By the start of the 1990s about three-quarters of councils in England, Scotland and Wales already had a ‘green plan’ of some kind in effect or in preparation, some explicitly recognising the need to extend to global issues such as global warming as well as local matters. What was new in the 1990s was the degree to which central government began to give formal support to sustainable development, and to land use planning as a means of achieving it, in some cases producing the relevant policies and legislation in response to international commitments. Sustainability is now one of the UK governments key objectives. A commitment to national sustainability plans was a key component of the UNCED agreements in 1992, while the main statement of principle for action, Agenda 21, regarded ‘environmentally sound physical planning’ as essential to sustainable development in urban areas and desirable in the integrated management of land resources elsewhere. In the first national sustainability strategy for the UK, planning was seen as ‘a key instrument’ for delivering sustainable land use change. Since then the emphasis on ‘sustainability’ in all areas of government policy has been increased.
One aspect of the growing interest in land use policy as an instrument of sustainable development has been the ‘expanding range of social, ecological and political objectives that planning systems are deemed be capable of promoting’. There are a number of environmental issues which the land planning system has been expected to be engaged in. For example by taking account of air pollution concerns when refusing or accepting planning applications. Also, the planning system has been urged to take the role of promoting the sustainable use of renewable and non-renewable resources through appropriate policies and design. The encouragement of the remediation and reuse of derelict or contaminated brownfield sites while preserving undeveloped area. Also, concepts of ‘environmental capital’ may have led to the expectation that planning will link development with conservation.
The principle of sustainability can only guide land use policy development if it is accepted and implemented by those responsible for policy. This is not however, an easy task which the difficulties in achieving a balance between social, economic and environmental concerns. Also, sustainability requires the need for an appreciation of the long term objectives rather than on the immediate gain from current use of resources. In conclusion, the recognition of the principle of sustainability on a global scale has been a positive step, however, this in itself will not lead to the aim of allowing future generations to meet their own needs as well as our own. That will require actual implementation of these policies, especially in land use policy to a greater degree than is currently the case.
sustainable development took hold as powerful normative and intellectual framework for land use planning, from a period of euphoric enthusiasm at
the sart of the 90s- now to a more sober assessment as difficulties and
complexities became apparent- this transition has been a microcosm of
experience across a wider range of policy areas. sustainabilty found its
way rapidly into formal statements of policy at all levles- sig
discrepencies emerge from rhetoric and reality. not just an implementation
gap but reflects a struggle to interpret sustainabilty to the realm of land
use policy.
rapid diffusin attention to sustainable development coincided with a
resurgance of interest in national and land-use plannin. Traced back to int
shere Brutlandin87 and 92 UNCED-commitment to national sustainability.
Agenda 21- 'environmentally sound physical planning. raft of ideas about
planning and sustainability found a receptive audience among local
govts.new bout 90s was degree to which central govt began to give formal
support to sustainable development and to land use plannin as a means of
achieveing it.
eg-environ grpus promoting sustainable use of renewable and non-renewable
resources. conservation too- concepts of 'environmental capoital- and greatly
influenced by globalising concepts of biodiversity.
example direct to land use planning ws the need to recycle land - renewed
impetus in the late 90s by the publication of controversial household
projections.-labour govt elected in 97- increased it's predecessor's target for
accomodating new dwellings on previously developed land fom 50-60%, a target
still considered insufficiently abitious by some. amitious environmental agenda
dominated the engagement of the planning system with sustainability during 90s.
the holism of sustainabilty pushed at the institutional boundaries of the
planning system . altough rooted in material concerns for poverty and
ecological survival- cocept elaborated to accomodate familiar plannin issues of
amenity, townscape and culture.
social considertaions of sustainability also helped to direct land use when
labour govt elected in 97-greater emphasis of reducing social exclusion
BY middle of 90s, sustainabilty agemda was making itself felt at the rhetorical
level at least- more than half of the structure plans prepared by counties in
eng;and and walses included some concepts of sustainable development in a
published document. Counsell 1998-
land use planning performed strongly on plicy areas of wildlife and
copuntryside, land use, built environment, but wek on pollution, natural
resource management and socio-economics aspects of sustainability. - show
relatively easy to make generalised committments such as minimising Earth's
climate, or promotin the effe use of energy resources- yet much more difficult
to translate these into policy measures. in pragmatic terms, plannin
authorities have limited resources, time and expertise to pursue and implement
an ever-expanding array of objectives addressing global pollution and the
management of resources. so where rhetoric been impressive- the depth, breadth
and nature of committment have varied a great deal.
Planning authorites were dealing with many other pressures while trying to come
with terms of sustainability- pressures to speed up the planning process;
reductions in public spending; privatisation of many services; grwoing
significance of regional agenda. - usual forces of insuffieictnt knowledge,
inertia and competing demands explain implementation defecit- but also deeper
than this and more complex. go back to interpretations of sustainability-and
its challenges to market led development and cometitiveness.
In ‘Sustainability and Policy’ (COMMON, 1995)
Quote from ‘Land and Limits’ (OWENS, S. & COWELL, R. 2002)
