The need for waste facilities and the choice of technology is often defined at a strategic level. The need will have been considered within the regional and local context in waste management strategies and forward planning policies. The waste strategy will provide the context for what is required to serve the needs of the local community. At this stage in the process questions of what and where may not be relevant, but it is the place to set the tone in terms of design philosophy and quality expectations. Consideration of design should be factored into these early debates to ensure new proposals meet strategic requirements.
Various questions will be raised at this stage in the process: what is the most appropriate type of facility? What type of technology will be appropriate? What scale of facility will be required? How will materials be transported to and from it? What sites are available and appropriate for this type of development?
It is clear that important design considerations are fundamental to these questions and will enable effective integration of a new waste facility into a given context.
Proposals for industrial and commercial waste facilities will follow a similar decision process. While some of the drivers are different, there are many common themes. All facilities have to be economically viable and a strong business case will need to be prepared. The identification of need and location are comparable with private sector developments, although it is acknowledged that some of the initial drivers may vary.
'Five fundamental factors for better design policies 1 embed design concerns across the new local development framework policy hierarchy and beyond to the community strategy 2 treat design as a cross-cutting issue which infuses all other policy areas 3 base design policies on an in-depth understanding of local context and the design process 4 recognise that design is important beyond the scale of individual sites and can help establish local development framework objectives at different spatial levels 5 ensure design policy addresses social and sustainable as well as visual and functional concerns.' Making design policy work: |