Climate Change Plan: monitoring reports - 2021 compendium

Chapter 6: LULUCF

Part A - Overview of sector

The 2018 annual emissions envelope published in the 2018 Climate Change Plan^[38] for this sector was for -5.3 MtCO2e, whereas the outturn emission statistics for this year (published in June 2020) show a position of -5.4 MtCO2e. On the basis of comparing these figures, the sector was within its envelope in 2018. However, it should be noted that the historical GHG inventory for the period 1990-2018 was subject to technical revisions since the time of development of the 2018 Plan, which places some limitations on the extent to which these figures can be directly compared.

The updated Plan sets out the following three policy outcomes for the sector, the indicators for which are summarised below:

We will introduce a stepped increase in the annual woodland creation rates from 2020-2021 to enhance the contribution that trees make to reducing emissions through sequestering carbon	On Track	Off Track	Too Early to Say
Hectares of woodland created per year	x
Woodland ecological condition			x
Woodland Carbon Code: Projected carbon sequestration (validated credits)	x

Increase the use of sustainably sourced wood fibre to reduce emissions by encouraging the construction industry to increase its use of wood products where appropriate	On Track	Off Track	Too Early to Say
Annual volume (in millions of cubic metres) of Scottish produced sawn wood and panel boards used in construction			x

To enhance the contribution of peatland to carbon storage, we will support an increase in the annual rate of peatland restoration.	On Track	Off Track	Too Early to Say
Hectares of peatland restored per year		x
Peatland Carbon Code: Projected emissions reduction (validated units)			x

We will establish pilot Regional Land Use partnerships (RLUPs) over the course of 2021.

While this policy outcome does not have any indicators, this policy outcome is on track. Five RLUP pilot regions have been announced and the Scottish Government is working collaboratively with them to enable their establishment in 2021. More information is provided in the body of this report.

Just-Transition and Cross-Economy Impacts

We wish to understand and report on the broader just transition and cross-economy impacts of our emissions-reduction activities in addition to these sector specific policy outcomes and indicators. To do this, we use data from the Office of National Statistics: Low Carbon Renewable Energy Economy (LCREE) publication.

The LCREE is based on survey data of businesses which perform economic activities that deliver goods and services that are likely to help generate lower emissions of greenhouse gases, for example low carbon electricity, low emission vehicles and low carbon services.

The LCREE indicator is narrowly defined and, while useful within its limited scope, does not give us the full picture of the impacts on workforce, employers and communities and progress towards a just transition. Over the next few years we will work to develop a meaningful set of success outcomes and indicators which can improve our ability to track the impacts of our policies on a just transition to net zero and a wellbeing economy.

Sector commentary on progress

Forestry

Planting of new woodlands was 11,210 and 11,050 hectares in 2018-19 and 2019-20 respectively, a substantial increase on previous years, and in line with planting targets for these years.

There is a strong pipeline of woodland creation projects at present, and it is expected that the 2020-21 target of 12,000 hectares will be exceeded. The targets will increase further to reach 18,000 hectares a year by 2024-25.

This policy has been boosted through an additional £100M of funding (announced in the PfG in 2020) to support an increase in woodland creation up to 2025, as well as actions to expand the woodland carbon market through the Woodland Carbon Code, acquire more land for planting on Scotland's national forests and land, and support the promotion and development of wood products for use in construction

Peatland

In 2019-20, circa 6,000 hectares of peatland were set on the road to restoration through collective work by our delivery partners. This is off-track against the relevant indicator target of 20,000 hectares per year.

In 2020-21, it is forecast that around 5,000 hectares of peatland will be set on the road to recovery (final figures will be published in our next report). This figure is a decrease on 2019-20 primarily due to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic which interrupted project delivery and delayed the launch of the call for new project proposals to late summer 2020.

Since publication of the CCPu we have increased our focus on addressing the barriers to increased annual rates of peatland restoration. This has included confirming a multi-year funding package and launching a new call for applications for landscape scale projects; convening a first peatland restoration summit in December 2020 to inform development of a new Scottish Government-led Peatland Restoration Programme to create a more flexible and efficient delivery system; and working with partners to increase private sector investment in peatland restoration via the Peatland Code.

Developments in monitoring arrangements since CCPu / last report

The CCPu amended the LULUCF monitoring framework.

