[ Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028, Section 15(2) Two-Year Progress Report ]
A number of GBI projects have been progressed since the adoption of the Plan – these are detailed in the main body of the two-year progress report. Notable among these is the Cork City habitat mapping project which is funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and has progressed to consultant appointment stage with work scheduled for 2024. The development of a connected network of rewilding, rewetting and reafforestation projects across Cork City is one of the long-term objectives of the GBI Strategy, which has a 20-year horizon. 10 strategic locations for these projects are identified and reflected in “Figure 6.4 City Scale GBI Opportunities for Cork City” of the City Development Plan. Urban greening is also an ambition of the Plan, and there has been progress in this regard in the adoption of the Cork City Council Tree Strategy in 2024. The City Development Plan commits Cork City Council to work with landowners, stakeholders and local communities to prevent the introduction and spread of alien invasive species. Objective 6.26 specifically addresses alien invasive species and paragraph 11.225 (under chapter 11, Placemaking and Managing Development) requires all planning applications for development where there is evidence of alien invasive species on the site to submit a management plan for the effective management and removal of the species. In preparing the City Development Plan Cork City Council followed an ecosystems services approach, by considering natural systems and how they interact, taking into account the services that ecosystems provide and involving people who benefit from the ecosystem services through public consultation in the plan-making process (paragraph 6.75). Cork’s ecosystems and biodiversity were integral considerations in the plan-making process, evidenced by the fact that green and blue infrastructure, open space and biodiversity (Strategic Objective 5) and climate and the environment (Strategic Objective 4) together constitute a quarter of the strategic objectives making up the City Development Plan (assuming Strategic Objective 1 sits apart as an overarching objective). All third- tier plans and strategies prepared under the City Development Plan will as a consequence include integrated ecosystem and biodiversity values and objectives. SDG 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
Targets under this goal relevant to the City Development Plan: Target 16.6 Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels. Target 16.7
Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.
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