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Sustainable Development for River Catchments
Author(s) -
GARDINER J. L.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/j.1747-6593.1994.tb01109.x
Subject(s) - sustainable development , sustainability , environmental planning , drainage basin , environmental resource management , strategic environmental assessment , context (archaeology) , strategic planning , general partnership , business , land use planning , land use , asset (computer security) , legislature , environmental science , computer science , environmental impact assessment , engineering , civil engineering , geography , political science , ecology , cartography , archaeology , finance , marketing , computer security , law , biology
This paper deals with some of the strategic issues arising from the consideration of the sustainable development of river catchments. Principles and best practice are discussed, both in general terms and as challenges to professionals involved with the coordinated planning and management of river catchments. Points are illustrated with reference to experience in the highly developed River Thames catchment, where the many demands made on the water environment require complex multifunctional decision‐making. Sustainability offers a new paradigm and common language to support decision‐making for sustainable development. The appropriate institutional and legislative framework will be supported by tools such as environmental appraisal, strategic environmental assessment and economic instruments. Within this context, the implicit partnership between asset management planning, catchment management planning and land‐use planning has the potential to deliver sustainable development for the water environment, through a process which may be called ‘total’ catchment planning. It is suggested that source control will play a major role in the search for ‘prevention rather than cure’ as a basic principle of sustainability.