Forestry retains the following outcome indicators, Number of hectares of woodland created, Annual volume of Scottish produced sawn wood and panel boards use in construction and adds the following: Woodland ecological condition and Woodland Carbon code: projected sequestration.

The indicator Hectares of peatland restored per year is a proxy measure which doesn't directly represent the reduction in emissions. The CCPu monitoring framework notes that an emissions reduction indicator may be adopted in the future. It further notes that the current target of 20,000 hectares per year is under review and may change in future as peatland restoration takes its place in an emerging suite of wider land use change.

The indicator Peatland Carbon Code: Projected emissions reduction (validated units) has been introduced as part of the CCPu. This is the first time we are reporting on it.

The RLUPs indicator was introduced as part of the CCPu, and therefore this is the first time we are reporting on it.

Part B - Progress to Policy Outcome Indicators

Policy Outcome: 0

Indicator: FTE employment in Low Carbon Renewable Energy Economy

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets): Year-to-year change

Most recent data: 2018

Data source(s): Office of National Statistics: Low Carbon Renewable Energy Economy (LCREE)

Assessment: Too early to say^[39]

Commentary:

• In 2018, Scottish low carbon and renewable energy (LCRE) sector was estimated to directly provide 23,100 full time equivalent (FTE) jobs
• The LCREE estimates are based on a relatively small sample of businesses and hence are subject to fairly wide confidence intervals. LCRE employment in Scotland in 2018 is similar to previous years and not statistically significantly different to 2017.

Source: ONS

Policy Outcome: 1

Indicator: Hectares of woodland created per year

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets):

2020/21 = 12,000 ha/yr

2021/22 = 13,500 ha/yr

2022/23 = 15,000 ha/yr

2023/24 = 16,500 ha/yr

2024/25 = 18,000 ha/yr

Most recent data: 11,050 hectares in 2019-20

Data source(s): Forestry Statistics 2020

Assessment: On track

Commentary: Current levels of woodland creation applications indicate that we are on track to meet the 12,000 target. Delivery is dependent upon landowners implementing their projects as agreed. Official data on woodland creation for this period will be released in summer 2021.

Policy Outcome: 1

Indicator: Woodland ecological condition

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets): Year-to-year change

Most recent data: 442,611 hectares are now classified as native woodland, 430,000 ha of these native woodlands are in overall 'favourable' or 'intermediate' condition.

Data source(s): National Forest Inventory (NFI)

Assessment: Too early to say^[40]

Commentary: Published as official statistics by the National Forest Inventory (NFI), the study into Woodland Ecological Condition is the largest and most in-depth assessment of the ecological condition of any habitat in Great Britain.

It reveals that in Scotland 442,611 hectares are now classified as native woodland and that the majority of this is in North East and West Scotland.

The statistics reveal that over 430,000 ha of these native woodlands are in overall 'favourable' or 'intermediate' condition. They also show that Scotland's non-native woodlands make an ecological contribution, with less than 6% in 'unfavourable' ecological condition.

Furthermore, the survey demonstrates that the active management of a forest for wood production delivers higher biodiversity as well as a renewable supply of wood to help sustain an industry that benefits climate change mitigation, jobs and the economy - at minimal cost to the public purse.

The second report covering the second 5-year survey is due late in 2021.

Notes:

1. Native = native woodland area, Near native and fragments = Near native woodland area and fragments, non-native woodland area.

2. The NFI calculator is used to score each of the 15 ecological condition indicators that can then be combined and used to give an overall score, and classification as favourable (fav) score36-45, intermediate (int) score 26-35 or unfavourable (unfav) score 16-25 by woodland type.

3. Dashed line = threshold of each condition classification. To inform where to set the thresholds for each of the three classification categories published evidence was used.

4. Woodland types are defined in Section 1.3.6.

5. Refer to the methodology report for more information.

Policy Outcome: 1

Indicator: Woodland Carbon Code: Projected carbon sequestration (validated credits)

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets): Progress to target (increase 50% by 2025)^[41]

Most recent data: 5.6 million tCO2, unofficial data for UK at December 2020

Data source(s): UK Land Carbon Registry, Forestry Statistics (Forest Research)

Assessment: On track

Commentary: There has been a 19% increase in the number of validated credits under the Woodland Carbon Code between April and December 2020.

