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CASE STUDY AREAS
This review will examine three case studies from England to assess how local, regional and national projects are incorporating Green Infrastructure into their plans. The three case studies each highlight how Green Infrastructure thinking is being developed at different scales and with different foci whilst still promoting the overarching themes of Green Infrastructure set out above. Through an examination of these three case studies it is hoped that the priorities of each area will be made clear and the influences under which Green Infrastructures are being delivered will be made.
National - The Thames Gateway
The Thames Gateway is home to over 1.45 million people and covers a size of 100,000 hectares. The area itself is over 40 miles long (running East- West) and 20 miles wide (North-South). Currently there are over 600,000 homes in the Gateway area and over 32,000 businesses. The region is therefore considered by many in the UK government as an essential element of the UK 's continuing economic and social growth.
The Thames Gateway area also has been designated as a nationally important Growth Region that is being used to promote the Urban Renaissance and the Sustainable Communities agendas. The Thames Gateway is noted as an important Growth Area is it aims to redevelop approximately 3,150 hectares of brownfield land, improve transport and Green Infrastructures in the region and create 100,000 new homes.
The region has also been heavily funded by both public and private organizations. This level of funding has been linked to the designation of the Thames Gateway as a growth region but has also been linked with the London 2012 Olympic Legacy. These designations have meant that the Thames Gateway region will receive over £38 billion in private funding before its completion.
Regional - The Northern Way
The Northern Way like the Thames Gateway is a multi-region project that aims to delivery prosperity over a large geographic area. However, unlike the Thames Gateway the Northern Way has not been designated as a nationally important growth area. Alternatively the Northern Way is being promoted internally in northern England by the Regional Development Agencies.
The Northern Way itself is home to over 14.3 million people located in eight city region areas. These areas can be found in the former industrial centers of Liverpool, Central Lancashire, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds, Humber and Humber Ports, Tees Valley and Tyne and Wear. The overarching aim of the Northern Way is to promote an economic revival of the north and bring it into line with the more successful areas of the UK i.e. London and the South-East. It is also attempt to promote; increased employment, technological innovation, entrepreneurship and social, economic and environmental quality.
The timescale for the Northern Way is approximately 20 years and has a budget of over £100 million. Although this level of funding is small compared to the Thames Gateway is does provide the north's two Regional Development Agencies (ONE Northeast and the North West Regional Development Agency) with a level of funding to improve the region.
Local - St Helens
The final Green Infrastructure project being discussed is the St Helens Green Infrastructure assessment. This project was developed and conducted by a collaborative team from the Mersey Forest and the University of Liverpool. The funding for this project was received from the Mersey Community Forest, the Countryside Agency, groundwork and the local authority of St Helens.
The St Helens project although small has the potential to affect 176,000 people of the 1.4 million people in the Greater Merseyside Super Output Area. Although the population of the study site is small in comparison to the two other projects being discussed St Helens does provide a good example of how Green Infrastructures are being developed. The city of St Helens has like many northern English cities been hit heavily with the declining manufacturing of the region. As such the state of the St Helens environment has been in decline since the 1960's.
The Green Infrastructure assessment for the St Helens project is therefore attempted to classify and categorize the opportunities and needs for Green Infrastructure in the region. This was linked with local authority environmental and social renewal projects aimed to improve the health, education and quality of life of people in the region.
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