Planners are failing systematically in their duty to ensure balanced regional development. Too high a proportion of development will take place in the Greater Dublin Area (Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare and Meath). This is bad for Dublin because its infrastructure cannot cope. It is bad for the rest of the country, which remains underdeveloped even though the Republic is experiencing tremendous growth. The key to balanced regional development is high-quality growth of appropriate cities, towns and villages outside Leinster. One of the least sustainable forms of development is unplanned sprawl across counties Wicklow, Kildare and Meath. This is car-dependent growth. A long-distance commuter belt for Dublin represents growth that no one inside or outside the Greater Dublin Area should want. It is against the public interest. The Strategic Planning Guidelines (SPGs) set a target of 1.76 million people for the Greater Dublin Area by 2011. This is far too high. But local authorities in Kildare, Wicklow and Meath seem determined to exceed even this inflated target in the narrow and short-term interests of their rates base and for parochial, vested reasons. Mostly, they are doing this by providing for growth in villages that are not designated development centres. The SPGs say that development in these villages should be strictly limited to local need. Fortunately there is a mechanism to stop the rot. That mechanism is the Strategic Planning Guidelines for the Greater Dublin Area. The good news is that these have had the force of law since January 1st.
The bad news is that no one seems to have noticed or cared. Further good news is that An Taisce has senior counsel's advice that individuals or civic groups can sue to have the SPGs implemented.
The SPGs make sense. They provide for separate strategies for the metropolitan area (which extends from Dublin city centre to Kilcock, Greystones and nearly as far as Rush) and the hinterland area (which extends from the metropolitan area to the farther boundaries of Kildare, Wicklow and Meath). The thrust of the strategy is to consolidate growth inside the metropolitan area, thus combating the undesirable effects of urban sprawl, while encouraging the growth of selected areas in the hinterland. This will assist the development of an efficient public transport system.
In the hinterland area, which includes all of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow, "development centres" will be located on existing or planned transport corridors - at Drogheda, Naas-Newbridge-Kilcullen, Navan, Balbriggan and Wicklow with additional secondary centres at Arklow, Athy and Kildare-Monasterevin. The development centres will be separated from each other and from the metropolitan area by strategic green belts.
Ultimately the development centres will develop as self-sufficient (not dormitory) towns. Outside the metropolitan area and the development centres, development should be strictly limited to local need only.
A recent update of the SPGs accepts that there is "broadly" enough zoned land to facilitate progress towards projected population targets up to 2006, which is the date at which the development plans for Meath, Kildare and Wicklow will be reviewed. In other words there is no reason for these counties to rezone land until 2006.
The Wicklow and Kildare development plans were finalised recently but before January 1st, 2001. The Meath plan was finalised in the past week. It alone post-dated January 1st.
The Planning and Development Act, which came into effect on January 1st, provides that "planning authorities shall review the existing development plan and consider whether any variation of the development plan is necessary in order to achieve the objectives of the regional planning guidelines". As of January 1st, in order to comply with the law, Kildare and Wicklow should be "varying" their plans. An Taisce has senior counsel's opinion that if they do not so vary their plans, legal action lies against them.
Furthermore, the Act states that "a planning authority shall have regard to any regional planning guidelines in force for its area when making and adopting a development plan". Meath adopted its development plan in the past week. The SPGs had the force of law when Meath's plan was adopted, so Meath councillors should have had regard to the SPGs in finalising their development plan. The position expressed in their development plan adopted this week in the case of many rezonings was to have no regard to the SPGs.
An Taisce has senior counsel's advice that these rezonings are also actionable.
Development plan policies that provide for more than local needs - for residential, retail or commercial development - in hinterland areas outside the designated growth centres listed above, are actionable. These policies register as either (re)zonings, population targets or action plans. The populations these policies allow for must be measured against demographic predictions for local needs. If there is a significant discrepancy, redress can be sought in the courts.
If current draft action plans are adopted for Wicklow, they will be in breach. Kildare's plan breaches the SPGs. Meath's now does so also. In practice, local authorities are flouting the SPGs.
THE Department of the Environment has written to all the relevant city and county managers asking them to ensure that their development plans comply with the guidelines. However, It is important to note that the illegalities do not strictly depend on any declaration from the Minister to that effect.
It is to be hoped the newly-formed Kildare-Meath-Wicklow planning alliance acts on legal advice to concentrate the minds of local authorities whose interests rarely seem to extend to the national.
Meanwhile, An Taisce is forwarding its counsel's opinion to the local authorities on behalf of itself and members of the alliance and demanding compliance with the SPGs. It remains to be seen whether local authorities will put their ratepayers to the expense of defending legal actions against the public interest. We had better get it right. With 50,000 houses to be built for each of the next 10 years, and £21 billion to be spent on infrastructure in the next five years under the National Development Plan alone, we are building a legacy for the next 100 years. There is an opportunity now to assert a vision of sustainability for the Greater Dublin Area in the courts.
Michael Smith is chairman of An Taisce