Sustainability in Torfaen
Torfaen is a county borough situated in the region of South Wales, covering an area of approximately 126 km2 making it the third smallest borough in Wales.[1] Around 91,000 people live in Torfaen, with 86% of the residents, as of 2008,[2] being born in Wales.
Sustainability is deemed to mean a balance between different and competing aspects of the environment, economy and social interactions. It used to express how communities and nations and respond to local priorities within their region in attempt to make improvements (Woods, 2011).[3]
Economic Sustainability[edit]
Economic Sustainability is the extent to which how regions and corporations use resources efficiently and to their optimum in able to achieve responsible and long term economic growth and wealth.[4] There have been several implementations to achieve economic sustainability in Torfaen. The Local Development Plan (LDP) outlines several aims to guide delivery of the relevant Community Strategy objectives, contained in the Torfaen Community Strategy Vision in attempt to improve the issues facing the County Borough presently. This includes to “ensure the provision of an appropriate quantity and range of employment sites and retail opportunities to support high and stable levels of employment in Torfaen and deliver a competitive, modern and sustainable economy and thriving town centres”. The council hopes this will allow the number of people at working age to find a stable and providing job. Around 74% of working age population are economically active and 2.4% claim Jobseeker’s Allowance within Torfaen, which is proportionally lower the average statistic for Wales, which has an overall economically active population of 75% and 2.2% claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance.[5] It is anticipated these centres will provided the necessary opportunities for employment through new developments on an appropriate scale to nurture these centres to enhance their vitality and viability as economic generators within Torfaen in a holistic approach, as many different aspects have been taken into account.
Social Sustainability[edit]
Social Sustainability encompasses all that is viewed to have significant human importance, whether this is through human rights, education or healthcare, it should ensure everyone has an improved standard of living.[6] In addition, it incorporates the principles of well-being, which are viewed as a very current subject. Well-being implies someone having a state of happiness, satisfaction, enjoyment, contentment and fulfilment (Halworth J, and Hart G, 2007).[7]
Education in Torfaen[edit]
A residents' survey conducted in 2015 highlighted that there were issues raised with the condition of school buildings and facilities, teaching standards and communication between the schools and parents/guardians.[8] To improve these problems it has been proposed an additional fund of £314,000 will be given to schools to support the increase in pupil growth, and £31,000 for school transport to improve school attainment and reduce absences.[9] It is hoped these investments will improve the percentage of pupils who achieve five or more GCSE A*-G grades from the 2008 level of 86.8% for Torfaen, and 76.6% for the percentage of pupils with two or more A Level A-C grade.[10] However, despite these improvements, Torfaen is achieving higher than the Wales' national average for GCSE and A Level grades, which is at 85.7% for GCSE's achieved and 67.5% for A Levels achieved.
Healthcare in Torfaen[edit]
Healthcare within Torfaen is maintained through the Aneurin Bevan Local Health Board.[11] Currently, Torfaen has three General Practices readily available for user service. These, along with numerous dentists, pharmacies and optometric services are in use to the residents of Torfaen. This has maintained the standard of health in Torfaen at a reasonable standard, with 75.8% of people being in very good/good overall health as of 2015.[12] Subsequently, this enables the healthy working age population to stay in work and contribute to the local economy, which otherwise could not happen as efficiently or sustainably if healthcare was not kept at a high enough standard.
Environmental Sustainability[edit]
Environmental Sustainability ensures that the environment does not come to any prolonged damage that will impact future generations, through the maintenance of the surroundings. The Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI) outlines the ability of nations to protect the environment for future generations. The ESI from 2005 contains 76 variables which are split into 21 indicators for environmental sustainability addressing issues such as water consumption, air pollution and regional ozone.[13]
The main tagline for Torfaen's sustainability projects is “changing by degrees”. This means they will alter small things to improve the sustainability of peoples' everyday lives.[14] The index shows how sustainable people are, how happy and healthy a person is also how much of the Earths resources were used. The website goes on to explain terms like ecological foot print and how the consumption of resources does to the environment. It also explains the ecological foot print from Torfaen in general, showing how many Earths the borough goes through with it using an ecological foot print of 5.05 global hectares per person, meaning if the world lived as Torfaen does then it would need 2.8 earths to support it all.[15]
The aims of the councils sustainable development policy is:
- A social process that recognises the needs of everyone
- Effective protection of the environment
- Prudent use of natural resources
- Maintenance of high economic growth and employment
Nest wales is a flagship scheme against fuel poverty, those who struggle to pay for bills may be eligible for grants for insulation, draft proofing and other forms of energy saving home improvements. It was first established in 2011, over 85,000 homes have benefitted from its advice, 23,000 receiving home improvement packages. Nest is government funded programme managed by British gas, also accompanied by the energy saving trust.[16]
Sustainability Policies[edit]
The Local Development Plan (LDP)[edit]
The Local Development Plan (LDP) outlines several aims to guide delivery of the relevant Community Strategy objectives, contained in the Torfaen Community Strategy Vision in attempt to improve the issues facing the county borough presently.[17] In 2008, Torfaen County Borough Council presented the Preferred Strategy documents for the Local Development Plan (LDP) 2006 – 2021. The Government of Wales Act 1998[18] was an act to promote sustainable development after the formation of the National Assembly for Wales in the previous year. This was then adopted in 2004, through the Assembly’s Sustainable Development Scheme, Starting to Live Differently. This plan that Torfaen County Council have presented is in cohesion with this act. Torfaen Council have set out Strategic Policies (SP) which include sections for economic, environmental and social sustainability following the Preferred Strategy.[19] This includes:
SP1. Sustainable Development - sites of existing urban areas will be allocated for development and these will include promoting sustainable resource use, the use of more sustainable modes of transport and protecting natural and built environment.
