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Chapter
8: Regional,
State, and Federal Management of Environmentally Sensitive Lands
Discussion
Questions
Exercises
Links
Summary:
In the 1970s, the Council on Environmental Quality wrote about the "quiet
revolution" in land use control (U.S. Council on Environmental Quality,
1974). That revolution fell silent in the early 1980s but resounded in
the mid-1990s with an increasing number of state programs to promote Smart
Growth in response to the problems of sprawl development. Oregon and Maryland
are two states that have led the way with different programs: Oregon’s
regulatory program relies heavily on local implementation; Maryland’s,
too, relies on locals but uses incentives rather than regulations. Both
use the concept of defined development areas or urban growth boundaries
and defined conservation areas. Some other states have followed suit.
Regional authorities for land use control established in the 1960s and
1970s continue to be very active and show signs of effectiveness 30 years
later, creatively using the full array of growth management tools available.
Still, few regional metropolitan areas have developed the degree of cooperation
and especially authority needed to take a regional approach to Smart Growth
management. The federal government has some influence on private use of
specific environmental lands, but almost all authority remains with state
and local government.
Discussion questions
1. To manage the impacts of urban sprawl, communities and states have
developed growth management programs.
2. Give a concise definition of "growth management"
3. What is meant by "smart growth" and how does it differ from
growth management?
4. Most growth management programs emphasize land use regulations, but
there are several non-regulatory strategies available in the growth management
"toolbox." List and briefly describe two non-regulatory growth
management tools:
5. Many states have developed statewide growth management programs. Oregon
and Maryland offer two of the best examples of comprehensive programs.
Briefly, contrast Oregon’s and Maryland’s approaches to state
growth management to protect rural landscapes and environmental resources.
6. Based on information in chapters 5-8, respond to the following question
in one page: "Addressing all four options below, what is the best
way or ways to achieve sustainable patterns of land development and how
do we control the "growth machine" that seems to consume land,
energy, and natural systems for the sake of short-term financial gain?"
(a) Through good design and the market?
(b) Through government regulation?
(c) Through land conservation, partnerships, and non-regulatory programs?
(d) Through community involvement and negotiation?
Exercises
1. Explore the framework for regional planning in your metropolitan area
or region. In one single-spaced page, describe the institutional structure,
principal areas of cooperation (e.g., transportation, water and sewer,
etc.), and ways in which regional authorities have addressed land use,
if at all.
2. The chapter described five case examples of regional land use planning.
Select one, check out current information on its website and write a one-page
update of activities, challenges, and effectiveness.
3. Describe the status of statewide land use planning reform in your state
or a state of interest. In one page, classify the reform in the typology
of state programs given in the chapter and provide a critique of the program.
4. Federal programs for land use have focused on public lands and critical
environmental areas. Select two of the programs from one of the three
categories below, look up information about them on the Internet, and
compare and contrast their planning approaches in four pages:
a. Public Lands
b. Bureau of Land Management’s Resource Management Planning
c. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife Refuge Management Planning
d. National Park Service’s General Management Planning
e. U.S. Forest Service Land and Resource Management Planning
f. Financial and Technical Assistance
g. Conservation Reserve Program
h. Coastal Zone Management Program
i. Coastal Barriers Resource Protection
j. Land and Water Conservation Fund
k. Regulation
l. Surface Mine Reclamation
m. Endangered Species Act programs for private lands
n. CWA section 404 Wetlands Permitting
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