th July 2023 to discuss the use of pesticides, including weedkiller spraying, in and around Burntisland. We know this can be a challenging issue with many different opinions among residents. At a subsequent meeting on 21st November, Burntisland Biodiversity Group (part of BCDT) agreed to consult further with local residents on managing our public green spaces better for nature and people. Fife Council are supportive. For further information on pesticide avoidance, this website may be helpful: https://www.pan-uk.org

Nature records: If you are interested in nature and able to accurately record what you see locally, please consider contributing your data to Fife Nature Records. This ensures that what we have and what we have lost can be accurately assessed, and helps provide evidence to Fife Council and other agencies on protecting our local wildlife sites e.g. the Fife Estuary SSSI and the Fife Council Listed Wildlife Sites on the Binn and Dunearn. Please see the tab on the right with links to the Fife Council website: https://www.fife.gov.uk/kb/docs/articles/environment2/fife-nature-records-centre

At its simplest, our environment is where we live. It includes everything about Burntisland from our built environment (buildings, roads and structures) to our green spaces (parks and amenity areas within our town, and the woods and farmland around it).

Climate change: We have evidence that our planet has had several major changes in its climate over millennia, including ice ages. However, in our generation, we have come to realise that the world's temperature has been rising rapidly since the industrial revolution. This global warming is accelerating. Most scientists agree that the evidence is that our planet is heating up because of the way humans have been exploiting fossil fuels to power our industries and transport systems. Our warming world has changed the weather systems that we and all living things are used to - not all plants and animals are able to adapt fast enough to cope with this. Locally, we are seeing more wet mild winters, more strong winds, more hot dry summers, and more unpredictability - 'weather weirding'. Worryingly, the coldest parts of our planet, in the polar regions and high mountains, are becoming much warmer, leading to thawing of polar ice caps and melting of glaciers. As a result, sea levels are rising, and storm surges and floods are becoming more common.

Biodiversity: Human populations have risen dramatically since the industrial revolution. We dominate our planet. Our hunger for more resources to sustain us and the lifestyles we want have left less and less space for other lifeforms that share our world - habitat loss. We have upset previously balanced global ecosystems. Our use of natural resources and man-made chemicals have created waste that we have allowed to pollute our seas, fresh water, soils, and air. This pollution threatens to poison life on Earth, including us.

What can we do locally to combat these issues? We can reduce reliance on fossil fuels (e.g. for heating and vehicles). We can better insulate our homes. We can reduce, re-use, and recycle items. We can dispose of litter and chemicals safely. We can reduce reliance on chemicals like herbicides and fertilisers. We can look to mitigate flood risks. We can seek better food security - this means more locally sourced foods and using agriculture wisely. We can plan better - always considering what effects our decisions will have on our environment. We can make space for nature by the way we use our green spaces. By taking CO2 (a 'greenhouse gas' that helps to warm our planet) from the atmosphere, plants, including growing trees, help combat climate change and can reduce surface water flood risks. We can make choices that are better for our health and our environment. We can share good ideas and work together - because we're all in it together.

Burntisland Community Council (& Burntisland Community Development Trust) are members of Fife Communities Climate Action Network - FCCAN