The impact of environmental assessment on local planning authorities

Studies of two samples of 24 selected local planning authorities (LPAs) in the UK were undertaken to determine the effect of environmental assessment (EA) regulations on planning practice during their first 18 months of operation. EA has been integrated into the UK planning system without significant recourse to the courts and many LPAs regarded EA as a worthwhile and helpful procedure. However, several LPAs did not consider whether to request EA for projects that might be likely to have significant impacts and some LPAs did not follow statutory and recommended consultation procedures. LPAs did not evaluate environmental statements systematically and their quality was often unsatisfactory. However, mitigation of environmental impacts took place in many cases though two‐fifths of the 20 determined applications involving EA were refused. Half the decisions took longer than the 16‐week time limit. While practice is evolving as experience is gained, there is obvious scope for further improvement and suggestions are made to enhance the contribution of EA to the planning system.     

A comparison of sustainability theory with UK and European airports policy and practice.

There are three main theoretical difficulties involved in relating sustainability to aviation, and which a research agenda for sustainable aviation needs to address. The first is uncertainty regarding the critical thresholds of global environmental systems. The second is a lack of protocols for allocating permissible environmental consumption shares to, and hence targets for, individual enterprises or sectors. The third is differing value judgements of what natural features should be sustained. For the time being, these difficulties preclude determination of the degree of sustainability or unsustainability of any individual airport with respect to global environmental systems. Nevertheless, at this stage it can at least be said that since most economic activity has an adverse environmental impact, airports with higher throughputs of material and people will tend to be less sustainable than smaller-scale airports given similar technologies and regulatory compliance. This is theoretically supported and illustrated with waste arising as an indicator at reviewed airports. Despite governmental policies of sustainable mobility, there is a disjunction between EU and UK policy on airports and individual airport practice, and environmental sustainability theory. In the UK and EU, airport practice and governmental policy is to mitigate the impacts of aviation, but not at the expense of its aviation growth. This mitigation practice is summarised for the reviewed airports and presented in a framework that accounts for the suggested, interim approach to sustainability assessment.     

Environment and energy resources — A UK experience

Summary Exploitation of energy resources need not imply irreperable damage to our physical environment. Unfortunately lack of involvement at the policy planning stage hinders significant improvements despite the enthusiastic but fragmented endeavours of interested parties.Evaluation of alternative strategies must keep pace with prospecting and engineering to achieve real influence upon the ultimate location, scale and form of development.Fruitful examination of policy alternatives is hindered by the competition between energy industries in the UK perpetuated by the apparent lack of a national energy strategy.The fast increasing bulk of environmental guidelines and proposed European legislation will not of itself prevent the significant environmental impact of energy exploitation.There is as yet no legislation in the United Kingdom requiring a developer to submit an environmental impact assessment with a planning application. However, many recent project proposals have been accompanied by such, either voluntarily or at the request of the local planning authority. The quality of such submissions ranges from the superficial to substantial, but few demonstrate evidence of environmental influence on policy formulation, alternative site selection or development characteristics.Recent experience in the UK has achieved significant success in the early introduction of physical planning and environmental criteria during the exploration of Western Europe's largest recoverable deep coal reserves.Environmental influence was achieved through close collaboration between client and consultants. Early discussion with local authorities and other agencies established during coal field exploration provided the basis for ongoing consultation during the four-year study period. Publication of consultants' findings and submission of planning proposals culminated in a public inquiry providing opportunity for public involvement over 84 days of project examination.David Price is an Architect and Town Planner in private practice with extensive experience in urban and regional planning and environmental evaluation in the UK and abroad. He is also a member of Land Planning Group, a multi-disciplined design and planning consultancy.     

Road Developments in the UK: An Analysis of Ecological Assessment in Environmental Impact Statements Produced between 1993 and 1997

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) has been required for certain proposed road developmentsin the UK since EC Directive (85/337) was implemented in 1988. The extent to which the requirements of the EIA Directive are met with respect to ecological issues has been explored in earlier reviews of road statements (Treweek et al., 1993) and of UK environmental impact statements (EISs) in general (Thompson et al., 1997). This paper describes the results of a further review of 40 EISs produced between 1993 and 1997 and also examines recent changes in the political context for EIA of proposed road developments,including developments in UK transport policy and the UK biodiversity process. The results of the review suggest that the ecological assessment of proposed road developments has improved in some respects, but also highlights the persistence of many shortcomings identified in earlier reviews. The reasons for ongoing failure to address these issues are explored. Key findings include a marked improvement in the extent of reference to consultation with statutory consultees and an increase in the proportion of EISs reporting the results of new ecological surveys. However, while potential ecological impacts were discussed in all the EISs reviewed, many still failed to predict the full range of potential ecological impacts.     

