1 Introduction
Sustainable development is a holistic concept that considers both the immediate and distant future of a region's or the world's ecology and development. It contends that the future is at stake and that we must act now to protect it (Blowers, 2016). The concept may be interpreted in a variety of ways. Still, the fundamental idea at its core is to balance various, sometimes competing, requirements while keeping in mind global environmental, social, and economic constraints (MyBayut, 2018). This report will assess a development plan based on the sustainability assessment method Sustainability assessment is a complex appraisal method carried out for development plans, it is conducted to support decision-making and policy in a broad environmental, economic, and social context and transcends a purely technical/ scientific evaluation (Sala, Ciuffo, and Nijkamp, 2015).
In simple terms, a strategy that may assist decision-makers and policymakers in determining what actions to take and which to avoid, making society more sustainable. Sustainability Appraisal Frameworks are tools used in the evaluation process These frameworks will include several goals, indicators, and targets for evaluation. At the very least, a solid framework will cover the environmental, social, and economic aspects (Borough, n.d.). The site chosen is in Stockholm, Sweden, known as Hammarby Sjostad. For this evaluation, we will use the city plan of Stockholm, which has covered both national sustainable and environmental policies of Sweden which aim toward sustainable development for the city. This report is an advisory document that will determine whether the site follows the nation’s sustainable policies and can proceed with development.
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Figure 1 Massing model of the chosen site Hammarby Sjostad (Source: City of Stockholm Urban Planning administration, 2018)
2 Site description
Hammarby Sjöstad, or "Hammarby Lake City," is a proposed sustainable, ecologically friendly, mixed-use development that would take up 150 hectares (hectares) of land just near Stockholm's historic downtown (Manna, 2015). The project demonstrates how a former industrial site may be redeveloped sustainably into residential, commercial, and recreational space, which can be seen as an organic extension of Stockholm's downtown (Foletta and Field, 2011). Midway through the twentieth century, the area was home to Stockholm's former industries. The city started to worry about the lake and surrounding area becoming polluted because of these industries (Foletta and Field, 2011)
Stockholm's City Planning Administration has a policy of redeveloping abandoned industrial and brownfield lands into mixed-use neighborhoods with aesthetically pleasing parks and public green spaces (Manna, 2015) The redevelopment was inspired by Stockholm's quest to host the 2004 Summer Olympics. The original plan for Hammarby Sjöstad included it as part of a sustainable Olympic Village but later failed to win the bid for the Olympics and was designed to be built as a sustainable neighborhood (Manna, 2015).
Hammarby has been designed based on the existing transportation network and will have excellent pedestrian infrastructure, including an extensive bicycle network, ferries, trams, and buses. It also accommodates a public boulevard that runs throughout the master plan, acting as a socially cohesive and transit-oriented neighborhood. The site will promote the concept of Stockholm’s walkable city
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Figure 2 location map of Hammarby Sjostad (Source: Digimap, 2022 ).
3 Details of the proposed development
There will be 10,000 homes in the area for its estimated 25,000 inhabitants. The City of Stockholm has strict environmental criteria for construction, infrastructure, and traffic flow The plan for HammarbySjöstadwastocreateasustainableneighborhoodwithdoubletheefficiencyofatypical neighborhood. The transportation goal is for 80% of all journeys undertaken by residents and workers in Hammarby Sjöstad to use either public transportation, walking, or bicycling.
The master plan is split into 12 subdivisions. (Baltic Urban Lab, 2018). To develop an architecturally distinct community, private-sector architects and planners are challenged to propose sub-neighborhood plans (Baltic Urban Lab, 2018). All submissions are reviewed, and the most desirable characteristics are integrated into the master plan. Schools, daycares, post offices, banks, stores, clinics, a gas station with both conventional and biogas, a youth center, a hotel, and a few restaurants will be accessible in the neighborhood. The central boulevard is where you will find most of the city's amenities, and it's designed with pedestrians and cyclists in mind and accessibility to public transport (Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015).
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Figure 3 shows the proposed site masterplan (Source: Manna, 2015)
4 Sustainable development policies
The quest for social and economic advancement has coincided with a pace of change in the natural environment that is unmatched (Hezri and Nordin Hasan, 2006). A corresponding evolution has accompanied this shift in governmental responses to new environmental challenges (Hezri and Nordin Hasan, 2006). The city of Stockholm has developed its local development plan in relation to the country’s (Sweden) national policies. Stockholm’s City Plan sets out the main direction forurban developmentoverthenext 25years.Thegoals arelinkedto thecity’svision and sustainable development goals and are to act as support in all city's planning and urban development.
