What zero-carbon means for you: the new plan for Scotland's cities

The eighteen-metre standard means back gardens are often a standard nine meters long. It also means Scottish people, even those lucky enough to have front and back doors and a bit of space, do not have enough room to grow some fruit and vegetables.

The climate emergency might just change the old rules. And, with them, the very look of our towns and suburbs and the green belts which surround them.

That is because scientists believe that, if we are serious about slashing greenhouse gases, we need to grow more of our food locally. And in towns and cities the only way individuals and communities can plant more fruit and vegetables is if councils make space for them to do so.

Gardens. Allotments. Orchards. This is one of the front lines in the battle to mitigate against destructive global heating. It is where council planning rules meet a world imperative.

Glasgow has ambitious plans to become the first city in the UK to get to zero-net carbon, when it takes out as much of the greenhouse gas from the atmosphere as it puts in.

It has set up a working group to figure out how. One of the proposals, quietly published last month, is an overhaul of planning.

New developments, said members of the working group, should always have local food at their heart. Housebuilders, in short, will have to show where their future customers will plant their greens. That 18 metres between windows, neatly divided by a fence or a hedge, just will not cut it.

The working group report concluded: "Emissions from livestock farming are a significant element of greenhouse gas production.

"The global food production system also contributes to carbon emissions through transport and is itself highly vulnerable to future changes in climate. A healthier diet involves less consumption of processed foods and meat. A more resilient food system involves more locally sourced produce and a recognition of seasonality in that production. An approach which is informed by Fairtrade principles can also reflect our local responsibility to the development of a more sustainable and just global food system."

The working group surveyed Glaswegians. They found more and more people want to grow their own food.

According to an ancient rule of thumb, it takes "10 poles", in old Anglo-Saxon measures a plot of 50 meters by 50 metres, to feed a family of four. That is still the gold standard for a British allotment, even if many do not reach such expanses. Less would still cut bills – and emissions – in season.

The working group reported: "There is clearly an opportunity to do better here and many of our survey respondents talked of the need to promote a plant-based diet as well as to provide more opportunities for local food growing.

"We recommend that the council and its partners publish a sustainable food strategy for the city within the next year and that the council considers making space for food growing a requirement of new housing developments."

The council's ruling SNP administration is understood to be giving this recommendation serious thought. This will not just encourage bigger gardens in the lower-density areas. It will spur, insiders say, growing developments on gap and "stalled sites". And roof garden and aquaponic growing opportunities even in the most densely developed areas of the city centre.

Last week The Herald revealed council officials were being urged to reforest golf courses whose future is in doubt. Such green spaces may also find they become community assets.

Existing new rules mean local authorities across Scotland have to ask communities about places where they would like more gardens or allotments.

The now semi-derelict Cowlairs Park – essentially disused football pitches in the north of the city – is one.

Anna Richardson, Glasgow's Convener for Sustainability and Carbon Reduction, said: “Our food growing strategy is starting to take shape and council-owned sites where there’s potential for food growing are beginning to be identified.

“From our engagement with communities so far, there appears to be a strong appetite for people to be able to grow their own food.

“As part of the community empowerment process, it is the council’s role to find ways to harness and facilitate the considerable ambition for growing food that already exists across the city.

“Ensuring Glasgow becomes a sustainable food city will help the city tackle the challenges of climate change, but also address issues of food poverty and general well-being.

“Initiatives such as the overall master plan for the largely disused Cowlairs Park in the north of the city point towards food growing being incorporated in major developments from the start.

“The vision for Cowlairs is that gardens attached to homes are large enough for families to grow their own food while a communal garden would have facilities such as a shared tool shed for the community.

“These plans are at very early stage and will the subject of detailed work by the community and developers but show we are already heading in the right direction."

Local groups of councillors are already looking at potential gap sites for good across the city. There are already some community gardens, such as that run for the last decade by the Woodside Community Development Trust on West Prince Street. It can feed 50 families.

Read more: How green is Scotland? Climate change map for YOUR area revealed

Nobody, however, is suggesting a new "Good Life" Glasgow of self-sufficient families like in the 1970s sitcom. Realistically, getting to zero-net carbon will involve developing a market for more local food from farmers.

Here again there is a huge role for councils and the rest of the public sector – using their procurement might to build up capacity.

These, again, are policies that could change our suburban and green-belt landscapes as more land is turned to food.

Ms Richardson explained: “It is also essential the council does whatever it can to ensure the food we provide is sourced as locally as possible.

“And at least 40% of food provided in our museums and art galleries comes from local or Scottish providers and that gives us a very solid base to build on.

“I’m very hopeful our food growing strategy will capture the imagination of the city’s growing communities and show the huge potential there is growing food in Glasgow.”

The Scottish Government is looking at changing rules to make it easier to procure local food

The working group concluded: "Procurement has always been a difficult area in which to incorporate social and environmental objectives because it is highly constrained by a narrow legal focus on budgetary value. Good progress has been made by the Scottish Government and the Council in broadening this focus to embrace sustainability considerations.

"We think more can be done to bring climate issues to the fore and especially to look at how local food production can be encouraged through public sector purchasing power. "

Other big public-sector food buyers are keen too. But they have un in to problems. The Scottish Prison Service, for example, sources all its milk north of the border. and is talking to its suppliers about other produce.

A spokesman said: "These conversations have, however, revealed that there is presently a significant premium attached to sourcing some local food products.

"This can make it cost prohibitive, particularly in an environment where prisoner numbers have been increasing and budgets are decreasing.

"It is against this backdrop that the SPS regularly discusses opportunities to buy Scottish produce with all its food suppliers. Feedback from our suppliers is that they too are keen to look to source locally where possible but, for some areas (particularly the poultry market) this has proven extremely difficult."

Glasgow knows that partners like the SPS need to get on board with local food if the whole city will get to zero-net carbon.

NHS Greater Glasgow spends £700m a year with suppliers. A spokesman said: "As Scotland’s largest health board we are determined to use our high-profile as a buyer of goods and services to make a positive impact on our local area while reducing our impact on the environment.

"Local small and medium sized businesses and third sector organisations are being helped to bid for contracts with the board. A dedicated group has also been set with a focus on sustainability being a significant factor in contracts."

These aspirations please Scottish farmers. Vice President of the National Farmers Union, Martin Kennedy, welcomed procurement reform: “The proposed statutory framework must be the catalyst for Scottish Government to work with local authorities to ensure they do the right thing when it comes to feeding a locally-sourced, healthy, balanced diet to those who use our public services.

“It would genuinely help. Yes, it may add one or two pence to a meal – but I would challenge governments and public procurement buyers to consider what the real cost is of bringing products in from other parts of the world? These products certainly don’t meet our standards – not to mention the impact on climate change when food miles are taken into consideration.

"It’s only a couple of years since the kids in our schools were getting their chicken from Thailand. Things are improving, but it’s still not Scottish chicken.

“Such an approach does work. Tayside contracts worked with NFU Scotland last year to get Scottish lamb back on the school menu after a very successful pilot in Perth and Kinross. That has resulted in lamb now being on the menu throughout the Tayside area. A massive thanks must go to this local authority for being so enthusiastic about promoting good local food. We must build on this enthusiasm across all local authorities in Scotland.

“And it’s down to the government to support this for three very good reasons. The provision of high quality food to our citizens; support for sourcing locally and better recognition of Scotland iconic climate-friendly farming.”