WATERWAYS & DEVELOPMENT PLANS Foreword Our inland waterways are a unique asset. They form part of our environmental and cultural inheritance and contribute to the local distinctiveness of the areas through which they pass. They act as a catalyst for urban and rural regeneration, stimulate leisure, recreation and tourism, and can contribute to an integrated transport system. In “Waterways for Tomorrow” the Government said that it would support the development of waterways through the planning system. IWAAC’s “Planning a Future for the Inland Waterways: A Good Practice Guide” (2001), offers much useful advice but also a process for integrating inland waterways into the development plan system. By establishing a clear vision for waterways, adopting a corridor wide approach to their planning and development and fully integrating them with other policy objectives, real benefits can be achieved for the local communities who live nearby. This new British Waterways publication, “Waterways & Development Plans”, explores the planning policy issues generated by the multifunctional nature, use and management of waterways. We expect it to influence the emerging new Local Development Documents (LDDs) encouraging local authorities to take a holistic and sustainable approach to the protection of waterways from inappropriate development, as well as unlocking the economic, environmental and social benefits offered by waterways. Waterways are for people, especially the communities that live nearby them. This publication shows how Local Authorities can maximise the benefits of waterways through their planning systems both now and in the future. Robin Evans Chief Executive British Waterways February 2003 CONTENTS 1INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 British Waterways’ Involvement with the Planning System 2 1.2 Purpose of Document 3 1.3 The Structure of the Policy Document 3 2 VALUE AND IMPORTANCE OF WATERWAYS 4 2.1 Value and Nature of Inland Waterways 4 2.2 New Approach to Waterside Planning and Design 6 3 POLICY FRAMEWORK AND CONTEXT 11 3.1 New Policy Context 11 3.2 Existing National Planning Policy Framework from a Waterway Perspective 11 4 AREA BASED POLICIES 19 4.1 Designation of Special Policy Areas 19 4.2 Designation of Action Areas for Area Based Waterway Regeneration 21 4.3 Typical Examples of Development Plan Policies 22 5 DESIGN POLICIES 25 5.1 Area Specific Design Policy 25 5.2 Site-Specific Design Policies 25 5.3 Typical Examples of Development Plan Policies 27 6TOPIC BASED POLICIES 29 6.1 Rural Diversification, Regeneration and Development 29 6.2 Urban Regeneration, Renaissance and Development 34 6.3 Housing and Waterways 36 6.4 The Provision of Moorings, Mooring Basins and Marina Development 38 6.5 Tourism 44 6.6 Sport and Recreation 47 6.7 Waterborne Transport and Sustainable Distribution 50 6.8 Safeguarding Boat Yards, Slipways and Wharves 53 6.9 Use and Improvement of Towing Paths 55 6.10 Built Conservation 58 6.11 Landscape Character, Nature Conservation and Biodiversity 61 6.12 Waterway Restoration and Construction of New Links 66 6.13 New Bridge Crossings 68 6.14 Telecommunications 69 6.15 Hydro-Electric Power – Renewable Energy Schemes 70 6.16 Water Quality, Water Resources and Flood Flows 70 6.17 Waterways and Waste 74 6.18 Minerals and Aggregates 75 7 TYPES OF SUPPLEMENTARY PLANNING GUIDANCE 76 7.1 Area Specific Supplementary Planning Guidance 76 7.2 Production of Design Guides/ Development and Design Guidelines 77 7.3 Site Specific Supplementary Planning Guidance 77 7.4 Development Plans and Local Transport Plans 81 7.5 Waterways and Community Plans/Strategies 82 7.6 Development Plans and Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 83 7.7 Pre-Application Discussions and Application Design Statements 83 7.8 Use of Planning Conditions, Obligations and Agreements 83 BIBLIOGRAPHY 87 Figures Figure 1: British Waterways’ Owned or Managed Waterways and Local Planning Authority Administrative Areas 8 Figure 2: British Waterways’ Owned or Managed Waterways and Local Authority Classification 9 Figure 3 : British Waterways’ Owned or Managed Waterways and Landscape Character Areas 10 Figure 4: Proposed Special Policy Area for River Tees Navigation 24 Figure 5 : Market Towns on the Waterway Network 30 Figure 6 : Examples of Corridor Studies and Strategies 79 Figure 7 : Examples of Waterspace Strategies 80 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1 Schedule of Inland Waterways and Waterbodies Owned and Managed by British Waterways A1 APPENDIX 2 A Description of British Waterways’ Statutory Duties, Responsibilities and Organisational Structure A2 APPENDIX 3 The Role of Waterways in Delivering Sustainable Development and Social Inclusion A5 APPENDIX 4 Schedule of Explicit Reference to Waterways in PPGs, Planning Guidance