Questioning the local: environmental regulation,shale gas extraction,and the politics of scale

ABSTRACT

The exploration and potential extraction of shale gas – better known as fracking – has emerged as one of the most contentious dimensions to local environmental politics in the UK. Local residents and environmental activists have raised concerns about health, noise, ground water contamination, seismicity, environmental amenity, and other impacts of the industry on communities. Despite the complexities of shale gas extraction, an emphasis on the local has shaped key dimensions of the debate around the appropriate location for well pads to the relative exclusion of other issues. This paper draws on fieldwork in Lancashire, UK, to reflect on the political construction of scale in order to explore how an emphasis on “the local” can restrict political debate over shale gas to narrow concerns with land-use planning thereby obviating a fuller engagement with wider questions concerning risk, energy policy, and climate change. It is concluded that a more nuanced conception of scale is necessary for understanding how concerns with shale gas are diminished rather than strengthened through the current planning policy and regulatory regime operating in the UK.     

From Environmental Auditing to Integrated Environmental Management: Local Government Experience in the United Kingdom and Japan

Local authority experien ce with state of the environment reporting in the UK is discussed and com pared with the Japanese approach to integrated environmental management. Two case studies are presented, Lancashire County Council and Osaka Prefectural Government, and the progress made by each authority is examined. The paper argues that two very different approaches to local environm ental m anagement have evolved in the UK and Japan. The Japanese approach is essentially technocratic and pre-occupied with pollution control issues. In contrast, the UK approach has evolved out of the town planning tradition with its emphasis on conservation and am enity issues. Local authorities in Japan have greater jurisdictional powers, financial and technical resources to devote to environmental management. This allows them more direct control over the policy-making process. Constraints on local authority financial resources in the UK, and fragmentation of environmental responsibilities between various organizations, have resulted in a form of environm ental management which is based on interorganizational co-operation.     

From Spatial to Local: The Impact of the European Union on Local Authority Planning in the UK

In 1998 the Minister for the Regions, Regeneration and Planning issued a statement which argued that the European context for planning had been largely missing from the planning system in England. This paper explores the impact of European Union (EU) membership on the practice of local authority planning in the UK. The research was based on nine local planning authorities in England, Scotland and Wales. The results indicate that EU membership has exerted a direct and indirect influence on planning at the local level. A classification of EU influences on local planning activities is developed. The research also indicates that the scope and structure of the UK planning system are being influenced by EU membership. There is considerable emphasis on the role of planning as a tool for sustainable development, and the development of environmental quality standards, coupled with existing policies in the sphere of nature conservation, present a challenge to the traditional approach of the UK planning system of balancing all material considerations.     

Enhancing consultation practices on Air Quality Management in local authorities

Schedule 11 of the Environment Act 1995 underpins the requirement for consultation on air quality issues. The ongoing air quality review and assessment process represents one of the largest locally based science policy and communication initiatives ever undertaken in the UK. This paper outlines the practice of consultation and communication for Air Quality Management (AQM) and reviews the interaction between Environmental Health professionals, as the leading actor in the AQM process and other stakeholders involved in air quality consultation, including the public. Results are presented from a widespread questionnaire survey of English local authorities. Data indicate that the majority of air quality consultation has been carried out with statutory consultees (by sending the review and assessment reports) and the public (via websites and leaflets) in the form of information dissemination.     

新乡市声环境质量现状及其改善对策研究

以中原城市群强市-新乡市为例,介绍城市环境噪声的声源构成主要以工业噪声和社会生活噪声为主。随着城镇化规模的扩大,近年来的噪声监测值总体呈下降趋势,但道路交通噪声和社会生活噪声有增高趋势。结合声环境质量现状,提出了合理规划功能区布局、加强声环境管理、利用城市绿地降低噪声、提高单体建筑规划设计水平等改善对策措施。     

Policy And Practice The Focus of Local Agenda 21 in the United Kingdom

The paper examines whether environmental issues are taking precedence over socio-economic issues in the UK LA 21 process. A categorization to separate issues which can be considered socio-economic from those which are environmental has been developed and a questionnaire sent to all UK local planning authorities. Results demonstrate that local authorities are indeed giving more emphasis to environmental issues, which is at odds with previous studies and with the concept of sustainability.The research has indicated that the cause may be a tendency to place LA 21 within the remit of environment departments and, whether this is the explanation or not, it implies that a re-emphasis of effort may be required on behalf of the local authorities.     

