Water in Urban Areas and Planning Law

International Conference – Platform of Experts in Planning Law

Copenhagen, 29 September 2011

This conference was organized under the auspices of the Platform of Experts in Planning Law in collaboration with the Dutch Institute for Construction Law, the Water Research Initiative (ViVa) at the Faculty of Life Sciences, Copenhagen University and the Nordic Environmental Law, Governance & Science Network (NELN+). NELN+ is funded by NordForsk.

The aim of the conference is to discuss how and to what extent the legal framework – including planning law – is able to cope with water in urban areas in particular in view of more extreme climate conditions, including heavy rainfalls. The conference aims to provide an understanding of the main challenges of regulating water in urban areas and in particular the (potential) role of planning law in this respect.

Programme and presentations

Comparative Planning Law Research	Rachelle Alterman, co‐founder Platform of Experts in Planning Law
Case study: Introduction and Danish point of view	Helle Tegner Anker, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Case study (The Netherlands)	Pieter Jong & Fred Hobma
Case study (Germany)	Tim Schwarz, Technische Universität Berlin
Panel discussion	chair: Rachelle Alterman
Challenges and Solutions from a Technical Perspective	Marina Bergen Jensen, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Challenges and Solutions from a Legal Practitioner Perspective	Jens Flensborg, Adv.firmaet Energi & Miljø
Discussion
Climate Adaptation and Planning Law	Helle Ina Elmer, Danish Ministry for the Environment
The Devolution of Authority to Municipal Governments to Mitigate Flood Loses and Guarantee Secure Water Supplies in the United States	Dan Tarlock, Chicago‐Kent College of Law
Discussion and conclusions

 

List of Participants

 

Workshop Report - Cases and Responses (pdf)