The Environment Act has led to a series of changes to the way that we not only plan our rural areas, but associated with other forms of development there are additional requirements linked to biodiversity net gain, habitat protection and creation.
This session will discuss these new challenges and opportunities and how this impacts planning decisions and land owners. This will include a series of case studies including the introduction of new country parks and the implementation of biodiversity net gain projects within the East of England, presented by Roland Bull Head of Rural Investment at Bidwells.
We will also be discussing Rural Planning in Protected Landscapes and reviewing how well designed schemes using available tools can ensure new development sits sympathetically in the sensitive landscapes, in order to conserve and enhance the important areas such as AONB’s, led by Beverley McClean – AONB Planning Officer for the Suffolk Coast & Heaths and Dedham Vale AONBs.
Finally, there will be a presentation of the RTPI’s Rural Planning in the 2020s project by John Sturzaker from the University of Hertfordshire. This project is considering how rural planning in the UK and Ireland needs to change to deal with the challenges rural communities currently face, including climate change and flooding. We are also investigating how rural communities can meet policy and practice objectives for achieving sustainable development. The session will provide a sneak peak of the draft findings of the project, ahead of its formal launch in May 2022.
