Scotland's environment blog

Today sees the start of the Royal Highland Show - the four days in June each year that showcases the best of farming, food and rural life. It'll come as no surprise that many bring their prized livestock to be judged in the hope of winning the accolade of 'Best in Show'. But did you know that it's not just livestock under scrutiny from the judges? Soil is also vying to be top. Ken Loades from the James Hutton Institute tells us more...

Over the next few weeks we’ll be taking a closer look at the topic rocks and landforms; exploring the exciting projects our partners are working on in this area and looking at the maps, data tools and information available on our website to help you find out more about this fascinating topic. And to get things started, in this first blog we’ve asked Hugh Barron from the British Geological Survey (BGS) to explain more about why rocks and landforms are an important part of Scotland’s environment.

As an Orcadian, my appreciation of trees and their various benefits, or even the fact that they existed as an important component of the countryside, came comparatively late to me.

After a year of user analysis, development and user testing, we are pleased to announce the release of the newly updated website. Changes and improvements have been made in response to users’ needs for improved access to data and information to help day-to-day decision making.

In this installment we take a closer look at what the Scotland’s Environment partners are doing to help protect and improve our forests and woodlands, and how you can get involved.

With 18% of land in Scotland covered by woodland, and our forests contributing significantly to the wellbeing of our economy, wildlife and our own lives, we certainly have good cause to celebrate.