Wales, TANs, NPPGs and PANs A7 APPENDIX 5 Policy Documents Relevant to Development Plan Policy Formulation A35 APPENDIX 6 British Waterways’ Contacts A37 PART A: WATERWAYS AND THE PLANNING SYSTEM Chapter 1: Introduction 1 Introduction British Waterways has produced this document to The Government wishes3 to increase the economic, encourage the integration of the inland waterways of environmental and social benefits offered by the England and Wales1 into the development plan waterways by: system. It replaces British Waterways’ document S encouraging their improvement, development and “The Waterway Environment and Development restoration, wherever possible in partnership Plans” published in 1992. between the public, private and voluntary sectors; The document has two main aims; S promoting the waterways as a catalyst for urban S to encourage local planning authorities to adopt a and rural regeneration; holistic and comprehensive approach to S encouraging the use of the waterways for tourism, protecting and promoting the multi functional leisure, recreation and sporting activities; nature of the inland waterways, and S supporting the protection, conservation and S to advise local planning authorities on the key enhancement of the waterways’ heritage and their planning policy issues relating to the waterways. built and natural environment, and the use of the A further aim of the document is to ensure that Local waterways as a water and educational resource; Development Documents (LDDs) which will replace S supporting the provision of passenger boat structure plans, unitary development plans and local services on the inland waterways, wherever plans, not only protect waterways and related practicable and economic; waterspaces from inappropriate development, but also encouraging their use and unlock their potential. S encouraging the transfer of freight from roads to It encourages local planning authorities to identify waterborne transport where practical, economic waterways and their associated corridors, and major and environmentally desirable; waterside sites, as priorities or the focus for future S supporting the development of the inland detailed action plans and topic plans. waterways through the planning system. The inland waterways of England and Wales2 are There is a growing need for the planning system to national, regional and local cultural and natural acknowledge the multifunctional nature of the assets, linking historic buildings and structures with waterways as well as their integrative characteristics the wider landscape and forming key strategic wildlife with their associated corridors/visual envelopes. corridors. The waterways help to stimulate regional Moreover, there is a need to promote greater and and local economies by acting as a catalyst for urban more creative integration between waterways and the and rural regeneration and inward investment. They planning system in order to deliver their social, are playing an increasingly important role in the environmental and economic benefits, by identifying: tourism industry and there is a growing national awareness of the added value and commercial S ways in which better use of planning can assist betterment deriving from the presence of waterways in waterways; developments. S how the waterways contribute to planning agendas of the metropolitan and urban areas, market towns, coalfield areas, accessible and more remote rural areas, district and region wide; and S how the effective use of policy mechanisms can facilitate change. 1 Many of the issues contained in this document are applicable to Policy formulation, use of designations, and Scottish waterways and relevant planning policy guidance in implementation of policy accompanied by more Scotland has been included for comparative purposes detailed guidance is essential to unlock the potential 2 “Inland waterways” include canals, navigable rivers and other inland waters used for navigation. For the purposes of this of the waterways. document the term also includes related bodies of water such as docks, inland marinas, mooring basins and reservoirs. However it excludes unnavigable rivers and lakes. 3 DETR (June 2000) “Waterways for Tomorrow” WATERWAYS & DEVELOPMENT PLANS 1 PART A WATERWAYS AND THE PLANNING SYSTEM 1.1 British Waterways’ S advising local planning authorities on the preparation of development plans on matters Involvement with the Planning affecting waterways and waterside land. System In 1999/2000, British Waterways conducted a postal British Waterways is a public corporation, sponsored survey of all local authorities in England and Wales by DEFRA which is responsible for managing with British Waterways’ owned or managed canals or approximately 3,200 km (2,000 miles) of navigable river navigations within their areas. The