By the fjord: successful public and private collaboration in a neighbourhood redevelopment project in Norway

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and study the green procurement processes in the new and ongoing neighbourhood-building project named ‘Fjordbyen’ in Norway. The purpose behind this study is to look at how Fjordbyen approached these processes in order to contribute to the pool of knowledge on this topic. The Fjordbyen project is located on the shoreline in the Drammensfjord and represents in effect the development of a new neighbourhood. This new development aims to settle at least 16 000 new residents and 16 000 jobs in a zero-emission urban area that is green and future oriented. The topic is addressed by using a case study approach. The data for this paper were collected through a combination of desk research, a study of secondary data such as document studies (reports, documents from websites etc.), two citizen surveys and four interviews with the key personnel involved in the front-end planning process of the Fjordbyen project. Through a combination of urban planning and typological considerations, green procurement was conducted in the context of ensuring that not just greener products were purchased but also green supply chains were managed, as were the ‘grassroots’ development processes themselves. The finding of this study has an impact on the consideration of processes leading towards green procurement in urban and city development projects. This is particularly the case with regard to pushing even further research on the value and challenges associated with green procurement processes.