Towards a more balanced and sustainable development

The European Council of Town Planners recently organised a one-day seminar in London on What does Europe want from the next ESDP? Taking part were a number of prominent planners, including Peter Hall and Andreas Faludi, both of whom have been recent visitors to Malta.

The European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) was adopted by the ministers responsible for spatial planning in the member states of the European Union in Potsdam in 1999.

The aim is to work towards a balanced and sustainable development through the tools and mechanisms of spatial planning. This would be achieved through economic and social cohesion, conservation and competent management of natural resources and cultural heritage, and a more balanced competitiveness of regions within the European territory.

Another central element of the ESDP is polycentric development. This means connecting a number of critical places so that they form a network, thus achieving a new critical mass that can sustain and grow businesses, services and facilities without having one city or region which dominates the others.

This is very important to Malta in view of the forthcoming enlargement, particularly since we are on the periphery of the EU's boundary. Polycentricity will forge new connections and networks. The UK Office of the deputy prime minister has prepared a very useful document in this regard entitled Polycentricity scoping study.

The ESDP provides member states with a framework for the integration of sectoral policies that have a spatial dimension. It is not a binding document but aims to reinforce synergies and cross-border and transnational cooperation in spatial planning.

The ESDP framework would be taken into consideration in the formulation of sectoral policy and, particularly, in directing the distribution of structural funds.

An important stage in the implementation of the ESDP was the setting up of the European Spatial Planning Observatory Network (Espon). Other important programmes which are closely connected with the ESDP are the Interreg III transnational programmes of which Malta is a participant. The Interreg III Community Initiative is a funding programme to both cross-border and transnational initiatives.

A number of key papers were presented at the seminar. Jan Vogelij, the ECTP president elect, spoke about the awareness on the ESDP among the ECTP member associations.

This paper concluded that very few member associations indicated that their members were adequately aware of the ESDP. In Denmark, the ESDP concept was firmly implemented in the 1997 national planning report - Denmark and European Planning Policy.

Other countries that have implemented the concept in their national planning legislation include Ireland and Slovenia. Slovenia is at the forefront in this process and has published its Sustainable Development in Slovenia to meet the goals of sustainable spatial development. In Malta, and other countries like the UK, the awareness of the concept is limited.

The seminar included a series of workshops, among which one discussed the implications of ESDP on the next enlargement. Sir Peter Hall took part in the workshop. One main point that emerged from this workshop related to the important roles that planners in new member states will have in the implementation of the ESDP and through their participation in its various programmes particularly Interreg III and Espon.

It is becoming increasingly clear within the EU that by virtue of their interdisciplinary training and practice, the planning profession is very well placed to contribute effectively towards the attainment of the objectives pertaining to policy fields such as economic and social cohesion, balanced regional development, transport, environment and resource conservation, competition and structural funds.

The workshop on balancing local and strategic policy focused on bridging the gap between local planning requirements and strategic guidance. Participating in this workshop was Cliff Hague, president of the Commonwealth Association of Planners, of which the Malta Chamber of Planners is also a member.

The conclusions of the seminar will provide an important input in the drafting of the ESDP 2, which will see the participation of the new member states. This will make the task more complex since it will involve 25 countries each with their specific characteristics, contexts and problems.

The planning profession will have to become more involved in seeking to reconcile these differences, particularly in terms of balanced and sustainable territorial development and cross-boundary and transnational spatial planning.

In view of these developments, the Malta Chamber of Planners once again reiterates the position it has been taking for the past years, that the government should formally recognise this new profession through an Act which regulates its activities.

It is most unfortunate that various persons are calling themselves planners and are being allowed to practise as planners even though they are not adequately trained. This can only harm the national interest and it is imperative that the government takes action over this.

Mr Ellul and Mr Attard Portughes are members of the Malta Chamber of Planners' executive council

aellul@keyworld.net