Capturing the Benefits of Healthy Wetlands: A

Planner’s Perspective Alister Scott MRTPI

Wetland Futures Conference 1/2 October 2013

1. Re-discovering planning 2. Negotiating the built versus natural

environment divide 3. Identifying planning ‘hooks’ for wetland

management 4. Championing existing good planning

practice 5. Cautioning future planning practice 6. ‘Whatevering’

Outline

FROM….

Rediscovering planning

Rediscovering planning

deliver homes, business & industrial units, infrastructure & thriving local places that the country needs, while protecting & enhancing the natural and historic environment

NPPF 2012 p1

TO………

Navigating the planning vs environment divide

Natural Environment INCENTIVE Defra NEWP Landscape Scale Ecosystem Services Local Nature Partnerships

Built Environment CONTROL DCLG NPPF Local/Neighbourhood Scale Economic, Social &

Environmental costs/benefits

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Managing Environmental Change

Planning ‘Hooks’

Paragraph 109

Source: Jim Davies Env Agency

Exmoor: South West Water

Exmoor

R Barle

R Exe

Wimbleball Resr & R Haddeo

ExebridgePumping Station

Replenishment PumpingApprox 5 miles, lifting water from 120 to 240 m AOD

CO 2

Source: Charles Cowap

Uses an Ecosystem Services Framework for development of plan

Ecosystem Services mapping exercises for evidence base and masterplan

Landscape- scale approach supported by Biosphere Reserve and NIA

Bridgend : SCANN CCW 2012

Hampton

Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent

WHO Local Nature

Partnership Local Enterprise

Partnership Health Boards

WHAT Mainstream

environment into decision making

Ecosystem assessment

Value environmental assets

£110 million annually. DECISION MAKERS

………

Cautionary practice 1

Community Infrastructure Levy Levy based on development

to benefit community Development monies used

to re-invest in enhancement of environmental infrastructure?

Currently Wetlands not really being considered

WHY?

Cautionary practice 2

Biodiversity Offsetting (Habitat Banking)

Extends scope of Section 106 planning agreements

Offsets as first or last resorts? Based on substitutability but

could be used for wetland improvement.

Pilots Explicit linkages of planning with biodiversity applicable to many developments

Hooks vital to progress discussion and partnerships

Planners not well embedded in natural environment (wetland) lexicon and vice versa

Importance of having sound evidence base for use in planning tools to identify trade-offs

Shared language of multiple benefits unites. Valuation of nature (wetlands) has costs and

benefits!

Whatevering

Completing the Jigsaw

Strategic Environm

ental Assessme

nt

Learning by doing

Monitoring and

indicatorsValuation

Embedding programme

Evidence

Tools to enable

local delivery

GuidancePublic

Participation

Plan Development