Few contemporary issues have received as much sustained attention as the deterioration of the quality of our natural environment and, particularly, the need to manage the trade‐off between economic growth and the quality of that environment. This paper discusses research currently under way to develop a land‐use planning methodology that will help planners address the trade‐offs between environmental quality and economic development. The methodology is used to evaluate the social, economic, and environmental impact of alternative land‐use plans. The methodology consists of a regional analysis submodel and a site analysis submodel. The first component is based on an expanded input‐output analysis incorporating land use, resource inputs, and waste‐emission outputs. The second component is an empirical analysis based on the specific suitability and compatibility of proposed land‐use development packages. The land‐use planning model developed is applied to a case‐study area centered on Charleston, South Carolina.