Unofficially, 5.6M carbon credits had been validated at December 2020. Data for 2020-21 will be released in in the publication of Forestry Statistics in Summer 2021.

Policy Outcome: 2

Indicator: Annual volume (in millions of cubic metres) of Scottish produced sawn wood and panel boards used in construction

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets):

Progress to Targets

[2020/21 = 2.6 million m3

2026/27 = 2.8 million m3

2031/32 = 3.0 million m3]

Most recent data: 2,24 million m3 estimated in construction in 2019

Data source(s): Forestry Statistics 2020

Assessment: Too early to say^[42]

Commentary:

• Official Statistics on timber are published annually in September. These provide the best dataset to estimate volume of Scottish timber used in construction.
• The figure reported here, of 2.24 million cubic metres of timber used in construction in 2019, is based on these statistics.
• There is a slight decrease from the estimate for 2018 which reflects the reduction in house builds in 2019. COVID-19 is also likely to have an impact on the 2020 estimates and we expect the volumes to be lower than the progress for the target. Once construction is back to normal we hope that the figures will move back on track to hit the longer term targets.

Policy Outcome: 3

Indicator: Hectares of peatland restored per year

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets): 20,000 ha/y^[43]

Most recent data:

Around 6,000 hectares on the road to recovery in 2019-2020.

Around 5,000 hectares (forecast) on the road to recovery in 2020-2021.

Data source(s):

Peatland Action (NatureScot)

Assessment: Off track

Commentary: In 2019-20, circa 6,000 hectares of degraded peatland were set on the road to restoration through collective work by Peatland ACTION, the Cairngorms National Park, the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, Forestry and Land Scotland and Scottish Water.

Although this is the largest annual area into restoration so far in the programme (up from 5,800 hectares in 2018-19), it remains circa 14,000 ha off-track against the relevant indicator target of 20,000 hectares per year.

In total, around 25,000 hectares have been put on the road to recovery with funding provided by Scottish Government since 2012-13.

The 2018 Climate Change Plan established a restoration target of 250,000 ha by 2030, with a cumulative target within that of 50,000 hectares by the end of 2019-20. Over that period circa 15,000 hectares have been set on the road to restoration, circa 35,000 hectares short of the 50,000 hectare target.

In 2019-20 Peatland ACTION carried out feasibility studies on a land area of 74,700 hectares (up from 72,700 hectares in 2018-19), such that over 200,000 hectares of targeted feasibility studies have been undertaken with funding provided by the Scottish Government since 2012-13.

In 2020-21, it is forecast that around 5,000 hectares of peatland will be set on the road to recovery. This figure is reduced primarily due to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic which interrupted project delivery and delayed the launch of the call for new project proposals to the late summer 2020.

Policy Outcome: 3

Indicator: Peatland Carbon Code: Projected emissions reduction (validated units)

On-Track Assessment (Milestones/ Targets): Year-to-year change

Most recent data: 115,209 validated units from 3 projects in Scotland between 2017 (first Peatland Code project) and March 2021. These projects, their validation date and associated units are as follows.

Project name	Date validated	Validated units
Dryhope	01/07/18	6,484
Lochrosque	15/05/20	87,103
Talla, gameshope and Carrifran	21/12/20	21,622
Total		115,209

Data source(s): UK Land Carbon Registry^[44]

Assessment: Too early to say^[45]

Commentary: The CCPu acknowledges that Government cannot fund on its own the scale of peatland restoration and management that will be needed to deliver on our emissions reduction targets. Alongside the funding we make available through grants for peatland restoration and agri-environment schemes, private investment in Scotland's natural capital will also be essential. It will also be necessary to ensure long-term sustainable management of restored peatland so that the carbon it stores remains locked up in the long term.

As well as our commitment of £250 million of funding over ten years, we are working to attract increased private investment. The Peatland Code is a recognised standard for businesses to purchase and report on carbon units for peatland restoration.

We will increasingly work to integrate public and private funding for peatland restoration and management through better coordination between the Peatland Code and government grants to landowners and land managers via our delivery partners.

