Applying strategic environmental assessment to land-use and resource-management plans in Scotland and New Zealand: a comparison

Case studies are used to compare the use of strategic environmental assessment (SEA) Scotland and New Zealand by applying the Glasson– Gosling typology of SEA practice. The results suggest SEA’s effectiveness in promoting sustainability is determined by its capacity to shape the decision-making processes governing all aspects of spatial development. New Zealand’s Resource Management Act confines SEA to evaluating environmental aspects of territorial land-use and resource-management plans. Without efforts to integrate SEA into new community planning powers under the 2002 Local Government Act, this will limit its use in supporting broader sustainability objectives. Scotland’s recent Environmental Assessment Act embraces all public-sector policies, plans and programmes, offering SEA more scope for influencing policy formulation and the delivery of sustainable development