Can Zero-Carbon Development be Delivered through the Existing English Legal and Policy Planning Framework?

While there is a distinction between ‘post-growth’ and ‘zero-carbon’ as terms, it can be assumed that post-growth planning will require zero-carbon new urban development. In turn, the move to net-zero carbon emissions in England by 2050 will require significant changes to the delivery of the built environment which incorporates large amounts of embodied carbon. This implies a central role for the statutory land use planning system. Policies and local plans will need to incorporate stricter building standards for all new buildings. Proposals for redevelopment will need to demonstrate that the demolition and replacement of existing buildings will be more carbon efficient than retrofit and repurposing. This paper examines the role of law and policy in the context of two development proposals which turned on net-zero issues and which were ultimately resolved in the High Court. The first concerned an attempt by a council to adopt an Area Action Plan including strict standards for the development of a new garden village in Oxfordshire and second concerned the proposed demolition and redevelopment of a flagship store in London’s Oxford Street.