The British road to post war planning: the forty‐year journey to the 1947 town & country planning act

This paper analyses the currents which gave rise to the 1947 Town & Country Planning Act. It describes the main statutory events in the first half of the 20th century and considers the progress made in implementing the legislation. It is argued that, while the 1947 Act was a major advance on what went before, it is not a significant departure.     

Integrated Ecological and Regional Planning in a Rapid-Growth Setting

Toronto is among the fastest-growing urban regions in North America. Regional efforts to preserve rural landscapes and remnant habitat have had variable success. In the 1990s, significant conflict emerged over proposals to build large housing developments on portions of the Oak Ridges Moraine, a 160-km stretch of environmentally sensitive land along the city’s northern edge. After years of planning conflict, Ontario’s provincial government created the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan, an Act of the Ontario Legislature. The Plan represents a dramatic change in Ontario’s approach to conservation planning. We examine the development and implementation of the Conservation Plan as an example of environmental planning policy in a complex urban setting. Data from interviews with policy actors, planning agency documents, and geospatial sources are used to construct an analysis and discussion of the Plan and its implementation. From a policy research perspective, the evolution and implementation of the Plan require analysis and monitoring to better understand how such approaches can best be implemented. The Conservation Plan marks a change in policy in Ontario, and the implementation process highlights challenges in putting conservation plans into practice.     

Forest service experience with interdisciplinary teams developing integrated resource management plans

The National Forest Management Act and National Environmental Policy Act require the use of an interdisciplinary team (ID team) to do integrated resource planning for the National Forests and the concurrent environmental analysis. A survey sent to all National Forest planning officers (82% response) reveals the composition of the ID teams used in integrated resource and land management planning. More than half the National Forests ID teams met NEPA and NFMA compositional requirements. National Forest planners recount their experiences with these ID teams. Despite frustrations with many aspects of the ID teams, the planners strongly support the idea that ID teams are an important part of the land-use planning process and think that their use leads to better National Forest integrated resource plans.     

Taming B.C. Hydro: Site C and the implementation of the B.C. Utilities Commission Act

Public policy making in resources management is greatly influenced by the institutional arrangements that arise out of the legal powers, administrative structures, and financial provisions of the decision system. In British Columbia, the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province have been greatly altered by the passage of the Utilities Commission Act in 1980. This act redefines the policy implementation process for energy in British Columbia and provides for the regulation of the province's power utility, B.C. Hydro. This is the first time that the hitherto autonomous utility has been subject to regulation and the Utilities Commission Act represents a major reform in the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province. The article evaluates the effectiveness of the 1980 B.C. Utilities Commission Act and assesses the impact of the legislation upon the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province. Data for the article were derived from written sources and a series of personal interviews with key participants involved with energy planning in B.C.It is shown that the act represented a major departure in the management of energy resources in B.C. Moreover the implementation of the act's provisions, particularly in regard to B.C. Hydro, had a dramatic impact on the development of new energy projects in the province. It is suggested that while the political and economic climate during the period also favored restraint, the major influence on taming the utility was passage of the Utilities Commission Act. The article concludes by exploring the implications of policy changes that have occurred as a consequence of the act's impact on B.C. Hydro.     

Social learning in a policy-mandated collaboration: community wildfire protection planning in the eastern United States

Policies such as the US Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) mandate collaboration in planning to create benefits such as social learning and shared understanding among partners. However, some question the ability of top-down policy to foster successful local collaboration. Through in-depth interviews and document analysis, this paper investigates social learning and transformative learning in three case studies of Community Wildfire Protection Planning (CWPP), a policy-mandated collaboration under HFRA. Not all CWPP groups engaged in social learning. Those that did learned most about organisational priorities and values through communicative learning. Few participants gained new skills or knowledge through instrumental learning. CWPP groups had to commit to learning, but the design of the collaborative-mandate influenced the type of learning that was most likely to occur. This research suggests a potential role for top-down policy in setting the structural context for learning at the local level, but also confirms the importance of collaborative context and process in fostering social learning.     

