Trump scoops Stupid Award for golf course plan
AND THE winners of the inaugural Scottish Stupid Awards 2009 for trashing the planet are ... the Scottish government, two power companies, a well-known bank, a no-frills airline, an aristocrat, a water watchdog, a European anti-pollution scheme and a billionaire tycoon from America with very dodgy hair.
They may not seem to have much in common, but last night this group of environmental offenders were brought together at a tongue-in-cheek ceremony to celebrate their eco-stupidity in Edinburgh.
They were all shortlisted in the "stupid awards" for their heroic efforts to "insult the planet and the intelligence of the people of Scotland".
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The less-than-glittering affair was organised by Friends of the Earth Scotland and the World Development Movement to mark the release of a new film about the dangers of the world's deteriorating climate. Called The Age of Stupid and starring Pete Postlethwaite, it is being screened at venues across Scotland this week.
After a showing at the Edinburgh Filmhouse last night, Donald Trump won the much-coveted Ostrich Award for "steamrolling Scottish democracy in order to open the door to developments that encourage flying". Last November, he won planning permission to build a £1 billion luxury golf resort at Balmedie in Aberdeenshire. Mr Trump was not there to accept the award, a statuette of former US president, George Bush.
Others shortlisted for the award were: the Royal Bank of Scotland for investing billions of pounds in oil and gas; Ryanair for its cheap flights; and the Water Industry Commission for Scotland and Margaret Thatcher's former adviser, Lord Christopher Walker Monckton, for "denying climate change".
In the "Greenwash" category, the Scottish government nearly walked away with the prize. It was nominated for "introducing a world-leading climate bill with the one hand, but with the other not committing to serious annual targets for another 10 years, when it will be too late".
Ministers were also criticised for proposing a new Forth road bridge, expanding airports, encouraging new coal plants and rejecting a serious energy efficiency plan. They were accused of "being stupid enough to think that the economy can come before the planet".
Last night, though, they were pipped at the post by the European Emissions Trading Scheme. This attempt to combat climate change by creating a market for pollution permits has palpably failed, say campaigners.
Another nominee for the Greenwash award was ScottishPower for investing in renewables while prolonging the life of the coal-fired power station at Longannet in Fife. British Energy was named for "pretending that nuclear is the solution to climate change".
Awards were also given to those who had done their best not to be stupid about climate pollution. Winners included the originators of the Fife local diet, Mike and Karen Small; a community-owned wind turbine in Fintry, Stirlingshire; and Edinburgh University for reducing its carbon footprint.
Owen Davis from Friends of the Earth Scotland pointed out that The Age of Stupid film showed how urgently action was needed. "We thought this would be a great occasion to celebrate the amazing people and organisations that are rising to the challenge," he said.
"We also thought it was an opportunity to put the spotlight on some of the more climate-trashing people and organisations."
The Scottish government, Scottish Power and the Royal Bank of Scotland all responded to the awards by stressing the good things they are doing. "Our commitment to tackling climate change is clear," said a government spokesman.
ScottishPower pointed out that it was the largest developer of onshore wind power in the UK, while RBS argued that it was unreasonable "to blame banks for the decisions that society makes about the use of oil and gas". The Trump organisation did not respond to a request for a comment.
