So far, it has only been possible to get an overview of the Norwegian development plans that are covered by the Planning and Building Act.
In order to get a complete overview of the actual development plans, the Norwegian Environment Agency has created a new mapping solution that includes everyone legislation.
The new overview therefore includes several of the measures that otherwise “disappear” from the Norwegian nature account, be it wind power plants, power lines, solar power areas and forest roads.
The map solution is published in one searchable edition during the day, but NRK has had a sneak peek of everything.
In total, the map shows that the development plans add up to almost 4,000 square kilometres.
- This corresponds to the area of Norway’s 100 largest lakes
- Or with another picture: An average residential plot (700 m²) per person
- Cabins account for one quarter of the planned downsizing
– Too much development is planned
– The speech is clear. Too much development is planned, says climate minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen (Ap).
NRK has previously documented that 44,000 interventions have been made in Norwegian nature in the last five years.
The Minister of State announces no “war” against the development of cabins, but is aware that the “bit-by-bit dismantling” of Norwegian nature cannot continue.
– Cabins can and should be given lower priority in order to reduce the total loadhe says.
Instead, the climate minister will strike a blow for more power development:
– If there is one type of land use change we should prioritize over others, then it is the development of renewable energy.
– Within these new figures, there is a lot of downsizing that can be dropped or moved to save nature and make room for the development of more renewable energy, says climate minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen (Ap).
Photo: Javad Parsa / NTB
The government has previously announced a nature account and an action plan for nature.
The new action plan is due in the autumn, and will show Norway’s follow-up to the nature agreement that was signed in Montreal in 2022.
This is what the new map solution for the Norwegian Environment Agency looks like.
– A cross of thought that we set aside more space for cabins than for power purposes
The Norwegian Environment Agency clarifies that the figure “gives a snapshot” and that it is not a given that all plans will be implemented or that all applications will be approved.
– For example, more wind power plants are expected in the future, but we also see that several municipalities are looking at old development plans with new lenses, says ddirector of the Norwegian Environment Agency, Ellen Hambro.
In March, NRK reported that Kommune-Noreg is “stepping up its efforts against nature loss”.
The background was that a record number of municipalities (83) applied for money to “clean up” old spatial plans.
The Norwegian Continental Shelf Directorate was recently criticized for interfering with politics in its domain when they made statements about future oil extraction.
The director of the environment is therefore taking no chances:
– Now I have to be careful with what I say, but for me it is a cross of thought that we set aside more space for cabins than for power purposes, she says.
Dan Robert Larsen
Lars Haltbrekken, SV
– So much construction is planned in Norway now that we are in the process of destroying nature forever. This simply does not work anymore. It is high time to stop the destruction, and we would like to have an eternal halt in cabin construction. But we have to start somewhere, and therefore we are now proposing a construction time-out until 2030. I expect the climate minister to take this seriously.
William Jobling / NRK
Sofie Marhaug, Raudt
– This overview should set alarm bells ringing for politicians. We don’t need most new cabins, and we don’t need to forcefully destroy nature either. In recent years, it has been energy development that has accounted for most of the downsizing in non-interventionist nature. Both cabins and wind power are piece-by-piece demolition and constitute a threat to natural diversity – we must say stop!
Mats Rønning
Arild Hermstad, MDG
– The government should set up a crisis team and come up with measures that put a stop to the downsizing. It provokes me that they have not put forward a single concrete measure, and that the climate minister is using the opportunity to warn of further destruction of nature. We need more protection, and as an urgent measure the government could introduce land neutrality on its own projects and remove projects that are harmful to nature from the plans of the municipalities.
Young Left
Omar Svendsen-Yagci, 2nd deputy leader of Unge Venstre
– The Minister of the Environment behaves like most people, and Municipality-Norway promotes self-harm when you destroy nature, but reject wind power developments. We must put an end to the home eel party in Municipality-Norway. Norwegian municipal politicians have not taken their responsibility seriously. It is self-inflicted that one has allowed the destruction of nature for leisure plots and new cabin fields, while badly needed renewable energy is shelved.
Ruby Griffin Solheim / Nature and Youth
Gytis Blaževičius, head of Nature and Youth.
– This only shows what the environmental movement has been saying all along: We lack a comprehensive plan that can ensure that we do not destroy more nature than we can afford to lose. We are forced to put immediate measures in place to prevent unnecessary development. This means, among other things, stopping all new cabin development, and introducing stricter national guidelines for the degradation of nature.
During the day, the Norwegian Environment Agency will publish a map solution where you can go in and see what is planned to be developed in “your” area.
Lost nature while reading this case:
