Green Infrastructure Plan Evaluation Frameworks

The rising rate of land consumption and fragmentation in the United States has prompted land use planners to consider a strategic approach to conservation and development that channels urban growth and preserved lands into more suitable locations. Green infrastructure planning represents a strategic approach to conservation that combines the efforts of previous conservation planning methodologies and practices in the United States into a systematic framework that can encompass larger landscapes and broader planning goals. Green infrastructure is defined as the interconnected network of waterways, wetlands, woodlands, wildlife habitats, and other natural areas; greenways, parks, and other conservation lands; working farms, ranches and forests; and wilderness and other open spaces that support native species, maintain natural ecological processes, sustain air and water resources and contribute to health and quality of life. This paper serves to provide 1) a more structured definition for green infrastructure plans, 2) “best practice” guidelines for green infrastructure planning, as well as 3) a framework for evaluating green infrastructure plans for different scales of planning. The paper proposes plan evaluation frameworks at regional and local scales that can be used by planners in the future as a guideline or checklist of best practices for developing green infrastructure plans, as well as a standard means for evaluating plans.

Download the article from the Journal of Conservation Planning.