More than 50 rivers and groundwaters have failed quality tests because they have been contaminated by toxic metals flowing from Scotland’s vast network of abandoned mines.
Coal and metal mining was a key part of Scotland’s industrial history for hundreds of years, but potentially toxic heavy metals are still being flushed out from forgotten tunnels, putting wildlife, crops and water ecology at risk.
Opposition MSPs urged the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) to set out its plans to make disused mines safe.