Building a sustainable future lies at the heart of the vision for Trinidad and Tobago – aiming for people and communities to flourish, prosper and enjoy healthy lives, while also playing their part in maintaining natural resources locally and globally. Sustainable development is, therefore, the overarching aim of the Strategy, embracing all the objectives set out under the other themes.

Objective: To achieve sustainable development nationally, based on the concept of Harmonised Regional Development

Policy 1: Supporting Sustainable Development
Planning Authorities should work with other government and public agencies and partners in all sectors, local communities, developers and others to achieve sustainable development in respect of social, economic and environmental change within Trinidad and Tobago.

Objective: To maintain and enhance regional diversity whilst establishing a mutually supportive hierarchy of thriving, resilient and attractive centres to provide accessible services for residents and visitors.

Policy 2: Sustainable Regional Development
Requires Planning Authorities to give effect to the Regional Planning Guidance set out in chapter 6 of the NSDS. It also places a duty on Planning Authorities to cooperate on spatial planning issues that cross administrative boundaries.

Policy 3: Promoting sustainable urban and rural development
Sets out spatial design principles for bringing about more efficient, more inclusive, more attractive and more sustainable places in both urban and rural locations.

Objective: To ensure that all citizens are able to pursue their working and domestic lives in a peaceful and secure environment.

Policy 4: Designing and creating places for people
Sets out a framework, which puts urban, landscape, architectural and environmental design considerations at the core of the NSDS.

Policy 5: Planning for healthy communities
Places a requirement on Planning Authorities to consider the individual elements of the built environment that contribute to community life in an integrated and holistic manner.

Policy 6: Involving people in planning
Recognises that community involvement can help to achieve people-centred sustainable development and requires Planning Authorities to establish protocols to enable active participation in planning processes.

Objective: To meet the housing needs of all sections of the population.

Policy 7: Meeting housing needs
Establishes a framework for evidence based and up to date planning to meet the housing requirements of each region.

Policy 8: Planning to improve conditions for squatters
Requires Planning Authorities to plan positively for improvement of informal settlements where appropriate and prioritising urban / brownfield land when relocation is required.

Objective: To ensure that the social, economic, spiritual and environmental value of all aspects of Trinidad and Tobago’s diverse cultural heritage is recognised in decision-making and investment choices.

Policy 9: Priorities for culture, sport and recreation
Places a requirement on Planning Authorities to take a flexible and forward looking approach to planning for facilities and spaces to support participation in cultural, sporting and recreational activities at a range of levels.

Policy 10: Planning positively for our historic environment
Recognises the value of the historic environment and the importance of its protection and places a duty on Planning Authorities to consider these issues.

Objective: To diversify and strengthen the economic base and to create and support conditions that enable all to participate and benefit.

Policy 11A: Leaving no one behind and Policy 11B: Area-based economic priorities
Set out the economic considerations that should be taken into account when making plans and planning decisions. Policy 11A establishes broad principles and Policy 11B requires Planning Authorities to support the Government’s economic growth priorities, including the Growth Poles strategy.

Objective: To foster the conditions for a more prosperous agricultural sector and reduce the national food import bill.

Policy 12: Planning for agriculture and fisheries
Restricts further loss of agricultural land and requires that the necessary buildings, infrastructure and facilities be considered positively in planning processes.

Objective: To recognise the value of natural resources (including land, air and sea) and to ensure that they are used in sustainable ways, differentiating appropriately between those that are renewable and those that are finite.

Policy 13: Sustainable use of natural resources
Is an overarching environmental policy that sets out principles to protect environmental resources and assets and mitigate any harmful impacts of development.

Policy 14: Landscape management
Places a requirement on Planning Authorities to consider, protect and preserve the distinctive landscape characteristics of defined Landscape Management Zones.

Policy 15: A coordinated approach to water resources and water quality
Sets out a series of requirements to ensure that water management issues and planning decisions are integrated.

Policy 16: Coastal and marine resource considerations
Sets out a series of requirements to ensure that development in the coastal zone does not adversely impact on coastal and marine ecosystems and resources.

Policy 17: Air quality
Seeks to ensure that air quality issues and considerations are fully integrated into planning processes and decisions.

Policy 18: Sustainable mineral use
Requires Planning Authorities to plan positively to meet the demand for mineral resources by safeguarding sites in appropriate locations, whilst ensuring that social and environmental impacts are adequately assessed.

Policy 19: Sustainable energy extraction
Seeks to ensure that demand for energy and needs of energy-related industries are properly planned for.

Objective: To adapt the ways in which we live, build, travel, and communicate so as to maximise resilience to the effects and impacts of climate change and to reduce contributions to factors that are adding to it.

Policy 20: Managing hazard risk
Establishes a sequential and risk-assessment-based approach to spatial planning responses to potential hazards including: flooding; landslides; wild fire; storms and tornadoes; tsunamis and coastal hazards; earthquakes; and hurricanes. This policy requires due account to be taken of climate change impacts.

Objective: To coordinate the use and development of land and the provision of transport infrastructure so as to reduce traffic congestion and promote more efficient, less wasteful and less polluting modes of travel.

Policy 21: Prioritising sustainable transport
Establishes a framework to ensure that planning decisions and processes contribute to the development of sustainable transport provision.

Objective: To support the expansion and efficient use of electronic communications networks, including telecommunications and high speed broadband.

Policy 22: Priorities for Information and Communications Technologies (ICT)
Seeks to ensure that the role of ICT and the requirements of associated infrastructure are integrated into planning decisions and processes.

Objective: To reduce social and economic reliance on non-renewable energy sources and to promote and facilitate the development of more sustainable and environment-friendly alternatives.

Policy 23: Energy efficiency
Requires Planning Authorities to apply the ‘energy hierarchy’ (energy reduction, energy efficiency, renewable energy, clean and efficient use of non-renewables) to decisions and plan-making processes.

Objective: To manage the generation, treatment and disposal of both solid and liquid waste in ways that safeguard human health and protect the environment.

Policy 24: Waste management
Seeks to ensure that waste management issues are properly integrated into decisions and plan-making processes.