"….nothing endured at all, nothing but the land she passed across … the land was forever, it moved and changed below you, but was forever, you were close to it and it to you, not at a bleak remove it held you and hurted you." From "Sunset Song" by Lewis Grassic Gibbon (James Leslie Mitchell, 1901 – 1935). Copyright the estate of James Leslie Mitchell.

At first, it may appear incongruous to quote the North East’s greatest novelist in this, a land use planning document.

But, just as Grassic Gibbon’s masterpiece captured the trauma of social change in the early 1900s, so we too now face the challenges of a fresh century.

It is therefore vital that this new structure plan is firmly based on the concept of sustainable development – meeting the needs of the present but without compromising the needs of future generations. The final several decades of the last century have emphasised as never before the pace of technological change, the threats to traditional industries and communities and the growing influence of global environmental considerations – but the land will endure.

The early years of this new millennium come charged with a momentous responsibility for clear-sighted planning. As we look forward to the complexities and challenges of the 21^st century, it has perhaps never been so important to be able to share a coherent vision which will shape our communities, environment and economy for many years to come.

So, although this document restricts its formal scope to land use planning up to 2011, with longer-term visions through to 2016, many of the policies and proposals outlined in the following pages will continue to influence many aspects of community life in the North East for well into the new century.

It is therefore more important than ever that this document integrates the visions, principles, aims and targets of the groups and organisations whose decisions influence where we live and work, how we travel and shop, and how we preserve our quality of life.

We have called this new plan "North East Scotland Together" to reflect our desire for all sectors of the community to contribute towards, and benefit from, a shared vision of the future.

This finalised document is the result of an extensive consultation process going back to 1998. Three years of wide-ranging debate, analysis and policy-making are now encapsulated in the following pages, which have the formal approval of the North East’s two local authorities, Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council.

The central theme of the plan is "connecting communities" – finding better ways of giving people access to the services and facilities they need in a healthy and safe environment. This has meant looking very closely at how the different parts of the North East relate to, influence and depend on each other.

We must remember that housing supply, transport problems, industrial development, shopping changes, conservation and many other headline-grabbing issues are not simply isolated local challenges. They can only be successfully tackled by enabling sustainable development throughout the area, by supporting social inclusion and by working in effective partnerships towards achieving the aims outlined in the following pages.