In this report, we will use the city plan to assess the neighborhood development of Hammarby. The following goals and policies are directly relevant to assessing the site’s sustainability.
Policy 1 - Infill development and revitalization
Policy 2 - Cohesive city
Policy 3 - Towards a fossil fuel-free city 2040
Policy 4 - Efficient use of energy
Policy 5 - Stockholm’s water program
Policy 6 - Greener Stockholm
Policy 7 - Social Equity
Policy 8 - EU’s waste hierarchy
Policy 9 - Heritage environments in a growing city
Policy 10 - Culture
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5 Assessment or officer observations
The City of Stockholm's existing notion of sustainable development, Vision 2030, serves as the basis for the proposed City Plan (Stockholm City Plan, 2018) The City Plan's proposed planning goalsandmethodsincludethegovernment'spriorityareas andsustainabledevelopmentobjectives, which will be used to assess the neighborhood.
5.1 Infill development and revitalization
5.1.1 Effective land use
There must be an efficient use of land in urban planning if we're going to meet the obligation to improve accessibility. Underutilized land offers great potential for future urban development in Stockholm, including brownfield sites in former industrial and port districts and over-dimensioned traffic zones inside and between the city's many neighborhoods (Stockholm City Plan, 2018). This helps control the spread of urban areas and encourages the use of capital to clean up areas damaged by industry. Consequently, it is a crucial step toward a more cohesive, adaptable, and sustainable urban future (Oliveira e Costa, Aaltonen and Rusanen, 2018)
The chosen site is a prime example of effective land use, where the site has been remediated and processed for further development. Hammarby Sjöstad is an excellent example of an application of this strategy. Before development, all the soil was sanitized. The City of Stockholm's soil remediation efforts is a minor cost compared to the many benefits of building in the urban core. Additionally, the water andenergy(electricity,districtheatingand cooling) technologies may be more easily included in the city's preexisting infrastructure thanks to this planning method (Jernberg, Hedenskog and Huang, 2015)
The proposal satisfies policy 1
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Figure 4 showing the site before development and sanitization of soil (Source: Andrea Gaffney et al., 2007)
5.2 Cohesive city
The city plan's overarching objective is to improve the quality of life for Stockholm's residents by enforcing a policy of cohesive city through which all the city's neighborhoods are linked and easily accessible. For a city to function as a social unit, its residents must be able to mingle with those from various neighborhoods freely and walks of life (Stockholm CityPlan,2018). Access to sports facilities, green spaces, and opportunities to enjoy physical outdoor pursuits are important in maintaining a physically active population The city requires the following structural adjustments so that residents may live in a socially cohesive neighbourhood.
5.2.1 Network of urban spaces
Connected streets, alleys, and public squares make it easier for city dwellers to explore the many different neighborhoods and amenities their own city has to offer (Stockholm City Plan, 2018).
Hammarby has been designed in a way where it is well interconnected with the public network of the city and has spread out its different land uses throughout the neighborhood with a good street network
The proposal satisfies the goal of a good network of urban spaces.
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Figure 5 plan showing the social interaction within the neighborhood (Source: Almaraz, 2013).
5.2.2 Good public access / Mixed urban environments
Urban renewal of Stockholm's public areas (such as its streets, squares, parks, and corridors) will be a primary focus of city planners in the next years. Every community needs attractive and wellmaintained public places. The foundation of a democratic and egalitarian society is the availability of welcoming and secure public spaces that do not discriminate based on age, gender, or physical ability. Within a 500-meter radius of the building's front door, all apartments shall have access to at least six different amenities to create a mixed urban environment. Access to green areas must be evenly dispersed within a 500-meter radius (Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015).
Even though public green areas in Hammarby account for 19% of the total area, there is plenty of room for expansion. The target is 25 square meters of open space per person. This amounts to 650,000 square meters of common area for all Hammarby inhabitants.
The proposal satisfies the goal of a good public space and a diverse urban environment.
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Figure 6 plan showing the green spaces within the neighborhood (Source: Almaraz, 2013)
5.3 Towards a fossil fuel free city 2040
Stockholm is to be fossil-fuel-free by 2040. The City Council has set up a milestone target for emissions of no more than 2.3 tonnes of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalents) per resident by 2020.
