Sustainability and SWRDA
What is the sustainability challenge for the South West?
The South West’s ‘eco-footprint’ shows that if the region’s consumption patterns were the
worldwide norm we’d need two extra planets to sustain us!
Our sustainability challenge is to reduce inequalities (in education, health, income and
access) and manage our growing and ageing population and economy in ways that use
natural resources efficiently, minimise the emissions that are increasing climate change and
protect the diversity of our unique environment.
What role does the RES have in achieving sustainable development?
Government guidance states that:
‘The RES is a primary mechanism for the delivery of sustainable economic development.
Sustainable development should underpin the actions and decisions taken in pursuance of its
objectives. RDAs should work towards the objectives in the UK sustainable development
strategy in terms that reflect regional distinctiveness or specific regional issues’.
_______________________________
OK, this is from the SWRDA website, these are the boys somehow getting tied up in the maze about holding back £1.25 million or not, over the visitor centre...while they're in that one, they should read the above...and while they do deals over the visitor centre, the question is: Does the Liatris plan overall get anywhere near the target of sustainable development, 386 houses (for kick off) plus 2 retail sheds trucking stuff in, limited affordable housing and no real community facilities...all built on a floodplain so we have to have infill trucked in all over our unique environment on the jurassic coast?
So the second question is for SWRDA...come on here and explicitly state whether you think the Liatris plan meets the paragraph above or not and how? We don't have James Naughtie so a straightforward answer will suffice.
posted by archmaster @ 9:11 pm
4 Comments:
Like you I am baffled by SWRDA's silence on the Seaton Regeneration Scheme. Does this imply that they are for it? If so, can they give us some REALLY GOOD reasons why it is good for Seaton (and let's not allow "because it regenerates the town" without EVIDENCE, bearing in mind the cost - financially (churning up our roads with lorries for 4-5 years), environmentally (destroying an inherent part of the World Heritage Coast), physically (building on a flood plain), socially (no social or other infrastructure for either current citizens of Seaton or future ones) and economically (it is NOT 300 new jobs for more than 1,000 people - half of those are displacement jobs for the holiday village staff and the rest are mostly low pay part time jobs).
Come on SWRDA - justify!
NB: I have sent our objection to all members of the SWRDA Executive Board.
Sorry who are SWRDA and RES?
Apologies, SWRDA is the South West Regional Development Agency
The RES stands for Regional Economic Strategy, which is a SWRDA doc highlighting how they will promote the South West from and economic angle.
Hope this helps, a tour of their web may also be useful to you click on the bit in this comment.
The thing is, they've been reported as though they believe that th eLiatris plan is the only way forward, yet it doesn't square with their stated aims.
My heart goes out to you folks in Seaton. We're having similar problems with the SWRDA in St Austell. They're imposing a huge 'clone' in our town centre - open to the wind and rain made of 'Cornish' concrete (joy! - local materials!)- pure 'shed' architecture. The 'consultation' process was a farce demonstrated by 5500 people who have signed up recently wanting a beautiful, covered, distinctive centre that also provides a civic building. We don't even have a town hall! (see our website: www.abetterstaustell.org) People of the south west we must unite against this unelected quango dictating how are communities should be. Wendy Earl
Post a Comment
<< Home