“Planning Naturally” – the report that reconciles nature with development

'Planning Naturally - Spatial planning with nature in mind: in the UK and beyond' has been produced by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Chartered Institute of Ecology And Environmental Management and was launched on the 11th of July 2013.

This report aim to show how nature is an integral part of the planning process and to inspire with examples of good practice from all over the world. The document presents 12 principles of good spatial planning, which capture a broad range of issues that are critical for all effective planning systems, and illustrates them with case studies from the UK, as well as some international examples.

One of the report’s case study describes the monitoring programme of the Edinbane wind farm on the Isle of Skye and highlights the importance of such programmes to assess the potential impacts of future wind energy developments. The evidence gathered in studies such as this will be invaluable in informing the design and location of future wind farms to minimize their impacts on biodiversity.

The report can be downloaded here.