Types of Environmental Plans

Natural process plans

These plans are plans for the natural aspects of the environment such as physical and
biological aspects. These includes the following,
• Planning for mining – Mines produce a variety of minerals, metals, and aggregates
that are used in everyday products and in the construction of buildings, roads, and
bridges. Whenever there is mining the environment has bigger chance to be exposed
for environmental problems like erosion, flooding, water accumulation, land
degradation, landslide and so on. In planning for mining, one must avoid improper
mining that exposes the land to problems. Certain borrow and quarries must be
reinstated.
• Planning for erosion control - A series of the descriptions used to characterize
different types of erosion includes:
➢ Accelerated erosion - erosion much more rapid than normal natural geologic
erosion, primarily as a result of the influence of people or animals.
➢ Geologic erosion - the normal or natural erosion caused by geological
processes acting over long geologic periods and resulting in the wearing a way
of landforms and the build-up of flood plains and fans.
➢ Gully erosion - the erosion process whereby water accumulates in narrow
channels and over short time periods, and removes the soil from these narrow
areas to considerable depths.
➢ Natural erosion - wearing away of the earth's surface by water, ice, or other
natural agents under natural environmental conditions of climate and
vegetation, undisturbed by humans.
➢ Normal erosion - the gradual erosion of land used by people that does not
greatly exceed natural rates.
➢ Rill erosion - an erosion process in which numerous small channels of only
several inches in depth are formed.
➢ Sheet erosion - the removal of a fairly uniform layer of soil from the land
surface by the overland flow of water.
➢ Splash erosion - the spattering of small soil particles caused by the impact of
raindrops on very wet soils.
Soil erosion remains among the most significant problems in land management and
environmental planning. Because virtually all land uses contribute directly or indirectly to the
process, erosion is pervasive and results in direct monetary losses as well as a range of
indirect costs or effects, such as
• Increased sedimentation and clogging of streams and channels,
• Heightened flood frequency and risk,
• Land degradation, and
• Reduced water quality.
These considerations place a premium on developing methods to control and reduce the soil
erosion risk and Wind erosion control
Ridging
• Absorb and deflect wind energy
• Trap moving soil particles
Crop residues
Windbreaks or shelterbelt is Plantation usually
made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs
planted as to provide shelter from the wind and
to protect soil from erosion

Silt fences which are usually temporary and used when soil is not vegetated, during
construction or before/after seeding. Usually
made of synthetic materials and can be replaced
by natural materials

planning for pollution type of planning

intended to minimize pollution and give
solutions for the problem

Planning for solid waste management- type of plan prepared to organize and manage the
removal, reduction, and recycling of solid waste.
Planning for ecosystem and so on

Social process plans

These are plans that are prepared by considering the society’s culture, norm, living
standard, and many other factors. The social pan aims to fulfil the need of the community and
focuses on what should be improved through planning. Some of the examples includes
--Transportation planning –type of planning prepared to improve the transportation system.
--Resettlement planning – type of planning intended to improve the living standard of the
society, and so on.

Visual plans
Visual plans are planning that deal with aesthetics and human comfort by considering
elements such as Colour, form, size and proportion influence and so on. These plans primary
emphasize on the artistic quality of landscape features. The focus is on visual scene. The plan
considers visual forms on the basis of some language of art for example as line, form, colour,
texture, rhythm, proportion, balance, symmetry, harmony, tension, unity, variety and so on.
Examples of Environmental Plans
Public Open Spaces (POS)
Open Space is more than just parks it is an integral element of the landscape and an essential
part of the communities. It is a complex system that encompasses a wide range of functions
and participants. There is "Open Space" for the preservation of natural resources; for the
managed production of resources; for outdoor recreation; for public health and safety; and
for community character.
Types of Public and Private Open Space can include:
– Parkland
– Greenways e.g. Buffers, Corridors, Boulevards, ceremonial avenue, parkway
street, Riverside parkway, park belt, park system, green belt, greenway
system, green trail
– Squares and Plazas
– Public gardens
– Conservation Land
– Preservation Land
– Cultural Heritage Land
Public Open Spaces Should be planned in conjunction with other land uses
Parks are strategically located areas of land for the primary function of providing active and
passive recreation opportunities. A secondary function is one of the conservations of
sustainable natural ecosystems with a goal of natural environment stewardship.
Parks are one of the important components of urban land use, but many of them have fallen
on hard times. They are under-used, under-funded, badly planned, badly designed and badly
managed.
At the present time, the great need is for diversification, so that the use and character of parks
can be related to the desires of the communities which they serve.
Parks can, for example, be diversified with regard to ownership, character, culture, landform,
planting and use.
Why Master Plan Parks?
• Like the population, park and recreation needs are growing.
• Park master plans provide the public a way to help determine the best uses for a
specific site and to optimize management of the site's resources.
What is a Park Plan?
• A park master plan is a general guide for appropriate park uses and their approximate
location within a specific park site. The plan serves as a long-range vision (10–20-
year timeframe) for future development and programming.
• Issues typically addressed include planned park elements, natural and cultural
resource management, and general design concerns.
• The plan is conceptual in nature and not intended to address detailed issues related to
engineered site design or park operations. The plan is just one of many steps in the
process that leads to the development of a public park.
Park Planning Framework
General policies for the acquisition and development of public parks and for the
conservation of significant natural and cultural resources are the following:
1) Plan, acquire, develop and maintain parks and recreational facilities in accordance with adopted
criteria and standards.
2) Balance the delivery of programs for stewardship of the public lands and provision of recreation
services.
3) Achieve a balance of parkland facilities throughout the County based on the desires of the community
as a whole and on population distribution and growth.
4) Enhance existing recreation and resource protection opportunities through acquisition of adjacent
lands wherever feasible.
5) Promote incentives for private landowners to preserve open space and protect ecological and cultural
resources.
6) Use the park system, in conjunction with the Environmental Quality Corridor and Trails system, to
establish an integrated network of greenways to conserve open space, protect wildlife habitat, riparian
corridors, water quality and aesthetic values, control flooding and erosion and provide continuity of
non-motorized access between park lands, residential communities, employment and commercial
centres, and transit destinations.
7) Cooperate with the Park Agency in its mission to acquire, plan develop and maintain regional parks
and facilities to serve the population.
8) Coordinate the planning, development, protection and management of park resources with other
County, municipal, regional, state and federal agencies.
9) Increase citizen understanding and appreciation of environmental, cultural and horticultural values
through interpretive and educational programming and demonstration projects within the park system.
10) Provide opportunities for citizens to participate in the planning, development and operation of
parklands, facilities and programs.
Parkland Classification
Neighbourhood Parks
• Central to the neighbourhood
• Can include play apparatus, turf area, paved court, play field, storytelling ring, shelter,
wading or spray pool, table game area, picnic centre
• Approximately 80 to 120 dwelling units; equivalent to 250 to 375 people.
• The area should be defined by natural features such as shorelines, major roadways and
existing development.
• The neighbourhood should include a convenient pedestrian circulation system of local
streets and walkways or sidewalks to connect the parkland system in the area.
• 30 metres local road frontage
• No parking to encourage local neighbourhood use only
• 5-10 metre property line buffers