A shared carbon registry – the UK Land Carbon Registry – was established in November 2020 for the Woodland Carbon and Peatland Codes to reduce complexity in the carbon market and facilitate increased private sector investment in nature-based solutions to tackle greenhouse gas emissions and improve wellbeing.

The data reported above represents the total validated units from projects in Scotland since the Peatland Code began in 2017 and March 2021. This provides the baseline against which year-to-year changes for this indicator will be reported in future.

Part C - Information on implementation of individual policies

Outcome 1: We will introduce a stepped increase in the annual woodland creation rates from 2020-2021 to enhance the contribution that trees make to reducing emissions through sequestering carbon.

Policy:

Forestry grants: we will provide funding via a grant scheme, to support eligible land owners establish appropriate woodlands.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Boosted [2020-2021 PfG]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This policy has been boosted through an additional £100M of funding (announced in the PfG in 2020) to support an increase in woodland creation up to 2025. There is a currently a full pipeline of woodland creation projects.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

The indicator for woodland creation is hectares planted per year. Approvals indicate that we are on track to deliver 12,000 hectares for 2020-21.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

The targets for woodland creation consist of stepped increases over the next five years, rising from 12,000 hectares in 2020-21 to 18,000 hectares in 2024-25.

Policy:

Woodland creation on Scotland's national forests and land: Forestry and Land Scotland will deliver an annual contribution towards the overall woodland creation target by creating new sustainable woodland on Scotland's national forests and land, including through partnerships with external organisations to scale carbon capture opportunities.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Maintained

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

FLS continues to create woodlands and is developing partnerships with a range of potential partners to undertake woodland creation for carbon capture

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

In 20/21 FLS will create around 570 ha of woodland

Timeframe and expected next steps:

FLS will continue to create woodlands each year on an ongoing basis

Policy:

Awareness-raising: We will continue to deliver a programme of farm-based events to demonstrate and support improved productivity through integration of farming and forestry enterprises.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Maintained

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This policy has been maintained, although the COVID19 restrictions have prevented the planned number of events taking place

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

No Hard indicators. But a new series of events is currently underway associated with the establishment of a monitor farm network that includes farm foresty.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Ongoing – annual series of events and developments to increase uptake of farm forestry eg launch of Small Woodland Load Scheme in spring 2021

Policy:

Woodland standards: The Scottish Government will lead on the work with the UK and other UK Governments to maintain and develop a UK Forestry Standard that articulates the consistent UK wide approach to sustainable forestry. The Standard defines how woodland should be created and managed to meet sustainable forest management principles and provides a basis for monitoring.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Maintained

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

The four administrations of the UK have begun work on the review of the current UK Forestry Standard (UKFS). The review takes place every five years and the aim is to update and publish the next version by the end of 2022.

The review will ensure the Standard is up to date and continues to safeguard and promote sustainable forestry practice in the UK, whilst reflecting the international context in which forestry operates. The UKFS is the technical standard which underpins the delivery of the forestry policies of the four UK countries.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

No

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Next edition of the UK Forestry Standard is due to be published by the end of 2022

Policy:

Woodland carbon capture: The Scottish Government will further develop and promote the Woodland Carbon Code in partnership with the forestry sector, and will work with investors, carbon buyers, landowners and market intermediaries to attract additional investment into woodland creation projects and increase the woodland carbon market by 50% by 2025.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

Scottish Forestry is providing technical support to private sector investors, land managers and advisors, and intermediaries in the woodland carbon market. We are taking further measures to develop the Code to facilitate further expansion of the market.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

Quantity of validated carbon units under the Woodland Carbon Code

Timeframe and expected next steps:

50% increase in validated carbon units by 2025

Policy:

Forestry and woodland strategies: Forestry and woodland strategies continue to be prepared by planning authorities, with support from Scottish Forestry. They provide a framework for forestry expansion through identifying preferred areas where forestry can have a positive impact on the environment, landscape, economy and local people.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Maintained

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

A number of current strategies are being reviewed and updated. Work is also ongoing with Scottish Borders Council to pilot further improvements to how such strategies can be developed in future. That work will inform a refresh of the current SG Guidance, which is planned to be commenced in 2021/22

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Work with Scottish Borders Council will be completed by 2022.

