Planning for biodiversity protection: The use of technical data and expertise in environmental plans

The general topic of this research is biodiversity protection in urban planning. The research focuses on how biodiversity has been integrated into planning by examining the way in which technical information and professional expertise are used in environmental plans. This analysis leads to conclusions about how planners can more effectively plan for and protect biodiversity, integrate biodiversity protection into planning practice, and effectively use technical information in developing plans that address biodiversity.; This research uses a qualitative research methodology. The data collection strategy is an audit of plans (similar to content analysis), and case studies of a sample of thirty plans that are intended to address biodiversity.; The plans analyzed in this research all have in common a focus on holistic environmental planning principles. The plans seek to protect the environment using the watershed, ecosystem, or general biodiversity as the basis instead of a single medium approach. Consequently, the plans analyzed in this research are based on emerging approaches to environmental planning---not traditional single-medium or McHargian approaches.; This research reveals a linkage between certain types of expertise and types of data in plans. For example, plans that include participation of planning and policy experts use more types of social science data in the planning process and have more linkage with other plans and policies. This research also reveals that certain types of data are rarely included in plans, such as data on air quality, natural hazards, and contaminated sites.; This research found that plans are more fully implemented when they have a specific person or agency assigned to coordination of implementation. Many of the plans in the sample lack such as coordinator, and thus are not being fully implemented.; The outcome of the research is significant because it will help planners better address the problem of biodiversity loss and protect human health and the environment by making clear the contents of plans that seek to address biodiversity, relationships between the contents of plans and the composition of planning teams, and revealing limitations in holistic methods of environmental planning.