Community Park (Kebele)

• Most valuable in the urban core
• Typically located at collector road intersections
• May contain a park bench, hard surface, grass area, shade trees, drinking fountain,
signage
• 5 metre property line buffer
• Central to several physically connected neighbourhoods (serves 240 to 360 dwelling
units)
• Can include sports fields, courts, lawn sports, outdoor swimming pool or beach, picnic
area, playground, running track, day camp centre, parking area
• 2 ha per sports field to accommodate field, parking, buffer
 • Can include open lawn, trees, shrubbery, walkways, benches, focal point such as
ornamental pool or fountains, beaches, as well as a sandbox, play apparatus, table game
area
• Main entrance on collector road
• Secondary entrance on local road
• Road frontage of 30 metres per hectare of land
• Main entrance parking lot required - number of spaces are relative to desired use
frequency
• Should consider highlighting any unique physical features such as rock outcrops,
identified tree stands, brooks and in some cases may include wetland
• Retain 75% tree habitat when primarily for passive use and retain 25% tree habitat for
active
• 15 metre property line buffers

District Park (Sub-City)

• Intended to serve and link several Communities
• Main entrance on a collector road
• Secondary entrance on local road
• Road frontage of 30 metres per hectare of land
• Main entrance parking lot required
• Should consider highlighting any unique physical features such as rock outcrops,
identified tree stands, brooks and in some cases may include wetland.
• Retain 75% tree habitat when primarily for passive use and retain 25% tree habitat for
active
• 15 metre property line buffers
• Convenient public transit and utilitarian transportation access
• Sports Complex able to sustain indoor and outdoor recreation facilities
• Can be up to 10 hectares
Regional Park (City-wide)
• Publicly owned land to serve a regional population service area with Natural
Environmental, Cultural/Historical, Active and Passive Recreation Themes.
• Serve several combined districts
• Indoor/Outdoor Sports Complex
• linked to several districts
• 25-kilometre catchment area
• can include sports fields, courts, swimming pools, running track and significant
parking area
• 150 metre recommended minimum frontage
• main entrance to be on a collector or arterial road

Waterfront Family Picnic Area

• Area determined by natural site conditions
• Linked to several communities via collector road or multi-use trail
• Can include picnic area, tent camping area, hiking trails, boat access, marina,
sightseeing facilities, parking area.
• 30 metre minimum frontage on a collector road, 90 metre preferred.
• Should include unique physical features such as shoreline, significant stands of trees,
etc.
• Retain 75% of tree cover
• Slopes can vary
Natural Environment Open Space
• Federal or regional ownership
• include distinct zones of Preservation, Conservation, and Recreation
• area can vary
• linked to several communities via collector road or multi-use trail
• Can include picnic area, tent camping area, hiking trails, boat access, marina,
sightseeing facilities, parking area.
• 150 metre minimum frontage on a collector road
• Should include unique physical features such as shoreline, significant stands
of trees, etc.
• may include historical or culturally significant elements
• retain 75% of tree cover
• slopes can vary
Regional Trail
• Federal or regional ownership
• minimum corridor width is 5 metres
• travel surface to be 3 metres with 1 metre buffer strips on each side
• travel surface material to be asphalt (typically urban) or granular (Typically,
suburban to rural)
• must have trail head locations fronting collector roads
Conservation Areas
• Are lands obtained with the primary function to conserve the natural environment
habitat while being able to sustain a relatively small development footprint
• Natural habitat succession may be controlled (slowed or enhanced) because of
Secondary functions that can include passive recreation facilities such as trails,
boardwalks, benches, and look-off areas and Engineering functions such as Storm
water Management.
• A Conservation Area may be located within or adjacent to a public park depending on
the natural characteristics of the site.
Preservation Areas
• Are lands obtained with the primary function of preserving the natural
environment habitat and allowing natural habitat or geologic succession to
continue unaltered
• Varying degrees of Protection Zoning may be applied; e.g., Shoreline
Protection Zone, or Stream Protection Zone.
• Real Property Planning supports the conservation and preservation of water
resource lands such as shorelines (riparian zones), wetlands, unique forest
habitat, and cultural landscapes.
Land Use Buffer Areas
• Are incorporated into all land uses with a primary function of serving as
visual and/or audible transition areas between those various land uses.
• Secondary functions can include conservation and passive recreation.
• Widths can vary depending on vegetation, topography and land use intensity
and can comprise of natural forest habitat, stands of landscaped trees, sound
attenuation walls, open field or body of water.
• Development opportunities can include secondary trails, benches and viewing
platforms.
Vegetative Buffers
Vegetative buffers use permanent vegetation strategically located to enhance ecological
functions and landscape conditions, including:
– stable and productive soils;
– cleaner water;
– enhanced aquatic and terrestrial wildlife habitat and populations;
– protected crops, livestock, and structures;
– enhanced aesthetics and recreation opportunities; and
– Sustainable landscapes.
Six Variations of Vegetative Buffers
1. Riparian Buffers
A riparian buffer is an area of trees and shrubs located adjacent to streams, lakes, ponds, and wetlands.
It intercepts contaminants from surface runoff and shallow subsurface water flow. The buffer also can
be designed to enhance wildlife habitat, impact water temperature, and aid in stream bank stability.
2.Filter Strips
A filter strip is an area of grass or other permanent vegetation used to reduce sediment, organics,
nutrients, pesticides, and other contaminants from runoff and to maintain or improve water quality. It
slows the velocity of water, filters suspended soil particles, and increases infiltration of runoff and
soluble pollutants and adsorption of pollutants on soil and plant surfaces. Filter strips also can be
designed to enhance wildlife habitat.
3.Cross-Wind Trap Strips
Cross-wind trap strips are areas of herbaceous vegetation that are resistant to wind erosion and grown
as nearly as possible perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction. These strips catch windborne
sediment and other pollutants, such as nutrients and pesticides, from the eroded material before it
reaches water bodies or other sensitive areas. They are filter strips for windborne material.
4.Grassed Waterways
• A grassed waterway/vegetated filter system is a natural or constructed vegetated channel that
is shaped and graded to carry surface water at a
• Non erosive velocity to a stable outlet that spreads the flow of water before it enters a
vegetated filter.
5.Windbreak/Shelterbelt
A windbreak or shelterbelt is a single or multiple rows of trees or shrubs that protects the soil from
wind erosion, protects sensitive plants, manages snow, improves irrigation and structures, and creates
or enhances wildlife habitat.
6.Contour Buffer Strips (Contour Grass Strips)
Contour Buffer strips are of perennial vegetation alternated with wider cultivated strips that are
farmed on the contour. Contour buffer strips slow runoff and trap sediment. They help reduce
sediment, nutrients, pesticides, and other contaminants in runoff as they pass through the buffer strip.
Vegetative strips can also be designed to provide food and cover for wildlife.
Forest buffers
Forest buffers provide the widest range of benefits. Riparian vegetative buffers include three zones.
=Zone 1 is closest to the stream or water body and includes water-loving vegetation. This critical zone
provides habitat, filter, shading, and shoreline stabilization.
=Zone 2 is adjacent to and upslope from zone 1. Vegetation in zone 2 intercepts and filters runoff
sediment and pollution. Zone 2 can be managed to provide timber, wood fibber, and horticultural
products.
=Zone 3 is established if periodic and excessive water flows, erosion, and sediment from upslope fields
or tracts are anticipated. Zone 3 is generally composed of herbaceous plants or grass and a diversion
or terrace, if needed, and it is a "first defence" to ensure proper functioning of zones 1 and 2
Corridors
Are linear systems of publicly owned land or easements with the primary function of linking
general origins and destinations. Examples include:
Greenway Corridors are elongated and usually continuous strips of land and/or water under
public control through ownership, easement or other arrangement which serve recreation
and/or conservation needs.
Recreation Corridors can be defined as linear parks with the primary purpose providing a
recreation activity while linking via trails, points of interest within the area. The Parkland
Classification of neighbourhood, community, district, or regional hierarchy can be applied.
Utility Corridors can be defined as linear systems to primarily accommodate utilities such as
engineered infrastructure and can conveniently accommodate passive recreation activities
and facilities such as trails. High voltage power lines can severely constrain recreation
activity and therefore a recommended land use buffer from high voltage power line
infrastructure is 80 to 100 metres.
Boulevards are road corridors that have been designed and constructed to provide a
comfortable atmosphere for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. They include widened
sidewalks, on street parking, street furniture, modified intersections and street trees.
Cultural Heritage Landscapes are lands designated for their unique cultural value.
Selection criteria can include view planes, agricultural, natural resource, etc.
Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) an area identified, designated or protected by a local,
regional, national or international public agency as ecologically, culturally or archeologically
significant.

