In reviewing guidelines and policies in other jurisdictions it became apparent that Canada was well behind the approaches of European countries in their evaluation of both low-impact (i.e. Excluded) facilities as well as purpose-built antenna system structures. The Antenna Siting Design Framework when combined with the CRINS-SINRC Reference Protocol responses to concern from Members that low-impact or Excluded facilities are not subject to local government planning policy and assessment procedures which can influence the visual outcome of proposed developments.
The UK Traffic Light Model formed the preliminary foundation for the development of the ASDF. However, the Traffic Light Model was designed as a risk mitigation tool for Proponents and did not reflect the full breadth of potential proponents which in Canada include public safety, institutional, and private commercial facilities nor did it provide practical guidance regarding how to design antenna systems that deliver better visual outcomes, nor does it provide a process to assist with the documentation and assessment of the landscape context.
The ASDF project has established that there is a clear relationship between the landscape context and the proposed development and that the resulting visual effect is influenced by the level of compatibility between the two. There is no other transparent, structured process that is available to planners, proponents and their consultants which enables the documentation and assessment of the landscape context of a proposed antenna system and results in the identification of a framework that can guide the design of the proposed facility in response to this assessment process.