Sustainable Development and Structure Plans in England and Wales: Operationalizing the Themes and Principles

This paper explores attempts to operationalize some themes and principles of sustainable developmentin five UK structure plans which performed best in an overview of current practice (Counsell, 1998). Following a summary of literature, the approaches to sustainable development in the five plans-Avon, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Oxfordshire, and West Sussex-are described. The plans are then used to explore the operationalization of a range of resource protection (environmental capacity, environmental capital and the precautionary principle) and socio-economic (social equity, policy integration and participation) themes. It is concluded that the planning system probably provides greater scope for accommodating the resource protection than the socio-economic themes, which are likely to present a considerable challenge in making sustainable development operational in planning.     

Does planning deregulation threaten the environment? The effect of ‘permitted development’ on the natural heritage of Scotland

This paper reports research into the effect on the UK environment of the deregulation of land development controls. One form of deregulation is granting advance approval to specified classes of small-scale development because they are considered inconsequential. Previous research has indicated that such ‘permitted development’ may adversely affect the natural heritage. This study systematically investigated its impact on the natural heritage of Scotland. The study canvassed the opinions of agents best placed to comment: natural heritage authority field staff, local government planners and representatives of non-governmental organizations. The results revealed concern about permitted development as a whole, and about specified classes. Despite professed concerns about sustainable development, UK planning modernization has failed to grasp the opportunity for a radical and fundamental reform of the scope of UK planning control in the context of contemporary environmental issues. Accordingly, there remains an unresolved tension between the desire to remove unnecessary state regulation of land development and the protection of the natural heritage.     

德国空间规划战略环境评价的法律界定以及对我国的启示

空间规划是国际上战略环境评价应用较为活跃的领域之一,但在我国,无论是空间规划还是空间规划环评,均处于探索和研究阶段。本文从德国空间规划法入手,着重分析空间规划法对战略环境评价的具体要求,旨在为我国今后空间规划开展战略环评提供制度上的参考。文章重点研究了screening、scoping、 层级评价、环境报告、部门咨询、公众参与、决策考虑和跟踪评价等8项有利于提高战略环境评价有效性的主要议题。研究认为,德国的空间规划战略环境评价通过制度保障实施,采用规划部门主导、其他相关部门辅助的模式,使得规划制定与战略环评实施可以有效结合,提倡经济型、节约型和务实性的环境评价,重视战略环评结果,倡导透明决策。     

Environmental Mediation in Planning Appeals: Lessons from the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales

In both England and Wales (UK) and New South Wales (Australia) the respective planning systems permit the applicant a right of appeal to challenge the merits of a town planning decision. These systems have experienced a growing appeal workload over the last 10 years whilst their administrators have sought to increase the speed of decision making. To deal with such pressures, as well as to provide an alternative method of resolving appeal disputes, the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales has introduced a mediation facility in planning appeals. The Court itself has estimated that some 736 hours have been spent in mediation with an estimated saving of Court time of approximately 405 days. This paper examines how these reforms have sought to reduce the level of dispute in the planning system and consequently the number of appeals with their associated time and expense. Comparison will be made with reforms introduced into the UK system, in particular the Informal Hearing method. The extent to which such mediation could operate in the UK is considered.     

International retirement migration in the Alicante region,Spain: process,spatial pattern and environmental impacts

International retirement migration has become an increasing phenomenon in the Mediterranean region of Alicante, Spain. Through an interdisciplinary approach, relationships between the migration process, landscape change and environmental impacts are examined. Lifestyle-related perceptions and demands of UK retirees are studied as a major driving force of urbanisation. The extent and quality of the process is assessed by statistical and land use data analysis. Results reveal a distinctive spatial pattern of in-migration and the emergence of an archetypical landscape, consisting of a mosaic of remaining natural and urbanised landscape along the Mediterranean coast. The paper discusses the necessity of retirees' integration into sustainable planning and decision making.     