Squares and Plazas

A plaza (pron.: /ˈplɑːzə/) is an open urban public space, such as a city square. In modern
usage, a plaza can be any gathering place on a street or between buildings, a street
intersection with a statue, etc. Today's metropolitan landscapes often incorporate the "plaza"
as a design element, or as an outcome of zoning regulations, building budgetary constraints,
and the like.
Public gardens neighbourhood space designed, developed, or managed by local residents on
vacant land;
• possibly including viewing gardens, play areas, and community gardens;
• often developed on private land;
• not officially viewed as part of open space system of cities;
• often vulnerable to displacement by other uses such as housing and commercial
development
The distinguishing characteristic is that community/public gardeners grow their produce on shared lots
that have been divided into smaller plots of land for each household’s use (usually for a small fee).
Distribution of land does not come without much organization and program development to coordinate
gardeners, manage land and resources, and facilitate educational or social activities and disputes.
Some gardens may have larger goals of education, community supported agriculture entrepreneurship,
or food bank gardening.
Reservoirs
A reservoir (etymology: from French réservoir a "storehouse" [1]) is a natural or artificial
lake, storage pond or impoundment from a dam which is used to store water. Reservoirs may
be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the
ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete. The
term reservoir may also be used to describe naturally occurring underground reservoirs such
as those beneath an oil or water well.
Reservoirs are those water bodies formed or modified by human activity for specific
purposes, in order to provide a reliable and controllable resource. Their main uses include:
• Drinking and municipal water supply,
• Industrial and cooling water supply,
• Power generation,
• Agricultural irrigation,
• River regulation and flood control,
• Commercial and recreational fisheries,
• Body contact recreation, boating, and other aesthetic recreational uses,
• Navigation,
• Canalization, and
• Waste disposal (in some situations).
Reservoirs are usually found in areas of water scarcity or excess, or where there are agricultural or
technological reasons to have a controlled water facility. Where water is scarce, for example, reservoirs
are mainly used to conserve available water for use during those periods in which it is most needed for
irrigation or drinking water supply.
When excess water may be the problem, then a reservoir can be used for flood control to prevent
downstream areas from being inundated during periods of upstream rainfall or snow-melt. Particular
activities such as power generation, fish-farming, paddy-field management or general wet-land
formation, for example, are also met by constructing reservoirs. By implication, they are also water
bodies which are potentially subject to significant human control, in addition to any other impact.
Reservoirs are, nonetheless, a considerable, frequently undervalued, water resource: approximately 25
per cent of all waters flowing to the oceans have previously been impounded in reservoirs (UNEP,
1991).
Reservoirs range in size from pond-like to large lakes, but in relation to natural lakes the range of
reservoir types and morphological variation is generally much greater. For example, the most regular,
and the most irregular, water bodies are likely to be reservoirs. This variability in reservoirs, allied to
management intervention, ensures that their water quality and process behaviour is even more variable
than may be characterized as normal. As reservoirs are so variable, it can often be misleading to make
any general statements about them without significant qualification as to their type.
Mineral Extraction
Minerals Policy
1. Permission for new quarrying projects should only be given when a restoration and
after-use plan has been prepared and agreed with the planning authorities.
2. After-use plans should provide for a range of possible activities, since land uses 20-
50 years into the future cannot be predicted.
3. Finance for land restoration should come from the mineral-working operation.
4. Worked-out and restored mineral land should pass into public ownership.
For centuries it has been known that mining produces a range of harmful side-effects - and that they
can be ameliorated. Moreover, as the miners dig almost exclusively in mountains otherwise
unproductive, and in valleys invested in gloom, they do either slight damage to the fields or none at
all. Lastly, where woods and glades are cut down, they may be sown with grain after they have been
cleared from the roots of shrubs and trees.
There are three crucial points:
1. Mineral operations cause great environmental harm.
2. When finished, mining can leave land in a pitiful condition.
3. Mining can create valuable new land characteristics.

Urban Agriculture
Community gardens fall under the umbrella of urban agriculture, defined as ―the
growing, processing, and distribution of food and other products through intensive plant
cultivation and animal husbandry in and around cities. Community gardens belong to a
system linked to the larger urban context of food production and distribution.
Community gardens join urban commercial farms, market gardens, and private gardens
in this category.

