Submission from the Office of the Planning Regulator (Submission No 426)
Issues / Recommendations / Observations
Chief Executive’s Resp onse & Recommendation
• Provision of a cycleway CSE GW 4 Cycle paths/Greenway – as per the Cork Cycle Network Plan as contained within the Cork Metropolitan Transport Study.
1.8. Climate Action & Renewable Energy
1.8.1. Climate Action
The OPR welcomes the integration of climate actions as a cross-cutting theme for the draft Plan and the inclusion of a separate chapter addressing climate change and the environment in support of Strategic Objective 4 Climate and Environment of the draft Plan. The provisions are considered positively and the draft Plan includes objectives to promote sustainable settlement and transport strategies. The inclusion of a table detailing the key policy objectives for mitigating and adapting to climate change provides transparency and a coherence to the overall strategy for climate action. It may be appropriate to include the relevant objectives from Chapter 5 in this table, also. The Office commends the proposals to require the submission of a Scheme Sustainability Statement for development above a certain threshold, which should help focus the planning applications on keep mitigation and adaption elements. The wording of paragraph 11.268 should be reconsidered to avoid implying this is a discretionary requirement. Observation 7 – Climate Action Given the importance attributed to climate action by Government, as evidenced by, inter alia, the recent Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill (March, 2021) and the Climate Action Plan 2019 , the planning authority is advised that the draft Plan should also include an objective to consider a variation of the development plan within a
Cork City Council is fully committed to positive and effective climate action. The expansion of Table 5.1 to include relevant policy objectives and their contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation of the Plan is supported. The wording of paragraph 11.268 relating to Scheme Sustainability Statement in Chapter 11 will be strengthened to infer this is a requirement and not a discretionary action. Given the dynamic nature of the international and national climate policy context, it is agreed as per Observation 7 that additional text will be included to ensure the Plan is consistent with the approach to climate action recommended in the revised Development Plan Guidelines as adopted or any other relevant guidelines arising over the Plan period. Recommendation: (i) Update Table 5.1 to include relevant policy objectives from Chapter 5 and their contribution to climate change mitigation/ adaptation of the Plan. (ii) Update paragraph 11.268 as follows: “ All planning applications involving developments of 25 or more homes or over 500sqm of commercial floorspace should to be accompanied by a Scheme Sustainability Statement demonstrating how the proposal
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