Regional planning and sustainability: Towards integration in the Uk and EU

Abstract

A key premise of the paper is that the regional level of planning is a particularly appropriate level for the integration of biophysical and socio-economic development issues. The UK, and the European Union (EU) more generally, have witnessed some important developments in regional planning practice over the last decade which have sought to encourage such integration. The paper reviews examples of innovative applications of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Sustainability Appraisal (SA), in relation to EU Structural Funds, the new generation of UK Regional Plans, and UK Multi-Model Transport Corridor studies. It concludes with an appraisal of progress to date towards the goal of a more integrated approach.