Forestry
Forestry is the science, skills and activities related to the human utilization of the big
plants called trees and the land on which they are growing.
In the context of global change and sustainable development, forest management
activities play a key role through mitigation of climate change. However, forests are also
affected by climate change and their contribution to mitigation strategies may be
influenced by stresses possibly resulting from it. Socioeconomically, global forests are
important because many citizens depend on the goods, services, and financial values
provided by forests.
Rivers and River Banks
River, anybody of fresh water flowing from an upland source to a large lake or to the sea,
fed by such sources as springs and tributary streams. The main parts of a river include a
channel, in which the water flows, and a floodplain—a flat region of a valley on either
side of the channel. Through the channel and floodplain, water and sediment—material
transported by the river, such as sand and silt—are transferred from ridges and
mountains to the sea or to a lake.
 Plan Requirements
Plan format and content
Scope
-Identification of fundamental issues, stakeholders, opportunities for participation, needs for
conflict resolution, and needs for data and analysis Draft of preliminary work plan for
process.
-Draft of preliminary design for stakeholder involvement and participation
-Define the problem
Key issues and objectives
• Confirm the planning objectives
• Identified issues, opportunities, concerns, evaluative factors, including institutional,
legal, technical criteria
• Participation tools (advisory committees, meetings, workshops, surveys) determined
by scoping
• Conflict resolution and negotiation tools (advocacy) depending on degree of
controversy
Analysis
• data gathering and analysis determined by evaluative factors
• Identified data limitations and uncertainties
• Participation tools (workshops, surveys)
• Conflict resolution and negotiation tools (advocacy) depending on degree of
controversy
Alternatives
• alternatives (Development vs. incremental) determined by I0C, planning situation,
degree of uncertainty (adaptive)
• Participation tools (workshops, workbooks, surveys)
Assessment of impacts
• Economic, environmental, and social effects
• Scope of assessment (Development vs. incremental) depends on evaluative factors,
planning situation, and alternatives
• Impact assessment tools (cost-benefit [C-B] analysis, environmental impact
assessment [EIA], social impact assessment [SIA)
• Organization and evaluation tools (matrices, indices, etc.)
• Participation tools (workshops, surveys)
Evaluation of impacts
• Organization and evaluation tools (matrices, etc.)
• Participation tools (workshops, surveys, review and comment)
• Conflict resolution and negotiation tools (advocacy) depending on degree of
controversy
Implementation, Monitoring, Evaluation, Modification
• Timing and extent of monitoring and modification (adaptive) determined by level of
uncertainty and degree of controversy
 Environmental Planning Tools-Remote Sensing and GIS in Environmental
Planning
Remote sensing is defined as the technique of obtaining information about objects through the
analysis of data collected by special instruments that are not in physical contact with the
objects of investigation.
The instruments used for this special technology are known as remote sensors and include
photographic cameras, mechanical scanners, and imaging radar systems. Regardless of
type, they are designed to both collect and record specific types of energy that impinges
upon them. Remote sensing devices can be differentiated in terms of whether they are
active or passive. Active systems, such as radar and sonar, beam artificially produced
energy to a target and record the reflected component. Passive systems, including the
photographic camera, detect only energy emanating naturally from an object, such as
reflected sunlight or thermal infrared emissions. Today, remote sensors, excluding sonar
devices, are typically carried on aircraft and earth-orbiting spacecraft, which has led to the
familiar phrase "eye in the sky." Sonar systems propagate acoustical energy through water
for the reconnaissance of subaqueous features.
A geographic information system (GIS) is a system designed to capture, store, manipulate,
analyse, manage, and present all types of geographical data. GIS is the merging of
cartography, statistical analysis, and computer science technology.
GIS and Digital Cartography – Data Capture, Conversion & Mapping Services
- Data Conversion based on assessment process
- Conversion of existing hardcopy maps to digital form
- Client data delivered in desired coordinate system, formatted to be compatible with most of
software programs
- Comprehensive GPS field mapping and facility inventory
- Geo-referencing of existing digital map data for compatibility with scanned aerial
photography - Geo-coding digital maps for address matching
- DEM data creation
GIS and Digital Cartography – Data Maintenance
- Digital maps and data, custom hardcopy maps
- Work with client to design on-going plan to keep map data and database current and up-to-
date
- Serve as client's personal mapping department, providing map and data maintenance
services
- Modify databases to meet the client's changing needs
GIS and Digital Cartography – Consulting
- Database model design and development
- Data conversion plan design
- GIS implementation plan design
- Training plan for core users
- Enterprise – wide GIS implementation plan
Environmental Modelling and Territorial Planning with GIS and Remote Sensing
- Hydrological Modelling
- Environmental Hazard Assessment
- Environmental Impact Modelling
- Environmental Monitoring
- Regional Planning
 Development and the environment (Societal and environmental conflicts -
Problems and solution)
Development is the process of changing and becoming larger, stronger, or more impressive,
successful, or advanced, or of causing change. Environmental problems do not exist as social
problems until people identify and define them as such.
Environmental change has resulted from:
1) massive population increase: both from increased consumption of earth’s resources
and our ecological footprint (straining earth’s carrying capacity)
2) rapid technological innovation: permits massive extraction and exploitation of
resources
3) an explosion in energy use: 1 & 2 facilitate energy use, complemented by elite
discourse promoting consumptive behaviour
4) economic integration: promoted through globalization (Fordism) led to mass
consumerism and the “growth imperative”
Global Environmental Concerns
– Ozone Depletion:
– Climate Change
– Desertification:
– Deforestation:
– Biodiversity Loss:
– Population Growth:
– Freshwater Sources:
– Marine Environment Degradation:
– Toxification:
– Acid Rain:
Social Sources of Environmental Problems
The social and cultural conditions that lead human beings to behave in ways that are detrimental
to the environment include,
– Population growth
– Affluence
– Technology
– Economic growth
– Cultural values
Problems related to water
– Water Supply and Pollution
– The hydrologic cycle purifies water.
– The effects of pollution on the water supply include acid rain and
eutrophication. Acid rain- Air pollutants, such as sulphur dioxide and nitrogen
oxide, mix with precipitation to pollute rain, snow, and fog that contaminate
crops, forests, lakes, and rivers. As a result of the effects of acid rain, all the fish
have died in a third of the lakes in New York’s Adirondack Mountains.
Radioactive waste
Problems related to radioactive wastes include their lifespan of thousands of years; transporting
them; and the use of temporary storage for lack of permanent storage. Nuclear wastes-
Radioactive waste from nuclear power plants and weapons production is associated with cancer
and genetic defects. Radioactive plutonium, used in nuclear power and weapons production,
has a half-life of 24,000 years. Disposal of nuclear waste is risky and costly.
