2 The County Durham Context.
2.1 County Durham is a mainly rural county with large areas of agricultural land and moorland. The County covers an area of 223,000 hectares, of which some 200,000 hectares (90%) is agricultural land. County Durham’s population in 2001 was 493,470 and is forecast to fall to 488,769 by 2016.
2.2 The main population centres, including Durham City, Chester-le-Street, Crook, Consett, Stanley, Peterlee, Seaham, Spennymoor, Shildon, Bishop Auckland and Newton Aycliffe, are located in the centre and east of the County. The west of the County, to the west of the A68, mainly comprises the upper valleys of the River Wear and the River Tees, covering approximately half the County. The population is mainly in small towns and villages with the main centre being Barnard Castle with a population of around 5,000.
2.3 The conurbation of Tyne and Wear and the County of Northumberland lie to the north of the County, Cumbria is to the west and to the south are Darlington, Teesside and North Yorkshire.
Picture 2.1 County Durham (Popup full image)
2.4 The County’s economy has undergone a major restructuring in recent decades, predominantly due to the decline of the coal industry. The main transport routes through the County, the A1(M), the A19(T) the A66 and the East Coast Main Line are the economic arteries for the County.
2.5 The County is rich in minerals, the extraction of which has, in the past created opportunities for landfill. However, the Magnesian Limestone Escarpment which extends throughout the eastern most part of the County is a major aquifer which will restrict future waste activity.
2.6 County Durham exhibits a very wide range of landscapes from the Pennine uplands and the Pennine fringe in the west, through the lowland plains and valleys of its major rivers to the limestone plateau and coast in the east. Included in these are some of the most attractive landscapes in northern England. The County also has an increasing number of protected wildlife sites of County, national and international significance and supports a variety of protected species.