On the Economic Role of Social Indicators in Urban and Regional Planning

Aim of this paper is to describe the present status of using social indicators within planning and decision procedures of public administrations in the Federal Republic of Germany. Methodological approach is: Exemplarily it is focused an actual planning procedure going over several years but now terminated. This procedure is analyzed in order to show where and to what extend social indicators are included into decision processes, and with which result. On this base are drawn conclusions.Subject of this empirical example is the planning procedure for the location of the future metropolitan airport Berlin Brandenburg International (abbreviation BBI) of the two adjoining provinces (Länder) Berlin and Brandenburg in Germany. The most important sources therefore are the so-called evaluation of the intended land use planning of the province Brandenburg from 16 November 1994 edited by the ministry for environment, nature conservation, and land use of the province Brandenburg (Landesplanerische Beurteilung, Ministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Raumordnung des Landes Brandenburg), and over 150 articles of daily newspapers with messages about the development of the planning and discussion procedures of involved administrative offices between November 1994 and September 1996. They document how and why a nearly certain decision mainly but not only supported by social indicators was upset in June 1996.Obviously, one empirical example only isn’t a certain basis for conclusions. Hence the results of this analysis shouldn’t be overestimated. However, they should be taken as an opinion and thesis within a discussion about the role of social indicators within public decision processes. This is clarified from the very first.The historic development of the inclusion of social indicators into planning procedures of public administrations isn’t aim of this paper although this would be a worthwhile subject-matter as well. Moreover, it is not intended to illuminate all aspects of social indicators. This is clarified as well.As for