Community wildfire protection planning in the American West: homogeneity within diversity?

As large wildfires have become common across the American West, federal policies such as the Healthy Forests Restoration Act have empowered local communities to plan for their own wildfire protection. Here, we present an analysis of 113 community wildfire protection plans from 10 western states where large fires have recently occurred. These plans contain wide diversity in terms of specific plan elements and dimensions, yet less diversity in the paradigms underlying their fire protection approaches. These patterns held true across both plans constructed solely by local actors as well as those constructed with the help of outside consultant expertise.     

NEW APPROACHES TO COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING IN CANADA1

ABSTRACT. In 1970, the Canadian Federal Government passed the Canada Water Act which provides for a co-operative federal-provincial approach to water resource management. The purpose of this paper is to outline our definition of comprehensive planning and the approach being taken under the new legislation. Two basic premises underly the definition. They are that resource management consists of an array of problems and that the prime function of planning is to provide information for decision making. The definition of comprehensive planning is embodied in a general statement and a set of principles. The principles define the approach that should be taken to provide adequate information for decision making in today's complex environment. A brief resume of the jurisdictions for water management in Canada leads to a discussion of a joint federal-provincial comprehensive study of the Qu'Appelle River Basin in Southern Saskatchewan. The basin and the study are described briefly. This is followed by an outline of the economic and social considerations which are being incorporated into the comprehensive planning study for the basin.     

ESTIMATING MARYLAND CRITICAL AREA ACVS IMPACT ON FUTURE NONPOINT POLLUTION ALONG THE RHODE RWER ESTUARY1

ABSTRACT: This paper presents the results of an investigation of the effects of the Maryland Critical Area Act on generation of non-point source loads of phosphorus, nitrogen, and sediment to the Rhode River estuary. The Simple Method model, the Marcus and Kearney regression model, and the CREAMS model were used to estimate annual loads under: (1) present conditions, (2) maximum land use development allowable under the Act, and (3) two sets of future land use conditions that might occur if the Act were not in place. Results indicate that the Critical Area Act can reduce the present generation of nonpoint nutrient and sediment loadings 20–30 percent from the regulated area. These reductions can occur while preserving agricultural lands and allowing limited residential and urban development. The decrease in nutrient loadings is primarily dependent upon implementation and enforcement of agricultural best management practices (BMPs). The BMPs could reduce present agricultural nutrient loadings by 90 percent to a level comparable to loadings from residential areas. The estimated effectiveness of the Critical Area Act is even greater when compared to potential future nutrient loadings if development in the area remains unregulated. Unrestricted residential and urban development could increase nutrient loadings by 200 percent to 1000 percent as compared to controlled development under Critical Area Act guidelines. The Critical Area Act primarily prevents these future increases by severely limiting woodland cutting, with lesser results obtained by requiring urban BMPs.     

Devolving Residential Energy Efficiency Responsibility to Local Government: The case of HECA

Substantial improvements in residential energy efficiency are required if the UK is to meet its target of reducing CO 2 emissions by 20% between 1990 and 2010. The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (HECA) devolves much of the responsibility for this to local authorities, by requiring them to draw up strategies to increase energy efficiency in this sector by 30% in the next 10-15 years. While many authorities have responded positively to the Act, others are struggling, and 25% of HECA reports initially failed to meet the Act's statutory obligations. The Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) conducted research to identify barriers faced by local authorities in implementing HECA. They were found to include officers' lack of experience, their lack of time and a lack of support from elected members. Action must be taken to ensure that HECA achieves its potential. The authors suggest that the Act needs to be adequately supported by central legislation, and that devolution of responsibility must be accompanied by some devolution of finances. The authors also recommend that the Act could be used as an example for international replication.     

