Understanding green infrastructure: the development of a contested concept in England

Abstract

The idea of “green infrastructure” has experienced a quick emergence in planning policy with little opportunity to reflect on the meanings attached to the concept by different interests. This has contributed to confusion and discomfort with the “lack of understanding” among planning practitioners in England who argue that green infrastructure could be a “corruptible concept”. Here I respond to the resistance to multiple meanings of green infrastructure by critically examining it as a contested concept. Building on the literature that positions ambiguity as unavoidable, I argue that a single precise meaning of “green infrastructure” is problematic because the concept is evolving and divided between environmental theory and socio-economic policy. By doing this, I intend to better equip practitioners in England with an understanding of the meanings attached to green infrastructure and how its ambiguity is used, so that they may secure the environmental benefits that are at risk of being isolated in green infrastructure theory.