Environmental compensation as a policy tool in Swedish municipal planning

In the struggle to reach the national environmental policy objectives, environmental compensation has emerged as a possible policy tool that may contribute to achieving the objectives. In Sweden, environmental compensation is legally mandated mainly in cases of exploitation within Natura 2000 areas and nature reserves, which is handled through the Swedish Environmental Code. In contrast, regulatory support is weak when it comes to compensation for impacts arising from municipal development (e.g., housing, schools, hospitals, local roads, etc), even though detailed development planning is required through the Planning and Building Act. Despite this, some municipalities have voluntarily mainstreamed environmental compensation into their planning processes. In the research project ”MuniComp” (2018-2020) we investigate the more progressive use of environmental compensation in planning in two Southern Swedish municipalities, Lomma and Helsingborg (in the province of Skane). We analyze the models and processes of compensation used, and planning cases where compensation have been applied, in terms of general aspects and criteria for environmental compensation and in light of the constraints of the Swedish legislative context. In the presentation, the compensation models and some of the results from the compensation cases will be presented. (Less)