Challenge
Providing homes for those who need them means East Hampshire District Council now needs to be able to quickly assess the impact of planned development sites – making sure they can meet housing targets while helping prevent nitrate pollution.
Estimates put the number of new homes needed in England at up to 345,000 a year.
Balancing these two demands means the council need a clear overview of the relationship between the waterways they are responsible for and the proposed area for development. This would be to assess the potential effect on nitrate levels and prove proposals are compliant with the new legislation protecting the Solent’s wetlands.
Solution
Working with Astun Technology and Ordnance Survey (OS), East Hampshire District Council are able to use planning tools driven by location data to identify local watercourses fast, speeding up the time it takes to respond to planning proposals. OS Open Rivers maps over 144,000km of watercourses by district – including freshwater rivers, canals and tidal estuaries.
Result
East Hampshire District Council can now quickly and easily assess the environmental risks of proposed developments, meaning they can respond to planning applications faster, and help protect both the general public and economy; the Solent; and its rich biodiversity – supporting the provision of homes for both Hampshire’s humans and wildlife.
"A clear overview is needed of the relationship between the waterways and the proposed areas of development."