Thousands of attractive homes when contaminated land is cleaned up

Published 3 July 2024 at 13.50

Domestic. Remediation of contaminated land enables housing construction on already developed areas. Over 3,000 homes can now be built in 13 counties with the help of government funding from the Environmental Protection Agency – without the need to use virgin land. Often in attractive locations near water.

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As our cities grow, many polluted areas have suddenly become interesting.

The areas are often deserted because the land is contaminated by, among other things, old industrial operations and landfills. Proximity to water has been important for the previous activities, which has led to the fact that today there are many attractive beach plots that cannot be used – if they are not remediated.

Remediation of contaminated land is time-consuming and very costly. If no one responsible can be held accountable for the pollution, municipalities with such areas can apply for state funds from the Environmental Protection Agency. Until today, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency has financed 26 clean-up measures for housing construction.

The inner harbor in Norrköping is one such example. Parts of the new residential area were previously one of Östergötland's most polluted places. A remnant from previous gas production. A completely new district is now being created here. The state-funded cleanup has enabled 850 of the 3,000 new homes in the area. At the same time, the pollution does not spread to the immediate area, for example to the nearby Motala stream.

In this case, the government contribution has been absolutely decisive as the costs for the necessary clean-up work have been very high. The new district is one of the largest housing projects completed in Norrköping in 50 years.

The gains from the remediation are more than attractive areas becoming available for housing construction. Existing green areas in cities and urban areas are not used, which is otherwise often the case, which favors access to nature close to everyday life, which is important for public health.

So far, the remediation measures for housing construction financed by the Environmental Protection Agency have contributed to nearly 80 hectares of land have been able to be reused.

Remediation of contaminated land also prevents dangerous substances from spreading.

Until 2023, land has been remediated to enable the construction of approximately 3,300 homes in 13 counties, with with the help of government funding.

Planned housing construction by county, on previously contaminated land:

Dalarna: 107
Jämtland: 300
Jönköping: 136
Kalmar : 305
Kronoberg: 108
Norrbotten: 220
Scania: 179
Stockholm: 500
Västernorrland: 75
Västmanland: 268
Västra Götaland : 228
Örebro: 30
Östergötland: 850
Total: 3,306

Source: Environmental Protection Agency