Local Development Plan

- Belfast Basalt Escarpment (Belfast Hills - majority within
Belfast City Council Area)
- Castlereagh Slopes
- Castlereagh Escarpment.
• One hundred and eighteen Local Landscape Policy Areas (LLPAs)
within or adjoining settlements on lands considered to be of
greatest nature conservation or heritage interest, amenity value,
landscape quality or local significance
• Six Landscape Wedges (both Urban and Rural) which provide visual
separation within parts of the built up urban areas, or separation
between settlements
• A number of Sites of Local Conservation Interest (SLNCIs)
throughout the Plan Area. Policy for the control of development
within SLNCIs is contained within PPS 2: Natural Heritage.
Lagan Valley Regional Park (LVRP)
Figure 14: Nature Conservation Designations afforded Statutory Protection
through Existing Legislation
Development Plan Designations: BMAP recognises that the diversity of
landscapes in the Plan area provide a unique resource of significant
environmental quality. The urban area, stretching between Lisburn and
Dundonald, enjoys a magnificent natural setting between the edge of the
Antrim Plateau and the Castlereagh Hills, with the River Lagan which
flows through Lisburn forming part of the Lagan Valley Regional Park and
Lagan Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. BMAP designates the
following:
• Five Areas of High Scenic Value (AOHSV) to protect the setting of
the Urban Areas and other areas of particular landscape merit, i.e.
- Portmore Lough
- Magheraknock Loughs
The RDS identifies the Lagan Valley Regional Park as a significant natural
environmental asset. Strategic guidance (SFG5) includes direction that
“these areas should be safeguarded, but opportunities sought where
appropriate, to increase access to them for residents and tourists,
consistent with protecting their integrity and value.”
The existing Development Plan (BMAP) designates the LVRP as an Area of
Outstanding Natural Beauty and sets policies for development proposals
within it, both inside and outside settlement limits.
The LVRP (see Appendix K, Map 39) has a varied landscape that reflects
the natural landforms and the land uses that have progressively moulded
it over time. The river valley of the Lagan outside the urban area of
Lisburn is predominantly natural in character and is characterised by a
concentration of woodland which provides the undulating canopies and
vast mixture of texture and tones which highlight the rolling countryside.
Key Issues and Options 189