Scotland's mineral, water and energy resources: building a low-carbon future

Scotland’s Earth resources, which include minerals, hydrocarbons,
water and hydro energy, have for many centuries provided a driver
for population and economic growth. The nature of the onshore
geology, with key rock formations underlying the Central Belt of
Scotland, has led to a long-term relationship with extracting fossil
carbon from the subsurface. The first written records relate to New-
battle Abbey (near Dalkeith) permitting surface coal mining in the
thirteenth century. Subsequently, coal, oil shale, and offshore oil
and gas production fuelled Scottish industrial technology and devel-
opment though the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. However, in
the past 20 years there have been successive environmental drivers
to reduce CO 2 and other emissions, which along with policy changes
have impacted the way in which these high-carbon geological
resources are used.