Planned to commence refresh of relevant SG guidance in 2021/22

Policy:

Support forestry sector on plant and seed supply strategy to help meet the increased planting targets: A programme of technical innovation to develop and adapt modern horticultural practices will help improve seed preparation and handling, techniques to reduce environmental impacts, and increase nursery production. Funding to support increased production of young trees is available through the Harvesting and Processing grant which is now open to forest nurseries across GB with support from Defra.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [Scottish ForestryImplementation Plan]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

There has been good take up of the grant scheme. We are still working with Confor and other stakeholders to obtain better data on plant production.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

No

Timeframe and expected next steps:

N/A

Policy:

Forestry and Land Scotland will begin development of a new approach to woodland investment with a view to acquiring more land to establish further woodland on Scotland's national forests and land for the benefit of future generations and to optimise carbon sequestration. This includes partnering with private sector and other organisations to enhance scale and funding of carbon capture projects.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

Acquisition & Disposal Strategy has been prepared setting out FLS approach to investing in new woodland.

The transition from the previous NWIP programme to the new approach will take place on the 01 May 2021 when NWIP expires.

A number of carbon off-setting agreements and partnerships are being explored and are at various stages of discussion

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

Indicators and milestones are currently being developed. Will come into effect from the 01 May

Timeframe and expected next steps:

New Governance and business Rules to begin implementation late spring 2021

Outcome 2: Increase the use of sustainably sourced wood fibre to reduce emissions by encouraging the construction industry to increase its use of wood products where appropriate.

Policy:

In collaboration with the private forest sector and other public sector bodies the Scottish Government will implement the Timber Development Programme through an annual programme of projects that support the promotion and development of wood products for use in construction.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Maintained

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

-

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

-

Timeframe and expected next steps:

-

Outcome 3: To enhance the contribution of peatland to carbon storage, we will support an increase in the annual rate of peatland restoration

Policy:

Restoration grants: We will provide grant funding to support eligible land managers to deliver peatland restoration. Levels of funding will enable at least 20,000 hectares of peatland restoration per year. We will undertake research to inform where restoration can deliver the greatest emission savings per hectare.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

Boosted [Budget 2020/21, reinforced in 2020-2021 PfG]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a boosted policy in the CCPu 2020.

In 2019-20, Scottish Government grant put ~6,000 hectares of peatland on the road to restoration.

In 2020-21, this figure is forecast to be around 5,000 hectares, the reduction being largely due to the impacts of responding to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The multi-year funding package established in our February 2021 Infrastructure Investment Plan has enabled a new call for multi-year landscape scale applications that should significantly increase restoration in 2021/22 and boost contractor confidence.

Research to inform the location of restoration efforts in future is underway and will report in the spring.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

In 2019-20, progress against the annual target of 20,000 ha is off-track, and is forecast to remain so in 2020-21.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Informed by a Ministerial peatland summit in December 2020, work is currently underway with our partners to develop a new Scottish Government-led Peatland Restoration Programme to improve the governance and delivery framework and address systemic barriers to increased delivery.

Policy:

Awareness raising: Working through partnership, we will put in place tools and information to promote peatland restoration and develop the capacity, skills and knowledge of land owners, land managers, contractors and others to deliver peatland restoration.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a new policy in the CCPu 2020.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Informed by a Ministerial peatland summit in December 2020, work is currently underway with our partners to develop a new Scottish Government-led Peatland Restoration Programme to improve the governance and delivery framework and address systemic barriers to increased delivery. The work plan for this emerging Programme includes addressing challenges relating to widely raising awareness of the opportunities that peatland restoration may offer, investment confidence, contractor capacity and skills and training.

Policy:

With partners, refresh our vision for Scotland's peatlands and review peatland restoration support mechanisms to overcome embedded barriers and improve how we fund and deliver this activity.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a new policy in the CCPu 2020.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

Informed by a Ministerial peatland summit in December 2020, work is currently underway with our partners to develop a new Scottish Government-led Peatland Restoration Programme to improve the governance and delivery framework and address systemic barriers to increased delivery. The work plan for this emerging Programme includes development of a new vision for Scotland's peatlands.

Policy:

Phase out the use of peat in horticulture by increasing uptake of alternative materials, undertaking stakeholder engagement to understand transitional challenges, to improve the uptake of alternatives and develop a time-scaled plan.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [2019-2020 PfG]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This was a policy commitment in the PfG 2019/20.