 Land Degradation
Desertification and deforestation are examples of land degradation that results from human
influence on the environment.
Problems related to wastes Solid and Toxic Wastes
The average person in the U.S. throws away between four and five pounds of waste every day.
Toxic waste can be problematic to dispose.
Problems Related to Biodiversity and Air Declining Biodiversity
The decline in the number of species means that there is a loss of species that might be of use
to humans and there may be a threat to the ability of the ecosystem to support human life.
Air Pollution
Threats to air quality come from various sources.
Problems Related to Chemicals Pesticides and Other Chemicals
– The volume of synthetic organic chemicals produced has skyrocketed in the
last fifty years.
– Alternatives to pesticide use include integrated pest management
Problems Related to Energy
Energy Resources
The affluent nations in the world use an inordinate share of the world’s energy. – Most
existing forms of energy are finite.
Future Prospects
Collective action by environmental groups continues to be a significant source of pressure in
the environmental realm. New cultural values and social institutions may be needed to
emphasize living in harmony with the environment, rather than mastering it.
Efforts to alleviate environmental problems include
– moderating economic growth
– using government regulation
– using environmental partnerships
– reducing, reusing, recycling
– developing renewable energy resources
– developing international cooperation
Solutions
• Reduce global warming pollution from automobiles by 21% by 2030.
• Cut carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 950 million metric tons.
• Save 1.8 billion barrels of oil.
• Save the average consumer more than $3,000 in fuel costs.
• "This is a critical step to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and curb pollution that
threatens our health. It will deliver immediate benefits for the country as Congress
crafts comprehensive climate legislation.”
• Mitigation:
• Resource (esp energy) efficiency
• Sustainable transport
• Water efficiency measures
• Adaptation
• Avoidance of high flood-risk areas
• Flood resilient building and infrastructure
• Pollution prevention and stabilization
• Waste prevention
• Protecting habitat
 • Environmental restoration
• Less resource wastes
• Protecting natural capital
• Need to manage the environment as a scarce resource
• Recognise the environmental limits to development
• Food, water, biodiversity
• Recognise the resources that citizens consume now and for the future
• Spatial planning for the environment
Environmental Planning challenges and Prospects at local and global scale
- Awareness of the need for planning by the society
- Understanding environmental problems
- Each environmental system has a carrying capacity-a physical limit to the amount of
development, pollution, and (human, plant, or animal) population beyond which
environmental qualityis not sustainable. A challenge to planners is that carrying
capacity is often difficult to identify with scientific accuracy.
- Another challenge is putting together a Natural Resources Inventory that communities
have political boundaries that are likely to differ from geologic or ecological
boundaries.
- There are demands on the land for working farm, forestry, and mining uses, and for
residential and commercial uses. Striking a balance among the natural environment,
working landscapes, and the built environment is one of the biggest challenges that
planners face. Deciding how, when, and where these land uses should or should not
change is the primary challenge of environmental planning. As much as possible, it is
advisable to keep these three areas separate to minimize conflicts.
- Obtaining information to put a value on the services that the environment performs is
also a challenge.
- In solid waste management planning the primary challenges become how to reduce
the generation of toxic waste and how to safely dispose of it.
- personalization of private ownerships will continue to be a management challenge
with landscape-level planning
- In planning for disasters, it is difficult to predict where natural disasters will happen,
for how long, and at what intensity
- In transportation planning there is a challenge to create the conditions for viable
intermodal transportation systems and to manage the demand for different modes.
- In planning for energy, the challenge is understanding how to secure long-term energy
supplies, become more energy efficient, conserve on the use of energy, and reduce
energy-related pollution.
- The overall challenge that cities face on planning for sustainable built environment is
how to make urban commercial and residential development competitive with
developments on suburban greenfield sites.
 The Environmental Planning Process Planning Theory
• Planning is about organizing resources and making choices to achieve goals and
objectives.
• Environmental planning is deciding how to use natural resources, financial capital,
and people to achieve and maintain healthy communities and a high quality of life.
• Planning also involves avoiding problems before they happen.
The environment is made up of three main land uses:
1. Natural areas that provide environmental services, including wildlife habitats, wetlands,
water supplies, most coastal and riparian regions, national and state parks, and wilderness
areas; natural areas that also contain lands that pose environmental constraints, such as
natural hazards, including floodplains and landslide areas;
2. Working landscapes, including farms, rangelands, forests, mines, and recreation areas, that
provide jobs and contribute to the health of rural economies; and
3. Built environments of cities, suburbs, and towns that involve the design, sitting, and type of
buildings, transportation systems, sewer and water facilities, and public spaces and parklands.
• How these three land uses interact with one another affect a community's appearance,
size, functioning, and environmental quality. Deciding how, when, and where these
land uses should or should not change is the primary challenge of environmental
planning.
Planning Approaches (The Rational Planning Model, Disjointed Incrementalism, Mixed
Scanning, Ecological Planning Model)
There are some basic approaches to planning.
• The rational-Development approach is based on the scientific method and has five
basic steps of objectives, information, alternatives, impact assessment, and evaluation.
• The incremental approach, called the "science of muddling through," accepts
limitations in human knowledge and understanding, and as a result, focuses on short-
term goals and objectives and small sequential actions. Adaptive planning is a
modern-day form of incrementalism.
• The participatory approach suggests that neither rational-Development nor
incremental approaches deal explicitly with the diverse stakeholder perspectives and
conflicting values; it aims to inform and involve the public in planning and decision
making.
• The advocacy approach recognizes that interested stakeholders do not speak with one
voice but often line up in entrenched camps and fight for their special interests; this
situation often requires some advocacy of the underrepresented and mediation to
resolve differences.
• Mixed Scanning- An important, both descriptive and prescriptive, alternative to
incrementalism is the mixed scanning policy model developed by the American sociologist
Amitai Etzioni. This model is a synthesis of the synoptic or rational comprehensive model.
• Ecological Planning: includes description of landscape and natural potential, land use history,
present state of the forest, inventory of nature conservation values, ecological analyses,
conservation within the landscape and so on.
• Environmental planning generally requires a rational-Development and participatory
framework, with elements of adaptive-incremental management and advocacy
planning as appropriate.

