Development of a simple method for site survey and assessment in urban areas

Planners are coming under increasing pressure to conserve and enhance the natural environment and protect it from development where appropriate. In urban areas informal open spaces are particularly vulnerable to the effects of development proposals. Ecological data on these informal spaces are conspicuously absent. This means that planners often have to make decisions on whether to approve development of sites which are based on limited or no ecological information. Research was undertaken in which a site survey and evaluation method was developed to provide planners with the information necessary to evaluate the ecological value of sites proposed for development. The methodology developed comprised two parts; a site survey and a site evaluation method, in which numerical values were given to the sites' ecological, amenity and development value. The methodology was developed and tested on 30 sites in Leeds, UK, all of which have naturally regenerating habitat and were scheduled for development. A site record, evaluation matrix and set of associated values was developed for each site. These values were then used to identify and compare sites. Three types of sites were identified: sites with significant ecological value that need to be protected from development, sites on which development could be accommodated, and sites where a compromise between development and conservation could be achieved. The results from the Leeds study suggest that it is possible to develop a simple methodology for planners' use to identify and compare the ecological and amenity value of sites proposed for development. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.