Hammarby is well on its way to achieving its goal of net zero by 2040, following are the objectives of the Hammarby model –
• To reduce car dependency, the site was strategically located based on the available public transport system (Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015).
• The master plan has been designed with an excellent bicycle network, including connectivity to the ferries (Foletta and Field, 2011).
• The whole residential and commercial area of Hammarby Sjöstad will be heated by district heating.
The proposal satisfies the goal of a fossil fuel city by 2040.
5.4 Efficient use of energy
The most effective way to reduce the use of fossil fuels to produce district heating and achieve net zero is to gradually replace them with renewable energy (Landahl et al., 2016).
• 50% of energy will be recovered from waste (Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015).
• 0.5% rooftop solar will be used for heating supply, not district heating
• Approximately 80% of the total energy used will be renewable.
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Figure 7 shows the Hammarby model developed for the efficient use and production of energy and resources (Source: Manna, 2015)
Such a high investment in renewable energy within the project must have a good energy output. There is a lack of considerationfor energy efficiencyand occupant comfort in theexisting building layout, which faces Lake Hammarby to maximize views (Grannis and Cohen, 2020) Due to the proposed facades and aesthetics, the ventilation and orientation of the blocks have been compromised, which might lead to poor circulation of air, in turn raising temperatures which will increase cooling demand. The architectural design is also such that it does not have any shading devices, which again will increase the demand for cooling energy.
In an efficient design, optimal sun exposure may be achieved if a building is situated within 30 degrees of straight South.
It is also important for architects to include shading devices in the facade design, which will keep the inside cool during the summer and let in natural light during the winter.
It is a standard method used in passive solar design to accomplish the same goal of lowering energy costs. This building arrangement has the potential to minimize energy consumptionin thehome whencoupled with other passive solar design concepts.
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Figure 8 demonstrates how some of Hammarby Sjöstad's buildings can be moved about to maximize efficiency (source: Grannis and Cohen, 2020, edited by the author)
Figure 9 showing an illustration of passive shading (source: Grannis and Cohen, 2020)
5.5 Stockholm’s water program
Stockholm's lakes and waterways should be appealing recreational zones with high water quality (Stockholm City Plan, 2018).
Hammarby follows the water program, which has proposed a good system to recharge the surrounding lake and designed a good waterfront area to improve the cohesive nature of the neighborhood. The above map indicates the social water interfaces.
The proposal satisfies policy 5 of Stockholm’s water program.
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Figure 10 shows the plan of water interfaces with the proposed plan of Hammarby (Source: Almaraz, 2013)
5.6 Greener Stockholm
Nature reserves and other measures of protection, in addition to a voluntary set-aside of forest property by owners, are required to sustain significant forest ecosystems (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 2018, p.26). Forest areas need restoration or management to improve their value (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 2018, p.26). Urban-fringe woods and other forests with significant numbers of visitors may have to be maintained using strategies oriented to make them more appealing and accessible (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, 2018, p.26).
The proposal of Hammarby has well incorporated the natural forest area and has tried to revive the available wildlife area with the public realm of the neighborhood.
The proposal satisfies policy 6 of Greener Stockholm.
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Figure 11 shows the plan of Landscape and Ecology (Source: Almaraz, 2013).
5.7 Social Equity
Stockholm has a mixed population in which nationality, education, occupational background, and age vary. At the same time, there is physical and socioeconomic segregation between different areas of the city, as described by the Commission for a Socially Sustainable Stockholm in several reports (Stockholm City Plan, 2018). The consequence of increasing residential segregation is that people with different backgrounds and different socioeconomic circumstances tend to encounter each other less and less frequently as they go about their daily lives, which in turn reduces trust and mutual understanding (Stockholm City Plan, 2018).
This is a global issue since the new environmentally friendly design is excessively pricey views (Grannis and Cohen, 2020). Building Hammarby Sjostad will cost 20 billion SEK, so it's not surprising that residents would have to pay a premium price for a home with their views (Grannis and Cohen, 2020). Nevertheless, the city's planners should implement a mechanism to address this socioeconomic injustice. The savings on upkeep and energy costs might offset other expenses. Due to the emphasis on environmentally and aesthetically responsible practices, social responsibility is neglected.
