Performance of local level planning policies for reducing greenhouse gases: insight from new buildings in Scotland

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the study is to assess performance of local level planning policies that required new buildings to avoid a specified and rising proportion of projected greenhouse gases (GHGs) from their use; it is calculated based on the approved design and plans for the specific development and through the installation and operation of low and zero-carbon generating technologies (LZCGTs).

Design/methodology/approach

Data were extracted from a random sample of 911 new builds from 403 planning applications and related documents, across five Scottish local planning authorities (LPAs) who adopted GHG reduction policies. The data included GHG reduction, LZCGT installation and performance, use of plan designs to meet GHG reductions and exemptions from the GHG policies. Descriptive statistics using SPSS software, complimented by qualitative responses from questionnaires, helped to explain observed performance.

Findings

The policies performed poorly, at the level of delivering low-hanging fruits, with significant room for improvement. Design-led opportunities in the GHG policies were not actively pursued; most LZCGT installation was exempted from GHG policies and the policies were poor in targeting the relationship between building unit size, GHG emission and reductions.

Research limitations/implications

The source documents, where the data came from, had varying quality and completeness and some LPAs are over-represented in the data. The study applied limited criteria to evaluate policy performance.

Practical implications

Areas for policymakers to further focus on when exploring how to enhance role and performance of LZCGT are highlighted, including practical suggestions.

Originality/value

One of the few studies assessing policy performance and distilling lessons, from early adopters of GHG policies at local level planning, offer performance benchmarks and raise points of concern for policymakers.

Citation

Onyango, V. and Burford, N. (2020), "Performance of local level planning policies for reducing greenhouse gases: insight from new buildings in Scotland", Management of Environmental Quality, Vol. 31 No. 4, pp. 985-1002. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEQ-10-2019-0215