Availability of public infrastructure, by Karel Maier & Veronika Šindlerová
According to the document Policy of Architecture and Building Culture of the Czech Republic, authorized by the Government in 2015, the Ministry for Regional Development is entrusted with the definition of availability/capacity standards for public facilities and availability standards for public areas. To achieve this, the Ministry must cooperate with the Institute for Spatial Development, the Association for Urban and Regional Planning and higher education institutions. This article presents the standards originated as part of the execution of this assignment as they apply to spatial planning. These standards focus mainly on the accessibility of basic public facilities, which has not been regulated by Czech urban planning for the last three decades, taking into consideration a variety of negative consequences, notably the rapid growth of suburbs of big cities.
A case study: Analysis of the problems of nature protection and environmental stability as part of a spatial study of landscape administered by municipalities with extended powers in the district of Znojmo, by Tamara Faberová
The spatial studies of landscapes currently available provide a unique opportunity to better incorporate a concern for nature protection into spatial planning. This article describes the results of analyses of nature protection and environmental stability carried out within a spatial study of landscape administered by municipalities with extended powers in the district of Znojmo. The researchers created their own methodology for the assessment of territorial problems and values. Five parameters are stipulated and quantified in terms of nature protection: surface area of territories of particular protection, coefficient of environmental stability, shifts in environmentally stable areas between 2005 and 2016, surface area of biotopes, and threat to migration corridors and significant migration territories of large mammals. Problems in municipal territories are expressed using a scale from 0 (no problems and/or natural values well preserved) to 3 (significant problems and/or natural values almost absent). The results identify territories with well-preserved natural values and sufficient protection and those with valuable locations that should be subject to greater protection. Developments in the size of environmentally stable areas are described and municipalities with a very low number of valuable locations, including some which have deteriorated during the last decade, are identified. Valuable but unprotected biotopes and migration territories and corridors endangered by housing are delimited. The results also provide information on the gravity of the situation in particular municipalities. The article summarizes the results of the study’s analytical part, which will be used for specifi c recommendations.
Participation (or non-participation) of associations in environmental protection during spatial and pre-construction proceedings, by Tereza Snopková
Since 1989, legislation in environmental protection has become a respected constituent of the Czech legal system. It is a comprehensive branch of jurisprudence comprising legislation, taxonomy and tools. An important tool for environmental protection is the participation of the public in connection with the right to receive information on the environment.