Regional planning and the environment. The municipal contribution in Alberta: A planning failure.

摘要

Regional planning is necessary to address the environmental consequences of land use. Regional planning is defined in this project as integrated, hierarchical, and inclusive planning and action in areas of substantial but varying size for the purpose of protecting ecological integrity. The attributes of successful regional planning were developed and then used to assess its extant in Alberta as it relates to the municipal sector. Analysis found a lack of institutional support for systematic, multi-sectoral regional planning; as a consequence, occurrences are adhoc and fortuitous. Furthermore, the requirements for inter and intra municipal integration are inadequate or ignored. Finally, municipal contributions to environmental protection are compromised by vague provincial direction and competing demands. It was concluded that regional planning requires: (i) increased support by the provincial government through legislation, policy, and the provision of sufficient technical and financial resources; (ii) acceptance that a basic design principle is the primary reliance on groups living within the region for plan development and execution subject to larger societal norms; (iii) flexibility in organizational form that allows for both collaborative, impermanent cross sectoral organizations that address strategic issues of importance; and permanent regional organizations that encourage cross sectoral planning; and (iv) an expectation of, and support for, municipal participation in regional planning and environmental protection in the settled areas of Alberta.;Key words: Regional planning; Alberta; environment; cumulative effects; ecosystem management; integrated resource management; subdivision; municipal government.;The need for regional planning and the criteria used to critique it were developed from the literature on Ecosystem Based Management, Integrated Resource Management, and Planning. The analysis is illustrated by three examples of municipal response to the pressures of subdivision development. In terms of the environment, subdivision development is a "cumulative effects" problem. These problems are typified by independent sectoral decision making with minimal regard for the consequences to others; and incremental growth that is inconsequential in size but when compounded over time and space fundamentally alters a landscape.