Environmental Performance Evaluation in the Water Industry of England and Wales

The appropriate means of benchmarking environmental performance within and between companies is a matter of considerable debate and raises issues such as what information to compare and the reliability and consistency of data. Comparing environmental performance through company environment reports is an approach which has been widely used but, as this paper shows, is difficult and has severe limitations. This paper presents a unique analysis, based on the UK water industry, which compares data reported in company environmental reports and data on the same companies reported through the industry regulators. In turn, this is compared with the environmental performance indicators proposed by two other systems, one advanced by the UK water industry itself. The results demonstrate the difficulty of specifying environmental indicators that enable meaningful comparison. The difficulty of comparing environmental performance in a sector with a comprehensive approach to, and long history of, environmental performance reporting presents some hard lessons for other sectors.     

1992-2017年中国环境规划研究演进特征与趋势

伴随着生态文明建设被确立为国家战略，环境规划成为一项保障城市与区域可持续发展的重要公共政策工具。为从主观判断转向客观计量分析评价我国环境规划研究领域的知识生产特征和趋势取向，以更好地促进高质量发展，本研究引入CiteSpace软件对中国知网数据库中与环境规划相关的1170篇论文文献进行分析，全面梳理了我国1992-2017年环境规划文献脉络演进轨迹，归纳其中演进特征与趋势取向。研究发现：①从环境规划的概念提出开始，我国在该领域的研究一直处于不断完善与扩展的状态，高被引论文关注方向较为广泛，反映出研究热点议题的多元；②研究学者合作网络初步浮现，但研究的学科多元交叉性仍有待提高，"高产"机构研究持续性较好，合作较为多元，但地域分布的不均衡性对我国多样环境问题解决所需的近域知识有效供给带来制约；③环境规划领域的研究以与生态环境或环境规划相关的具体问题为对象，多结合当期的经济社会与国家政策环境来进行开展，呈现出持续性与时效性相结合的特点，并逐渐由方法技术视角转向政策工具视角，即由仅解决环境问题为取向的研究转向将环境规划作为解决公共政策问题的研究；近期研究热点指向多规合一与空间规划，以及绿色发展理念的探讨，更加强调其与城市与区域规划之间的密切联系。     

The integration of regional environmental planning and physical planning in the Netherlands

In the Netherlands various fields of policy planning and decision making are related to the environment, of which physical land use planning and environmental planning are the most important. In the last 20 years the environmental effects of production, mobility and consumption in this densely populated country have increased. The location and land use of economic activities have therefore become a main concern for environmental policy which has as its aim the improvement and conservation of the quality of the natural and human environment. The prospects for a better co‐ordination and integration of the two policy ‘tracks’ have become a matter of political, scientific and public concern. In some regions the government has started experiments with more integrated environmental policy and management. This paper discusses some of the possibilities and limitations of this regionally oriented policy against the background of a more effective environmental policy, especially in two cases—a rural area in the province of Gelderland and the region of Schiphol Airport.     

An assessment of public engagement for access management planning in southwestern Alberta,Canada

This paper describes efforts to bridge the gap between the existing research and proposed recreation access management for public lands in southwestern Alberta, Canada. Recreation access management has been identified as a complex problem and public consultation is one element in addressing the complexity. An Internet-based survey (n = 945) examined the acceptability and desirability of public consultation processes to assist with access management planning. Non-parametric tests indicate significant differences in desirability of public consultation types existed for all variables except gender. Respondents expressed the desire for a diversity of public consultation approaches with a strong preference for face-to-face field visits. Mechanisms for engagement in access management planning should be based on public consultation preferences to ensure broad, on going engagement and subsequent user acceptance and compliance.     

农村工业化进程中的土地资源优化配置研究——以浙江永康市为例

在阐述农村工业化与土地资源优化配置关系问题的基础上，以浙江永康市为例，对当前我国农村工业化过程中土地资源优化配置问题进行了研究。研究表明，永康目前处于工业化中期阶段，工业用地扩张趋势明显，但同时也存在用地结构布局不甚合理、集约利用程度较低以及环境影响等问题。解决这些问题可通过切实保护耕地，合理安排建设用地规模与布局，提高土地集约利用率和控制环境污染等有效途径。