Courtney Peyton: Planning policy is key to shaping our future

Published on Wednesday 15 July 2009 21:05

IN THE excitement of the unanimous passage of last month's Climate Change (Scotland) Bill, it was easy to overlook the government's consultation on the revised Scottish Planning Policy (SPP), which closed on the same day.

The Scottish Government is attempting to consolidate and streamline the various official planning guidelines compiled over the years.

The proposed planning framework is about much more than what you can build, and where. Planning policy – if correct – is one of the strongest tools the Scottish Government has to deliver on its ambitious climate change target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 42 per cent by 2020, and 80 per cent by 2050. In terms of reducing , the UN's International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is clear that buildings, land use and domestic transport are where the very big improvements can come today. These are where Scotland can hit a high percentage of its numbers.

That doesn't mean we can afford to ignore long-term holy grails, such as curing the problems of coal-fired power stations through carbon capture and storage. But it means we don't need to wait for them either.

Designing out the need for energy and increasing energy efficiency in buildings is crucial. But planning rules can also address how communities make effective use of decentralised energy and heat generation, through appropriately-scaled renewables and combined heat-and-power boilers. These can marry communities with the resources they use, reduce grid pressure and lower emissions. Planning can encourage co-location of industrial processes to let waste from one process become feedstock for another, so reducing landfill, road miles and consumption.

Alongside mitigation, we need to adapt to climate change. We will need to protect our existing and evolving infrastructure and buildings by designing for heightened weather impacts. We can anticipate potential flooding and landslides. Storms and gale-force winds, downpour and drought, wetting and drying cycles are less predictable.

All this has implications for land-use policy – siting renewables, food or fuel production, habitat, settlements, recreation and transport. Or, put another way, pretty much everything we do. Which means that development and spatial planning must be informed by climate change policy. But how does this fit with the government's prioritisation of restoring and expanding Scotland's economic prosperity?

According to finance and sustainable growth secretary John Swinney (who is in charge of the planning reform), like a glove. He says: "There is often much debate over what is meant by 'sustainable economic growth'. I see it simply as being about building a dynamic and growing economy that will provide prosperity and opportunities for all, while respecting the limits of our environment, natural resources and biodiversity – both locally and globally."

Climate change is a symptom, albeit a severe one, of our unsustainable development to date. It is, thus, essential that John Swinney's overarching policy approach (as well as the detail of the Climate Change Bill) informs the new SPP, embodying the government's oft-expressed commitment to "joined-up" action.

This should be made easier by the fact that the ministers responsible for climate change and the economy, Stewart Stevenson and Jim Mather, both report to Swinney. It was Stewart Stevenson, the minister for transport, infrastructure and climate change, who tirelessly shepherded and championed the Climate Change Bill through parliament.

But government alone won't bring about the necessary changes required to how planning is delivered. Fortunately, the Scottish Government remains open to engaging the expertise of a wide range of outside stakeholders into shaping the new SPP – environmental non-governmental organisations, housebuilders, developers and energy utilities. The aim is to build an ongoing partnership, not hold a one-off "consultation" and then have the SPP set in stone by St Andrew's House.

Is this pie in the sky? The Scottish Government permanent secretary Sir John Elvidge is adamant about strengthening this collaborative process. In an interview earlier this month in Public Servant Scotland, a publication targeted at the civil service, he argued: "My preference is for the (Scottish Government] to think about engagement rather than put all of the weight on consultation … I would say we were clearly moving in the direction of trying to make sure that consultation works for stakeholders by making it less of a compressed opportunity … not enough stakeholders feel that they are engaged early enough in the process, that's one of the things we need to work on."

The new SPP comes at this historic crossroads. Planning policy is ultimately about how we, as a nation, shape the economy, our physical communities and the natural environment. Planning policy can benefit or burden society; create level playing fields or allow disparity. Properly used, it is at the core of achieving truly sustainable growth.

For these reasons, we must ensure the new SPP is neither a bureaucratic tool nor a sketchy outline but something that embodies the aspirations (and the detail) of the Climate Change Bill and the sustainability objectives already endorsed by the Scottish Government.

&#149 Courtney Peyton is managing director of Thirdwave, a sustainability consultancy.