Organizing the planning process and participation

A simple definition of planning is figuring out what needs to be done and how to do it. But it
is not quite that simple. It also needs identification of issues, opportunities, concerns,
objectives, criteria, uncertainties (IOC)
• Identify IOC (Issues, Opportunities, Concerns), evaluative factors, including
institutional, legal, technical criteria
• Participation tools (advisory committees, meetings, workshops, surveys)
determined by scoping.
• Conflict resolution and negotiation tools (advocacy) depending on degree of
controversy
Recognizing the Need for Environmental Planning and Scoping
Environmental planning can help communities avoid or minimize air and water pollution, loss of
wildlife, the conversion of farm and forestlands, and degradation of the built environment.
• Planning begins with scoping, a key first step to identify stakeholders and develop a
work-plan.
• It continues with identifying key issues and objectives, analysing the planning
situation, formulating alternatives, assessing impacts, and evaluating impacts, all of
which are elements of the rational-Development process, but with strong stakeholder
participation.
• It concludes with an adaptive element: implementation, monitoring and evaluation,
and modification.
Scoping
• Identify fundamental issues, stakeholders, opportunities for participation, needs for
conflict resolution, and needs for data and analysis
• Draft preliminary work plan for process.
• Draft preliminary design for stakeholder involvement and participation
Committing People and Money to the Environmental Planning Effort
• Elected officials either give their planning staff the task of drafting an Environmental
Action Plan or hire a professional planning consultant to do the job.
• It is recommended that the elected officials or planning commission appoint an
environmental advisory committee to help with drafting the plan and also review and
comment on the potential environmental impacts of proposed developments.
• The Environmental Action Plan should include an acknowledgment of public and
private sources of funding that paid for the plan as well as the major participants,
including the planning commission, any advisory committees and volunteers, any
consultants, and, of course, the elected officials who will be asked to adopt the plan.
Survey and analysis;
Analysis of Planning Situation
• Scope of data gathering and analysis determined by evaluative factors
• Identify data limitations and uncertainties
• Participation tools (workshops, surveys)
• Conflict resolution and negotiation tools (advocacy) depending on degree of
controversy
 The landscape surveys
Three classes of information comprise the survey:
• The landscape ecological factors
– Identification of Landscape types defined on the basis of ecology and visual
quality (eg. Mountains, valleys, plateau, etc.)
– Description of geological processes responsible for the landscape formation,
topography, elevation and slope, soil, water, vegetation, wildlife
– Relate different variables (eg. Water and vegetation)
– Computerize
• The human, socioeconomic and cultural factors
– Landmarks
– Present disposition of land and population, settlement, and industry, land
ownership, political jurisdiction, information reflecting pressure for change or
conservation, land values, etc.
• The visual appearance representing the interaction of these two
Natural Factors in EP
Natural Resources Inventory
• Natural resources include air, water, soils, geologic formations, farmlands, forests,
minerals, wetlands, and plant and animal species.
• The inventory should identify the location, quantity, and quality of these resources,
and their vulnerability to development or overuse. The inventory should also identify
natural hazards and development constraints, such as steep slopes and floodplains.
• One challenge in putting together a Natural Resources Inventory is that communities
have political boundaries that are likely to differ from geologic or ecological
boundaries. For example, the community may be part of a river basin or wildlife
migration route. A community may need to consult with neighbouring communities,
counties, and regional planning agencies to gather complete inventory data.
• Topographic maps display elevations, roads, water bodies, and settlements.
• Resource maps are very useful, and a composite map of natural resource layers,
generated by a Geographic Information System (GIS), is highly recommended. If
available, remote sensing information may be helpful, especially on a regional level.
Other maps can help to identify historic, current, and projected community land use
patterns.
• Aerial photos of the community or region can be especially helpful in showing the
pattern of development (whether sprawled or compact), the amount of built-up area
and undeveloped land, and where future development might best be accommodated.
Orthophotos are computerized aerial photographs that are scale corrected and
distortion-free.
• Digitized property tax maps showing property boundaries and land parcel patterns can
be overlaid on top of the orthophotos.
• The resulting GIS maps can then add layers from the Natural Resources Inventory
maps and built environment maps. Land parcels can be identified from local tax maps.
• Linking parcel patterns with soils, topography, and proximity to sewer, water,
and major roads provides a picture of development potential for specific sites. Also,
it is important to identify any lands owned by federal, state, or county governments
that are generally off limits to development.
Natural Environmental Features to Be Shown on the Natural Resources Inventory
Maps
 1. Land,Soils, geology, and topography
2. Watersheds, streams, water bodies, floodplains, and wetlands
3. Aquifer recharge areas and delineated wellhead areas
4. Wildlife habitats
5. Vegetation (forest cover, croplands, pastures, etc.)
6. Natural hazards Land
• The use of the land is perhaps the most significant driving force in human impact on
the natural environment.
• Land development for human settlement and resource production poses critical
impacts on the land and their habitat, but also on water, air, and materials and energy
use.
Basic Land Elements
Topography
• Topographic maps will show plains, ridges and steep slopes and reveal storm water
drainage patterns. • A study of topography will also be helpful in viewshed analysis
• Slope Analysis
• The slope map shows the relative steepness of the land. Terrain steepness or slope is
expressed most often as percent slope, degree, etc,. Soils
• Soils information should include slope, erosion potential, wetness, strength, depth
to bedrock, shrink-swell, prime agricultural soils, forest soils, and suitability for
on-site septic systems.
• Shallow depth to bedrock, poor drainage, and wet soils can hamper the construction
and stability of buildings.
• Low weight bearing soils, which might support development of single-family houses,
might not be able to support heavier commercial, industrial, or institutional buildings.
• Septic systems in porous soils run a high risk of polluting groundwater, while septic
systems in heavy clay soils may result in the back-up of effluent to the surface.
• Soil types inappropriate for buildings, agriculture, or forestry can be designated for
uses that are appropriate to the particular conditions, such as parks, wildlife habitats,
and other open space uses
Geology
• The geology of the area or region includes underlying rocks and mineral and
aggregate deposits, and the topography of the landscape.
• Geology can help to identify areas likely to have productive groundwater aquifers and
areas vulnerable to groundwater contamination.
• Geology and underground faults that could lead to subsidence, landslides, or
earthquakes should be mapped.
There may also be unique geological features such as caves, mesas, and rock outcroppings
that should be noted.
Water resources
• Important water resources include ground and surface water sources, public water
supplies, wetlands, and floodplains. Communities should obtain or draft maps on the
location and extent of water resources as well as watershed and aquifer boundaries.
• Current water system use and treatment capacity should be noted.
• Use of water for wildlife, recreational purposes, and energy use should also be
described, along with minimum stream flows to sustain these uses.
 • If there are known pollution problems that could threaten water supplies, they should
be explained and noted on a map. For instance, known hazardous waste sites and
landfills should be mapped and nearby groundwater tested.
• The quality of surface and groundwater resources should also be described.
• Water quality data can be obtained from a variety of sources, including public water
suppliers, the local municipality, and the regional environmental or water resources
agency.
• It is essential to identify and map wetlands.
• Identifying floodplains is important to avoid building in these dangerous areas.
Wildlife Habitat.
• Significant wildlife habitat, migration routes, nesting areas, and feeding spots should
be described and mapped. Wildlife habitat can be identified and habitats should be
rated for importance and vulnerability.
• Any rare and endangered plant or animal habitats should be generally identified so as
to protect species from possible poaching or habitat destruction. Vegetation.
• Lands in forest cover, farm use, or other type of vegetation should be described and
mapped. Sources of information include satellite imagery and aerial photos. This
information can be digitized into a GIS database and can be combined with the
wildlife habitat map. Air Quality and climatic elements
• An inventory of air quality should include average measurements of carbon
monoxide, particulates, nitrogen dioxide, lead, ozone, and sulphur oxides, which are
the main air pollutants
• Mention should be made of how many days each year the air quality fails to meet one
or more of the standards for the above six pollutants.
The elements of climate which are important with respect to environmental planning
include:
• Temperature (minimum, maximum and mean)
• Rainfall pattern (amount -mean seasonal and annual, intensity, reliability, etc)
• Evapotranspiration,
• Altitudinal condition;
• Humidity level;
• Sunshine hours,
• Prevailing winds (direction, speeds (velocity) and intensity/ strength);
• Agro-climatic zones classification based on altitude, temp, rainfall.
•
The Physical Environment
Built Environment Inventory
• A Built Environment Inventory can show the location, number, age, and condition of
the housing stock, commercial and industrial buildings, parks, and public buildings.
The inventory should also include the location and condition of public infrastructure,
including roads, sewer and water lines, schools, landfills, and police and fire stations.
• The built environment has important connections with the natural environment.
The amount of developed land, land with development potential, and the location
of different land uses have implications for storm water management
transportation and energy use, and air and water quality.
• The Built Environment Inventory should identify and map buildings and
neighbourhoods with historic and cultural value, public buildings and spaces,
 streetscapes, and blighted areas. These are all areas with potential for improving the
quality of life for residents in the neighbourhood.
• Public buildings and spaces draw people together and create a sense of community.
Open spaces and greenways provide parklands, wildlife habitats, filter runoff, and
buffer watercourses.
Biotic and ecological consideration
The biotic and ecological consideration includes the consideration of
• Landscape and Ecological Function and values
• Flora (Vegetation/forest resources)
• Fauna (wildlife, etc )
• Terrestrial Ecology
• Aquatic ecology
• Natural habitats
The relationship between different variables (eg. Water and vegetation)
The human, socioeconomic and cultural factors
These factors include,
• Demographic patterns and dynamics (population, fertility, mortality, migration, etc.)
• Land use and settlement
• Settlement and composition of community
• Historical and cultural heritage/ Cultural resources
• Livelihood
• Employment, income and skills
• Commercial activities
• Social infrastructures, housing, recreation, schools, hospitals, postal services, banking
services, hotels etc.
• Physical Infrastructure, transportation roads, power supply, utility systems etc.
• Public and stake holders’ participation