Growing media producers are already transitioning and developing alternatives and, overall, there was a 25% reduction in the use of peat between 2011 and 2019.

Peat use now constitutes less than half of all growing media used in the UK.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

The Scottish Government has already provided support to the potato industry to help find ways to reduce peat use in the early part of the potato production chain.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

A series of stakeholder meetings will be held in 2021 so that we may further understand the remaining barriers to transition faced by the Scottish horticulture sector and can help to overcome these

Policy:

Our Position Statement on National Planning Framework 4 confirmed our current thinking that through the planning system we will not support applications for planning permission for new commercial peat extraction for horticultural purposes, we are looking at strengthening controls on development on peatland and we will help facilitate restoration through permitted development rights.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

The Chief Planner wrote to all Planning Authorities on 3 March 2020 requesting information about active peat extraction sites in Scotland and the timescales around when these existing planning permissions are due to expire. Scottish Government is using this information to better understand the scale of extraction and the likely impact of any possible future policy levers to be used.

The Scottish Government's recently published Position Statement on National Planning Framework 4, confirmed that our intention is not to support future applications for planning permission for new commercial peat extraction for horticultural purposes including new extensions to existing sites.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

We invited comments on the NPF4 Position Statement over a 12 week period from November 2020 to 19 February 2021. The consultation responses and an analysis of consultation responses will be published in due course.

In autumn 2021, we will lay a draft NPF4 in the Scottish Parliament. At the same time we will carry out extensive public consultation.

We anticipate producing a final version of NPF4 for approval and adoption around spring 2022.

Policy:

Develop opportunities for private sector investment in peat restoration, engaging with sectors to establish investment pathways, enabling both public and private sector to invest in a range of measures to help mitigate effects of climate change

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a new proposal in the CCPu 2020.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

The indicator Peatland Carbon Code: Projected emissions reduction (validated units) has been introduced as part of the CCPu. This is the first time we are reporting on it and the relevant data between the first Peatland Code project and March 2021 is included in this report.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

The Environment and Economy Leaders Group has established a sub-group on investment in natural capital. Boosting the profile and traction of the Peatland Code is a key element of its work and in the coming months we will engage with the IUCN and other partners to develop this area and learn from the experience of the woodland sector. In time we would expect this work to impact positively on the associated indicator.

We will also engage with agriculture policy to align with the development of future public sector support mechanisms.

Policy:

Explore how best to restore all degraded peat in the public estate and also within formally designated nature conservation sites, including through statutory mandate.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a new proposal in the CCPu 2020.

It relates to recommendations from the Climate Change Committee.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

We will progress this work from 2021.

Policy:

Explore the development of a Peatland Restoration Standard to ensure best practice and continuous development in the success and effectiveness of peatland restoration.

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

This is a new proposal in the CCPu 2020.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

N/A

Timeframe and expected next steps:

We will progress this work from 2021.

Outcome 4: We will establish pilot Regional Land Use partnerships (RLUPs) over the course of 2021.

Policy:

Establishment of pilot Regional Land Use Partnerships to help ensure that we maximise the potential of Scotland's land to help achieve net zero.

Publication of Scotland's third Land Use Strategy (LUS3) by statutory deadline of 31 March 2021

Status: New, Boosted or Maintained compared to last CCP [date announced]:

New [CCPu 2020]

Progress on implementation since time of last report / CCPu:

Since the CCPu, five Regional Land Use Partnership pilots have been announced. These will be established over the course of 2021, and they will develop Regional Land Use Frameworks by 2023.

The regions are:

• Cairngorms National Park;
• Highlands Council Region;
• Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park;
• North East Region (Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen City Councils); and
• South of Scotland (Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders Councils).

Scotland's third Land Use Strategy was published on the 24^th March 2021. It resets the strategic focus on to the integrated nature of land use and introduces a new landscape based approach to demonstrating the range of demands placed on land and the variety of benefits it can provide.

Have any implementation Indicators / milestones been set for this policy? If so, most recent data for progress against these.:

No milestones or indicators have yet been developed. These will be formalised in collaboration with the pilots.

Timeframe and expected next steps:

The timeframe is to have the pilots established by the end of 2021, with frameworks being developed by 2023.