Norway’s Zero-Emissions District Could Revolutionize Urban Planning

The town of Bergen, Norway, has welcomed a revolutionary eco-friendly development plan that aims to reclaim an old logistic port and ferry terminal.

With help from architects in neighboring Denmark, the plan is to transform a 40-hectare site into a shared residential and commercial space.

But the twist in the plans comes from the idea that all building materials have to be renewable, all energy supply has to be renewable, and all buildings have to produce zero emissions.

Arch Daily had some insights from the architects about connecting the new urban space with nature.

“The plan introduces a new, urban allmenning, an innovative climate streetscape based on an interpretation of the unique public spaces that intersect the city of Bergen. As the team states, "it ensures a strong relation to the existing qualities of the urban fabric and connects the locations that are characteristic of the Bergen DNA." The second element is a nature-based loop connecting natural waterfront with surrounding green areas. The result is a large, green and publicly accessible urban space.”

Two things stand out the most for me.

First of all, this project aims to make urban spaces work with nature, not the other way round.

And secondly, the scale of the project is not just a small trial area. It’s a sizable city development that will become home to thousands of people.