The visual appearance representing the interaction of all these

• Taken together, the physical, biological and socio-economic elements define the
landscape and can be conceptualized as series of themes or layers that relate and interact
over time and space. When assembled into a composite view, these layers help to define
the morphology of
the surface and describe its form and functional characteristics. Through assessment these
functional qualities become known, and supply the foundation information from which
plans are made.
Evaluation: Analysis of the Natural Resources Inventory and Built
The analysis of the Natural Resources Inventory and the Built Environment Inventory consists of
three parts:
1. a Land and Water Suitability Analysis;
2. an Environmental Quality Analysis; and
3. a Current Trends Analysis.
Land and Water Suitability Analysis
• A key product of the Natural Resources Inventory is a Land and Water Suitability
Analysis, which identifies those areas that are appropriate for development, places that
have moderate limitations for developments of various types, and areas that should be
protected in their natural state because of severe environmental constraints.
• The suitability analysis for the area can be shown on one or more GIS maps with several
layers of environmental information.
 • The analysis should also identify land with particular capabilities, such as productive farm
and forest soils as well as areas that will maintain critical natural processes such as
wetlands and aquifer recharge areas.
• Overall, the Land and Water Suitability Analysis can provide important information on
the carrying capacity of the area; that is, how many people and how much development
the area can sustainably support before serious negative impacts on the natural
environment occur.
• For this reason, the Land and Water Suitability Analysis is a primary building block of the
Development plan.
Rating Natural Resources and Development Suitability
• The Land and Water Suitability Analysis should use a method to rate or classify the
development potential of different lands.
• Development constraints and natural hazards can be identified with a colour code on GIS
maps (red for severe limitations, orange for moderate limitations, and yellow for few
limitations) or a numerical points system, with developable lands receiving higher points
than lands with development limitations.
• Natural resources worthy of preserving should be identified using a separate colour code,
such as shades of green. For instance, high-quality, actively farmed land and land
managed for timber production might be identified on the land suitability map by
different green colours.
Natural resources should be prioritized for protection according to:
1. whether the resource is renewable or irreplaceable (if irreplaceable, the resource is
more valuable); the rarity of the site (the less common, the more valuable the
resource, particularly in the case of habitats of rare and endangered plant and
wildlife species);
2. the size of the site (generally, the larger the site, the more important it is);
3. the diversity of plants, wildlife, scenic views, and other natural features (the
greater the diversity, the more important the site is); and
4. the fragility of the site, including the quality of the undisturbed site and human
threats to the site.
• The development potential classification system should be clear and understandable to
non-experts.
• The system, and especially maps, will help planners and elected officials in creating the
future land use and zoning maps as well as in the day-today development review process.
Environmental Quality Analysis.
• This analysis compares regional and federal environmental standards with actual
conditions in the community. For example, local air and water quality are measured
against air and water pollution standards.
• This analysis provides baseline information that can help a community rank its natural
resources for protection, identify environmental quality problems, evaluate alternative
solutions, and set priorities for action. The baseline information can be used to set
environmental quality targets and can be readily updated to measure progress toward
environmental quality benchmarks.
Current Trends Analysis.
• Recent trends in population growth, land area developed, land area in public parks,
vehicle miles travelled (VMT), recycling efforts, loss of endangered plant and animal
species, air and water quality, and water use give indications of the direction of
environmental quality.
• The Current Trends Analysis asks the questions:
 – Where are we going in terms of population growth, land development, and
environmental quality?
– Are these trends sustainable?
– What will be the environmental costs if these trends continue?
– What will be the economic costs?
– Will new sewer and water facilities have to be built?
• A Current Trends Analysis should project recent environmental trends to help answer
these questions.
• The Current Trends Analysis should discuss the environmental strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and threats to the community or region based on the information provided
in the Natural Resources and Built Environment Inventories together with population
projections.
• Strengths for a particular community might include a pleasant setting with scenic views,
good quality water, etc.
• Weaknesses might feature poor air quality and a lack of public transportation.
• Opportunities might include creating a greenway along a riverfront and rehabilitating
historic buildings for commercial purposes in the city centre.
• Threats might include flooding, sprawling development, and loss of open space.
• The Current Trends Analysis will be useful in drafting the environmental vision
statement for the community together with broad goals and specific objectives to achieve
that vision.
Environment Inventory
• Environmental Inventory involves information gathering on the abiotic and biotic
characteristics of the environment as well as on the people. The process begins with
assembling of base maps of appropriate scale for the study area and then the assembly
of local data relating to the environmental factors. Data are collated and recorded in
mapped format within a Geographic Information System to allow interactions to be
examined.

