Planning authorities get advice on green effects

Planning authorities across Scotland have been issued with advice on assessing the environmental effects of their plans in preparation for new legislation.

Deputy minister for communities Mary Mulligan has published advice on how planners can assess the likely environmental effects of their structure and local plans.

The advice, a consultants' report commissioned by the Executive, arose from a requirement to implement the EU Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive by July 2004.

Publishing the report, Mulligan said: "This guidance will help ensure all planning authorities are fully aware of, and are working towards, the implementation of the new requirements.

"Strategic environmental assessment of plans is a way of understanding and mitigating possible negative effects on the environment.

"Few planning authorities have experience of environmental assessment as it is a relatively new field. We want to help them assess their plans in a consistent way and sustain our commitment to modernising and updating the planning system for the 21st century."

Environmental assessment is a process for identifying and assessing the likely environmental effects of a structure or local plan so that they can be taken into account during the preparation of the plan.