WATER QUALITY SIMULATION AND PUBLIC LAW 92–500 Case Study: Southwestern Illinois1

ABSTRACT: Section 208 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 has provided the Southwestern Illinois Metropolitan and Regional Planning Commission (SIMAPC) with a unique opportunity for comprehensive planning of the region's water quality. SIMAPC initiated the 208 study by researching available technology for the analysis of point and nonpoint sources of pollution and establishing criteria by which to judge the various technniques. This led to SIMAPC'S choice of continuous simulation of stream and reservoir water quality as the most appropriate analytical tool for their needs. A continuous simulation model was calibrated and verified on three basins in the SIMPAC region. It was then used to produce load source analysis, pollution event frequency analysis, and pollution event duration analysis for ten pollutants under existing stream conditions and then under alternative future conditions. These results enabled the weighting of pollutant sources, analysis of the effectiveness of control measures, and quantitative analysis of the marginal benefit of each alternative.     

ESTABLISHING WATERSHED MANAGEMENT IN LAW: NEW ZEALAND'S EXPERIENCE1

ABSTRACT: New Zealand is one of the first countries in the world to enshrine the concept of watershed management in law, through institutional arrangements and the Resource Management Act of 1991 ‐ a law constructed on a watershed management legacy begun in 1941. This paper outlines the development of New Zealand's Resource Management Act (as it applies to water management) and the lessons that have been learned in its implementation.     

Evaluation of the california environmental quality act

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) has evolved from a mini-NEPA, first enacted in 1970, into a procedural act that affects the approval process of all large developments in California. In 1990, California local governments produced over 1600 environmental impact reports and 30,000 initial studies under CEQA. Because of its widespread use, CEQA has periodically drawn the attention of the state legislature, most recently in 1993, when over 60 CEQA reform bills were introduced. This paper describes the CEQA process and evaluates its success at meeting its explicit and implicit goals. The research includes a statewide survey of CEQA practice, sent to the planning departments of all 513 local governments in California in 1991. Survey respondents agreed that CEQA helps in evaluating environmental impacts, reducing impacts, informing the public, and coordinating public agency review. It is effective in reducing the environmental impacts of individual projects, but is not as effective in improving environmental quality on an areawide scale. This research concludes that CEQA has led to positive outcomes and is not as deeply flawed as many of its critics claim. Still, CEQA as currently designed may not be the optimal vehicle for ensuring environmental quality.     

Planning under a Co-operative Mandate: New Plans for New Zealand

The Resource Management Act 1991 provides a new mandate for effectsbased planning with its goal of sustainable management. Regional, city and district councils are responsible for administering the Act, including preparation of regional policy statements, regional and district plans. The paper reports on a collaborative research programme,funded by the New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology. The three-year programme has two objectives: (1) to determine the quality of policy statements and plans; and (2) to identify the extent and means by which councils co-ordinate policy statements and plans. Preliminary findings on implementation of the Act are presented.     

Perspectives on the landmark decision designating the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) as a threatened subspecies

Following an extensive legal battle challenging its original decision to not extend the protection of the Endangered Species Act to the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina), the US Fish and Wildlife Service was ordered by the 9th District Court of Appeals to reassess the status of the owl. As a result of the revised analysis, the service proposed the northern spotted owl for threatened status throughout its range. Because of the complex biological issues involved and the perceived potential for economic disruption in timber-dependent communities of the Pacific Northwest, this proposal generated more controversy and interest than any previous one. In this article I discuss the rationale for the service’s decision, public involvement in the process, and the mechanisms now available to conserve the northern spotted owl and its habitat under the Endangered Species Act.     

A GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS APPROACH TO WELLHEAD PROTECTION1

ABSTRACT: The 1986 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act mandate a multifaceted approach to wellhead protection. This approach includes: (1) delineating wellhead protection areas; (2) identifying and managing potential contaminants; (3) developing contingency plans in the event of weilfield contamination; (4) siting new wells; and (5) encouraging public participation. These elements encompass technical, administrative, and educational considerations. In functioning both as a research tool and as a decision support system, a geographic information system (GIS) is shown to have proven utility in addressing these issues. This article describes the application of common GIS functionality in facilitating a comprehensive wellhead protection scheme for an agricultural municipality in North Dakota.     