To avoid the issue of social segregation where poor people are marginalized in such expensive neighborhoods,weneedtotakepriorprecautions.Sustainabilitycannotbeimplementedonabroad enoughscaleifthecostisunaffordable.Iproposesubsidizing 40%ofHammarbySjostad'shousing stock as a means of addressing the problem at hand. The cost savings from using the Hammarby model concerning energy production (electricity, water, and garbage) might be used to subsidize this program. A more welcoming community would result from mandating this subsidy. A more equitable and, by extension, greener place might be achieved by promoting an understanding of the subsidies' needs and a broader commitment to equality.
The proposal will have to implement subsidized housing for the poor to fulfill the goal of social equity within the neighborhood.
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5.8 EU’s waste hierarchy
Stockholm’s waste management plan is based on the EU’s waste hierarchy which entails the prevention of waste, preparing for reuse, recycling, energy recovery, and, as a last resort, disposal in a landfill (Stockholm City Plan, 2018). However, in Hammarby, a system known as eco waste will be adopted where the waste eco-cycle uses waste that is transported through an underground piping system and converted to energy (Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015). The flows below show how waste is used cyclically rather than merely disposed of at a landfill.
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Figure 12 is an image showing the different uses of waste generation (Source: Jernberg, Hedenskog, and Huang, 2015). The proposal satisfies the goal of Stockholm’s waste hierarchy policy.
5.9 Heritage environments in a growing city
InStockholm, therearemanydifferent built environments andstructures thathavebeendesignated as having historical significance. Culturally significant and aesthetically significant architecture is an asset in urban planning (Stockholm City Plan,2018). All future construction in Stockholm must contribute to the city's image and the quality of life for all residents (Stockholm City Plan, 2018). To provide a positive first impression, the built environment and construction activities must be appropriately planned and positioned on the intended land, considering the streetscape, landscape, and natural and cultural assets on the site.
InHammarby,theprojecthasnotretainedanyhistoricalaspectsofthelocationofpreviously being an industrial area or a site that bid for the Rio Olympics. Therefore, the developers must try to retain buildings of historical importance and create a style of architecture that responds to Stockholm.
The proposal must try to retain historical buildings and propose a design responding to Stockholm’s architecture.
5.10 Culture
Stockholm is thenation’s cultural center, with many museums, national theatres, and other cultural institutions. Stockholm's diversity of cultural practitioners lends breadth and bite to the city’s arts scene. Stockholmers want their culture to be diverse in terms of content and venue. There needs to be access to cultural provision and opportunities to get involved in culture and the arts across the whole city. Applying the “one percent” rule increases access to public art. Under the rule, one percent of the project budget for newbuilds, redevelopments, and extensions in the City of Stockholm is to be set aside for artistic endeavors
Hammarby has no designated location within the master plan where it has dedicated spaces for cultural activities this strategy of the one percent rule can be applied where the budget can be used and strategically implemented within the neighborhood for artistic endeavors, which helps enhance and retain the culture of the region.
The proposal must allocate one percent of the project’s budget towards artistic implementations.
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6 Recommendation
It is suggested that Permission be issued subject to the requirements listed below:
1. The proposed orientation of buildings and solar panels must be relooked at and changed to maximize solar and energy efficiency.
2. Shading structures on the facade must be implemented, as it is a need for the protection of occupants from the sun during the hotter months and the admission of natural light during the darker months and will also improve energy efficiency.
3. The proposal will have to implement subsidized housing for the poor up to 40% to fulfill the goal of social equity within the neighborhood.
4. The proposal must examine and try to retain historical buildings and propose a design responding to Stockholm’s architecture to retain its heritage.
5. The proposal must allocate one percent of the project’s budget towards artistic implementations to improve the cultural aspect of the neighborhood.
7 Conclusion
The community of Hammarby, located in Stockholm, Sweden, is an excellent proposal for applying sustainable development, where it has incorporated almost every strategy to tackle both sustainable and environmental aspects. This project can be one of the leading examples of sustainability. However, certain issues need to be addressed in terms of inclusive nature, where these high-end projects usually marginalize the poor.
The proposal must reconsider its orientation to maximize energy efficiency as it heavily invests in renewable energy (solar panels on the roof). Another aspect that the developers ignore is that there is no evidence left of the heritage and culture of the place, and provisions must be made to retain the cultural aspects of the area and its country. The permission for the development can be granted once the proposal has fulfilled the required strategies for a better sustainable community.
Total word count – 3150 (Excluding recommendations).
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8 References
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