Planners are involved in environmental issues including pollution control, wetland preservation, and landfills. Planners also help find solutions to social issues such as the needs of an aging population, sheltering the homeless, and meeting the demand for drug and alcohol treatment centers, correctional facilities, and abortion and AIDS patient clinics. Planners examine community facilities such as health clinics and schools to be sure these facilities can meet the demands placed upon them, and help resolve differences over their location. They keep abreast of the economic and legal issues involved in community development or redevelopment and changes in zoning codes, building codes, or environmental regulations. They ensure that builders and developers follow these codes and regulations.
Planners also deal with land use and environmental issues created by population movements.
For example, as suburban growth has increased the need for traveling between suburbs and the urban center, the planner's job often includes designing new transportation systems and parking facilities. In conjunction with these new systems and facilities, planners also may develop transportation management plans designed to control traffic, not just accommodate it. For example, developers may be required to provide public transportation facilities, or cities may be required to set up van pool transportation systems. Urban and regional planners prepare for situations that are likely to develop as a result of population growth or social and economic change. They estimate, for example, the community's long-range needs for housing, transportation, and business and industrial sites.