Environmental Planning

Evolution of Planning Planning as Design ( ) Planning as regulation 1925 – Planning as Applied Science 1940 – Planning as Politics 1965 – Planning as Communication 1975 – Planning as Collaboration 1990 – Planning as Integration of Policy, Science, Collaboration, Design

Approaches to Management Reactive  Whack-a-Mole Proactive  Environment-first.  Taking measures to protect and enhance the environment Participatory  Early consideration of natural and social factors

Approaches to the Process Rational-comprehensive  Five (basic) steps of a scientific method  Objectives  Gathering Information  Specifying Alternatives  Analyzing Impacts  Evaluation

Approaches to the Process Incrementalism  Lindblom’s “Muddling Through”  Rational approach unrealistic and unworkable  Baby Steps

Approaches to the Process Participatory  Bringing stakeholders into the process Advocacy  Recognizing that some stakeholders have access to the process only in theory  Mobilization and representation needed

Interdisciplinary Considerations Engineering Economics Politics Participatory Law

Environmental Economics Cost-benefit  Equity  Risk / Uncertainty  Present Value of Money or Resources  Recognizes that the nominal value of something in the future is less than what it is today Utility  The usefulness of a thing or an activity.  Individual utility, social utility

Environmental Economics Value  Existence value  Value of resource merely because it exists among us  Bequest value  Value to future generations  Insurance value  Value to the future of unknown benefits

Environmental Law (common law) Common Law (case law and custom, not statutes)  Use of Nuisance Doctrine  Use of Public Trust Doctrine Nuisance  Non-physical trespass  Involving Negative Externalities  Private vs Public

Environmental Law (common law) Public Trust Doctrine  Ancient doctrine  Sovereign as trustee of commonly held resources  Tidelands  Navigable waterways  Air resources

Environmental Law (property law) Constitutional Law  Private property (individual rights)  Eminent Domain (public powers)  Police Powers (public control over privately held property)

Role of Planner Technician Facilitator Regulator Negotiator Political advisor Designer/Visionary Advocate

Evaluation Partial evaluation (see spreadsheet) Comprehensive evaluation  Criteria  Physical & biological feasibility  Economic efficiency  Distributional equity  Social and cultural acceptability  Administrative feasibility

Evaluation (cont) Decision rules (for comprehensive eval)  Maximize one criteria  Meet minimum levels of all criteria  Maximize one, meet minimum of all other  Rank criteria and maximize from high to low  Weight each criterion & use sum of weighted factors  Matrix approach (very subjective)