“Guardianship” and the “Rural Workshop”—The First Quarter-century of U.K. Experience in Nature Conservation

In the U.K., the Countryside Act of 1968 represented the first “updating” of the pioneering National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act of 1949. Through the archival material that survives for the Ministry of Agriculture and Nature Conservancy, the paper commemorates that first quarter-century of post-war adjustment to the needs of farming and wildlife conservation. It does so through a case study of the documented discussion, both inter-agency and within separate counsels, of whether agricultural improvement grants should be paid for land scheduled as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). The post-war assumptions of both parties were shattered by clashes over the SSSIs of Cavenham Heath (Suffolk) and Waddingham Common (Lincolnshire). Characterized as a “cold” war, there was a point beyond which antipathy served no one's interests. Fully aware of the options available to policy-makers, both parties recognized the Countryside Bill as an opportunity to obtain greater protection for SSSIs without prejudicing the larger notions of guardianship of the rural resource and the importance that continued to be given to the countryside as the farmer's “workshop”.     

Wyoming's industrial siting permit process and environmental impact assessment

The problem of management of industrial residuals can be reduced through a rational system for siting and planning major industrial facilities. In the United States, Wyoming has moved in the direction of establishing a one-stop permitting system that provides important information for air and water quality planning and solid waste management with a minimum of regulatory overlap. This paper describes Wyoming's Industrial Development Information and Siting Act of 1975 and suggests ways in which the Wyoming permitting system can be improved and applied elsewhere.     

THE MILWAUKEE POLLUTION CASE - IMPLICATIONS FOR WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: The Illinois v. Milwaukee Federal District Court decision is the most far reaching application yet of the federal common law of nuisance to interstate water pollution conflicts. Although a Federal Appelate Court recently rescinded part of the district court decision, Milwaukee must still upgrade its metropolitan sewage system to a level beyond that required by federal and state regulations. The improvements must be completed with or without federal aid. The case points out the apparent inability of the Clean Water Act, the most comprehensive federal legislation affecting the nation's water quality, to deal with certain interstate water quality conflicts. The Milwaukee decision could set a precedent for similar settlements elsewhere which may in turn affect the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's water quality clean up program. A more integrated, ecosystem conscious approach to management of shared water resources (e.g., the Great Lakes) would help reduce the need for court decisions like Illinois v. Milwaukee.     

Devolving Residential Energy Efficiency Responsibility to Local Government: the case of HECA

Substantial improvements in residential energy efficiency are required if the UK is to meet its target of reducing CO 2 emissions by 20% between 1990 and 2010. The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (HECA) devolves much of the responsibility for this to local authorities, by requiring them to draw up strategies to increase energy efficiency in this sector by 30% in the next 10-15 years. While many authorities have responded positively to the Act, others are struggling, and 25% of HECA reports initially failed to meet the Act's statutory obligations. The Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) conducted research to identify barriers faced by local authorities in implementing HECA. They were found to include officers' lack of experience, their lack of time and a lack of support from elected members. Action must be taken to ensure that HECA achieves its potential. The authors suggest that the Act needs to be adequately supported by central legislation, and that devolution of responsibility must be accompanied by some devolution of finances. The authors also recommend that the Act could be used as an example for international replication.     

Out of the wilderness? Achieving sustainable development within Scottish national parks

The introduction of national parks to Scotland represents a significant shift in the evolution of protected area management within the UK. Although the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 adopts the established national park aims of conservation and recreation, provisions are also made for advancing notions of sustainable development. This paper provides an assessment of the degree to which the Scottish national park model is likely to enable the realisation of multiple national park objectives. Five key areas are considered for analysis. These relate to management aims, institutional arrangements, implementation, democratic accountability and funding. The evaluation reveals that whilst management provisions have been established in accordance with international sustainable development guidelines, a number of concerns relating to operational processes remain.