Uusimaa Regional Land Use Plan Summary

Transcription

1 Uusimaa Regional Land Use Plan Summary The regional land use plan for the Uusimaa region was approved by Uusimaa Regional Council on and confirmed by the Ministry of the Environment on Uusimaa a rapidly developing metropolitan region The region around the Baltic Sea is today one of the world s most significant growth areas, particularly since the recent eastward expansion of the European Union. The economic success of the Uusimaa region is dependent on effective regional structures carefully planned to ensure that people s everyday needs can be met, and businesses can thrive. More than 1.3 million people live in Uusimaa. This is about a quarter of Finland s total population, even though the region only covers about 2% of the country. Uusimaa s population is growing rapidly, especially in and around the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. But in other parts of the region there are still small towns, villages, and sparsely settled rural areas and islands. The Uusimaa Regional Council steers the development of the region as a whole, fulfilling a statutory role defined in Finland s Land Use and Building Act and Regional Development Act. The council includes 24 member municipalities from an area extending from Helsinki to Hanko along the south coast, and inland as far north as Hyvinkää and Mäntsälä.

2 Regional land use plans Regional land use plans are general plans defining the spatial structure and land use patterns for the whole or parts of a region for a period of years, as defined in Finland s Land Use and Building Act. They consist of maps and sets of planning controls, presented together with explanations of the grounds for the planning controls, and additional background information. Regional land use plans primarily define areas reserved for development, designated green areas, and vital infrastructures including transport routes and municipal services. They also specifically delimit and label certain areas of particular importance for various reasons, including areas within the Natura 2000 network, eskers and other areas with valuable groundwater reserves, landscape conservation areas and other important cultural landscapes. Public participation and impact assessments are important elements of the regional land use planning process. Giving everyone an opportunity to participate ensures that the opinions of the municipal authorities, author authorities, residents and other stakeholders can all be considered when plans are drawn up. Impact assessments aim to inform all stakeholders about the extent of the likely effects of the implementation of a proposed plan, and opportunities to mitigate any harmful impacts. Regional land use plans aim to create and preserve favourable living environments, while also promoting ecologically, economically, socially and culturally sustainable development. Regional land use plans also ensure that legally defined national land use objectives are duly followed at the municipal planning level, since they are referred to when municipal planners draft local master plans and local detailed plans. The land use zones and reservations defined in regional plans are fairly flexible, however. Planning reservations are more precisely defined in the more detailed plans, and they may still be subsequently altered, as long as the main objectives of the regional land use plan are not endangered.

3 Regional structure and transport networks Uusimaa s regional land use plan aims to ensure that the region s urban structures are coherent. Growth is channelled into existing built-up areas and rural centres, where developments will be planned to fill in gaps and use land more intensively. New developments will be located to benefit from existing centres, infrastructure and public transport networks, especially exploiting rail connections.

4 Transportation systems are to be developed according to the regional land use plan to reinforce Uusimaa s status as a national core region, as well as the international competitiveness of the Uusimaa region and Finland as a whole. Improvements in transport networks also make urban areas more functional, more pleasant, safer, and more environmentally sustainable.

5 Homes and workplaces The population of Uusimaa is expected to increase by about 300,000 over the period , and the number of workplaces will rise by almost 170,000. Growth rates will be fastest in and around the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, where the demand for new homes will also be highest. The construction of new housing is also driven by people s desire to have more living space. More than 11,000 new homes are completed in Uusimaa annually. Since the regional land use plan is fairly general, municipal planning also plays an important role in shaping living environments. Municipal planning authorities must ensure that community structures remain coherent, by carefully scheduling and scaling all new developments. Uusimaa has more workplaces than working residents overall. But there are considerable differences between municipalities in the degree of self-sufficiency in employment. The population as a whole is ageing in Uusimaa, as it is throughout Finland. This has serious implications for future demographic and employment trends, especially concerning the availability of labour force, the levels of supply and demand for various services, and municipal finances.

6 Energy, water and waste management Uusimaa s regional land use plan includes reservations for infrastructure routes needed to guarantee the future supply of electricity and heat for communities and industry, including the routes of major power gridlines and gas pipelines. The land use patterns defined in regional land use plans should be planned so as to promote energy-efficiency, the use of renewable energy sources, and reductions in harmful energy-related emissions. The regional land use plan also includes regionally significant water supply schemes designed to guarantee the availability of clean water for homes and businesses. It is particularly important to ensure that water will continue to be available during any possible emergencies. Sewerage and wastewater treatment systems are designed to reduce the pollution loads entering watercourses and ultimately the Baltic Sea. Coherently planned and intensive community structures can make effective use of the existing municipal infrastructure. Key national objectives in relation to waste management include reductions in the amounts of waste, increased recycling and recovery of wastes, and technical improvements in waste treatment. The regional land use plan s provisions for waste management aim to support improvements at existing waste management facilities in the near future. The number, extent and types of waste management facilities needed in Uusimaa in the longer term will be determined on the basis of trends in the rapidly evolving field of waste management.

7 Nature, recreation and cultural landscapes Uusimaa s natural scenery is highly varied. The region s long coastlines feature hundreds of islands, and the forests are dotted with lakes, rivers, bogs, eskers and rocky hills. The natural scene is also enriched by cultural landscapes shaped by man, including farmlands, heritage landscapes, townscapes and parks. The recreational areas, green corridors and hiking routes designated in the regional land use plan together form an extensive network of green spaces across the region. This network is complemented by local recreational areas and parks designated in municipal plans. Uusimaa s national parks and many other protected areas help to preserve the region s rich biodiversity.

8 The Uusimaa region includes a wealth of Finnish cultural heritage, including eight nationally valuable landscape conservation areas. The fortified islands of Suomenlinna, in Helsinki, have been designated as a World Heritage Site. Uusimaa s national heritage landscapes also include maritime Helsinki, Tapiola, Snappertuna Fagervik, and the old ironworks of Pohja. These areas also strongly symbolise the local history of the Uusimaa region.