The Vision Statement, Broad Goals, and Specific Objectives

Vision
• The planning commission and advisory committee combine input from the public
Environmental Needs Assessment Survey and the analysis of the factual base data
into a vision statement for the community or region.
• The vision statement describes what the quality of the natural, working, and built
environments of the community or region should be in 20 years.
• The vision statement serves as an overall policy directive for the local government,
and as the foundation for a variety of environmental goals and objectives.
• The vision statement typically advocates four outcomes:
1. compliance with regional and federal environmental standards;
2. a healthy, sustainable environment;
3. a sustainable economy; and
4. a good quality of life for all citizens.
Setting Goals and Objectives
• Next, articulate environmental goals and objectives that reflect community desires
and priorities, and provide direction for elected officials on public spending, taxation,
and land use regulation. This is the first step in making the environmental vision a
reality.
 • The goals and objectives must be based on a solid technical analysis of the natural and
built environments, realistic costs, and an understanding of relevant regional and
federal environmental requirements.
• A common problem is that a goal or objective may be deemed "politically
unfeasible," even though it would significantly improve or protect environmental
quality.
• Goals and objectives should address the full range of environmental issues facing the
community or region, and should build on strengths (such as a good water supply) as
well as address weaknesses (a lack of parkland), opportunities (wildlife and
ecotourism), and threats (groundwater pollution).
• To help draft realistic goals and objectives, the advisory committee or the planning
commission should consider the environmental strengths, weaknesses, opportunities,
and threats summarized in the Current Trends Analysis.
• The general strategy is to protect one's strengths, address weaknesses, take advantage
of opportunities, and avoid or minimize threats.
• It is very important to coordinate the goals and objectives of the Environmental
Action Plan. A major problem with many traditional Development plans is that they
have several conflicting goals that create confusion and effectively cancel each other
out.
• The goals and objectives should be linked by the common theme of
sustainability.
• Some communities may find it useful to prioritize goals and objectives.
Goals
• Goals are broad statements reflecting a community's desires. Because they provide
direction to local officials in their decision making, they should be clear and decisive.
Sample environmental goals might include the following:
– to ensure compliance with regional and federal environmental standards
for air and water quality; – to increase the recycling of trash into useful
products;
– to conserve the amount of land used for development by promoting
compact, mixed-use development;
– to expand mass transit and thus reduce reliance on the automobile and air
pollution; – to increase the amount of public parkland; and – to
protect farmland from conversion to nonfarm uses.
Objectives
• Objectives spell out specific ways in which goals can be attained. More than one
objective per goal is often needed. The following sample objectives would help meet
each of the goals above, though additional objectives would also be needed:
1. Adopt a wellhead protection ordinance to limit development near public water
supplies.
2. Contract with a private recycling firm to increase the amount of trash recycled.
3. Revise the zoning ordinance to allow smaller minimum lot sizes and a mix of
commercial and residential uses.
4. Explore funding for additional buses or the construction of a commuter light-
rail system.
5. Revise the subdivision ordinance to require mandatory dedication of parkland
or fees in lieu thereof.
 6. Explore the creation of a local purchase or transfer of development rights
(TOR) program to preserve farmland.
Putting it together: Policy or design solution;
• The chief reason so many Development plans end up sitting on a shelf is because
they do not include a detailed Action Strategy as follow through to the goals and
objectives.
• An Action Strategy should articulate a set of land use controls, infrastructure
spending, tax and incentive programs, and other regulations that will put the
Environmental Action Plan into practice. These recommended actions should be the
same as or consistent with the plan's objectives.
• The Action Strategy may identify who is expected to do the work, funding
mechanisms, and timelines for completion, and should be set out in an easy-to read-
table format. Short-term, medium-range, long-run, and ongoing proposed activities
can be identified and described.
• A clearly presented Action Strategy will keep the Development plan alive in the
minds of the public and local government and help ensure its full implementation.
• Adoption of the Environmental Action Plan
• The Environmental Action Plan should be presented to the local governing body for
review at a public meeting.
The elected officials may adopt, amend and adopt, or reject the Environmental Action
Plan.
• If there has been broad participation from the public and various interest groups
in drafting the Action Plan's vision statement and goals and objectives, elected
officials will be more likely to adopt most, if not all, of the plan's recommendations
for action. Also, public support is needed to ensure that the planning commission
and elected officials have the political will to adhere to the plan and to implement
it in their day to-day decisions and longer-term policy and budgetary decisions.
The Action Strategy
• The chief reason so many Development plans end up sitting on a shelf is because they do
not include a detailed Action Strategy as follow through to the goals and objectives.
• An Action Strategy should articulate a set of land use controls, infrastructure spending,
tax and incentive programs, and other regulations that will put the Environmental Action
Plan into practice. These recommended actions should be the same as or consistent with
the plan's objectives.
• The Action Strategy may identify who is expected to do the work, funding mechanisms,
and timelines for completion, and should be set out in an easy-to read-table format. Short-
term, medium-range, long-run, and ongoing proposed activities can be identified and
described.
• A clearly presented Action Strategy will keep the Development plan alive in the minds of
the public and local government and help ensure its full implementation. Adoption of the
Environmental Action Plan
• The Environmental Action Plan should be presented to the local governing body for
review at a public meeting. The elected officials may adopt, amend and adopt, or reject
the Environmental Action Plan.
• If there has been broad participation from the public and various interest groups in
drafting the Action Plan's vision statement and goals and objectives, elected officials will
be more likely to adopt most, if not all, of the plan's recommendations for action. Also,
public support is needed to ensure that the planning commission and elected officials
 have the political will to adhere to the plan and to implement it in their day-to-day
decisions and longer-term policy and budgetary decisions.
Plan Implementation, Monitoring, Evaluation and Review
• A plan is only meaningful if it is implemented.
• The successful implementation of an Environmental Action Plan requires the use of
effective spending programs, incentives, and environmental and land use regulations.
• Above all, it requires cooperation among government, businesses, citizens' groups,
and private individuals. Monitoring of the implementation efforts not only points out
successes and shortcomings, but can be the basis for recommending changes to
existing programs as well as the use of new techniques.
Types and examples of Environmental Action Plans
• The Action Strategy should present techniques and programs for achieving the built
environment goals and objectives of the plan as well as a timetable.
• The future land use map and zoning map should identify future land uses and zone
changes based on the analysis and evaluation of future needs
• Benchmarks should be identified and progress toward those benchmarks evaluated in an
annual report on the environment. Specific recommendations might include the following:
– Explore the creation of one or more historic districts to make property owners
eligible for expanded federal tax credits for rehabilitating historic buildings.
– Appoint a design review board or architecture and historic review board, and
draft a design review ordinance.
– Create a GIS inventory of existing brownfield sites.
– Apply for federal and state funding to assess the condition of brownfield sites for
clean-up and potential redevelopment.
– Adopt mixed-use zoning to encourage projects that blend residential and
commercial uses.
– Require greenspace, tree planting, and landscaping in redevelopment projects to
provide recreation opportunities and absorb stormwater runoff.
– Promote the use of traffic-calming devices in residential neighbourhoods to
protect pedestrians and bicyclists.
Participants and Roles in Environmental Planning and Management
• Planning agencies whose staff are often unfamiliar with environmental analysis and
information and how to apply it to local development planning.
• Politicians, particularly at the local level, who are usually preoccupied with maintaining their
power and influence and take a short-term view when allocating resources.
• Sector agencies (public and parastatal) that tend to have little experience in cross-sectoral
collaboration, and give scant consideration to the interrelation- ships between projects. They
will often promote infrastructure and development projects that lack basic environmental
considerations.
• Concerned residents and community-based organizations (CBOs) whose members and
leaders are acutely aware of the impacts of environmental problems at the household and
neighbourhood level. Typically, this group has few opportunities to participate in the
preparation of urban infrastructure or industrial projects that affect them.
• Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that can be effective agents for building local
awareness, for mobilizing community action, and for voicing local concerns. Often, however,
environmental NGOs focus exclusively on green and global issues and pay insufficient
attention to brown issues. NGOs are usually interested on "mouth work" rather than on the
ground development work.
 • Private and informal sector enterprises that generally are concerned about the constraints
placed on their businesses by environmental regulations and the costs such rules incur.
• The news media who voice concern for the environment and in reporting on those affected
by environmental conditions. This role can be negative, however, if the tendency is to
sensationalize environmental topics rather than focus on real local priorities.
Environmental Management: a reflection of Social Culture, Values, and Ethic
• Ultimately, how the environment is managed is based on society's culture and values.
However, a complex society does not have just one set of values.
• Different cultures and different people within cultures have different values and ideologies
about their relationship with the natural environment.
• These are influenced by religious belief, ethical and moral persuasion, educational and
personal experience, awareness, personal security, and many other factors.
• Culture is not static and uniform but varies over time and across society. It is important to
understand culture and values for two reasons.
• First, a society's approach to managing the environment is usually a reflection of its values,
culture, and norms.
• And second, we need to understand and integrate these values in planning and decision
making to manage the environment effectively.
• Society's values are manifested in ethics, or making and defending choices based on those
values.
Environmental ethics has its roots deep in human history.
• Environmental management is a complex field.
• It is complicated by the wide range of people and institutions involved and the different
perspectives and values they hold on how to manage the environment.
• Society's perspectives on the environment ultimately determine the planning and policy
framework for management, and because these perspectives change over time, so do
approaches to environmental management.
• Some evidence indicates that more widespread environmental values and new methods of
environmental analysis and evaluation are spurring new paradigms of management.