SP2. Climate Change - all developments will be designed to migrate further climate change and will include promoting sustainable transport choices, sustainable design and promoting the use of renewable energy technologies.
SP3. Place-making/Good Design - local natural and built environment must have full regard for new development. Location and layout that echoes sustainable transport and sustainable construction practises.
SP4. Housing - development of 7000 dwellings in Torfaen, including 900 in North Torfaen, 2800 in Pontypool and Cwmbran will have 3300. This is also in conjunction with SP5.
SP5. Affordable Housing - to make housing affordable, available and on suitable development sites.
SP6. Employment and Economy - 60ha of land will be used for employment and business purposes and important industrial and business areas will be enhanced and protected. Provide business and local employment opportunities including to enhance town centre based employment and increasing tourism leisure in the town centres.
SP7. Mineral Safeguarding - any economic mineral resource which has been acknowledged as being required to meet a national or South East Wales regional need will be protected provided the effects of extraction are potentially suitable.
SP8. Waste Management - sites will be identified for waste management facilities on regional and local need and will promote a hierarchical approach to sustainable waste management.
SP9. Environmental Protection Policy - development proposals shall protect and enhance the following; identified special landscape areas, water environment and the integrity of the Blaenavon World Heritage Site.
SP10. Community Infrastructure - necessary infrastructure will be sought to secure related to new development and may include; open spaces, play spaces and recreation facilities; and renewable energy.
SP11. Transport - sustainable transport will be promoted through public transport, walking, and cycling provision. Also, safeguarding of land at Pontypool/New Inn railway station for a new park and ride facility.
SP12. Retailing/Town Centres - local shopping centres in Pontypool, Cwmbran and Blaenavon will be protected and enhanced to provide facilities and services for the local community.
SP13. Health and Education - suitable sites for the potential relocation of Coleg Gwent, Pontypool, and the development of a local general hospital to serve Torfean will be safeguarded.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Torfaen Town Profiles | Torfaen County Borough Council". www.torfaen.gov.uk. 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
- ↑ "Torfaen Town Profiles | Torfaen County Borough Council". www.torfaen.gov.uk. 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-31.
- ↑ Woods, Michael (2011). Rural. Oxon: Routledge. Search this book on
- ↑ "Environment vs economy". www.coolgeography.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-04-02.
- ↑ National Assembly for Wales (2008). "Key Statistics for Torfaen" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-24.
- ↑ "Greenfieldgeography - Sustainability and the environment". greenfieldgeography.wikispaces.com. Retrieved 2017-04-02.
- ↑ Haworth, J and Hart, G (2007). Well-Being: Individual, Community and Social Perspectives. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link) Search this book on
- ↑ Torfaen County Borough Council (2017). "Our Well-being Statement for the Financial Year 2017/18" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-26.
- ↑ Torfaen County Borough Council (2017). "Our Well-being Statement for the Financial Year 2017/18" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-26.
- ↑ National Assembly for Wales (2008). "Key Statistics for Torfaen" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-24.
- ↑ "Wellbeing | Torfaen County Borough Council". www.torfaen.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-29.
- ↑ Torfaen Local Service Board (2015). "Torfaen" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-28.
- ↑ Saisana, Michaela (2014-01-01). Michalos, Alex C., ed. Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Springer Netherlands. pp. 1926–1931. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-0753-5_899. ISBN 9789400707528. Search this book on
- ↑ "Torfaen Sustainability | Torfaen County Borough Council". www.torfaen.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
- ↑ "Torfaen Sustainability | Torfaen County Borough Council". www.torfaen.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
- ↑ "Welcome to Nest | Nest". www.nestwales.org.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-28.
- ↑ Torfaen County Borough Council (2013). "Local Development Plan (to 2021)" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-26.
- ↑ "Government of Wales Act 1998". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
- ↑ Torfaen County Borough Council (2008). "Local Development Plan 2006-2021" (PDF). Retrieved 2017-03-31.
This article "Sustainability in Torfaen" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Sustainability in Torfaen. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
