Friday, November 28, 2008

Bristol City new stadium proposal: club obliged to compensate for large environmental impacts

3 comments:
'Bristol City Chairman Lansdown unveils vision for the future' says the headline. Its a development I'm very interested in, so I posted this comment on the newspaper website:

If this stadium is built surely the club should do their absolute utmost to compensate for the large scale loss of green land and other associated environmental impacts. Are they prepared to consider creating permanently protected natures reserves around the new ground and employing the latest energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable transport technologies...as part of their design?? Lets not forget that in this very same area there are also proposals for mass house building, new road construction and possibly an arena! We must not forget ecological footprint considerations!!

This drew a response from 'Dan, Downend', who said, 'the land is not restricted or protected, therefore City dont have to do anything that you suggest. I'm sure there will be considerations as with any major building, but there is no obligation nor should there be'

He forgets that it is green belt land!! Its not been mentioned much, if at all, in the press stories about the proposals for the new stadium. Green belt is a 'land use designation used in land use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighbouring urban areas.' (wiki). So there are supposed to be restrictions on development and there is supposed to be protection for land - therefore Bristol City can be considered to have an obligation. Seems fair to me.