Abstract:
Urban sprawl, fragmented natural areas, and polluted air, soil, and water challenge urban and regional planners throughout the world. Water and nature management is exceedingly difficult because these resources have multiple uses, are impacted by numerous pollution sources, and intersect jurisdictional boundaries. The traditional environmental planning approach to these problems is based on the separation of urban, rural, and environmental functions and tends to focus on the protection of natural areas. However, this is not a sustainable method of planning. Therefore, planning must seek to achieve a better balance between ecosystem and watershed integrity and the provision of human, social, and economic services. In order to accomplish this, planning must recognize that problems with water and natural areas are interrelated.