The Swedish wasteland that's now a sustainability star

Gas and electricity come from a range of renewable sources including solar panels and biogas. Some of the biogas is extracted from sewage sludge from the area's water treatment plant, where rainwater, storm water and melt water from snow and ice are processed locally. Residents sort their rubbish into categories and put it in outdoor chutes which suck the waste underground to a central storage point.

You’re Temporarily Blocked

Combustible waste is burned and turned into further biogas powering some of the city's buses. Public transport, including wide cycle lanes and wooden boulevards hugging the water's edge, a tram line, buses and a free ferry service, is designed to discourage commuting by car. But in order to understand the project's impact, you need to wind the clock back to the early s when it was still an industrial wasteland, known locally for pollution and social problems. Anything we wanted to get rid of we burnt it or threw it in the sea. The land was originally going to be housing for the city's ageing population, but then became an eco-village as part of Stockholm's bid to host the Olympics on a green ticket. While Stockholm failed to get the Olympics it continued to champion sustainability. The evolution of Hammarby Sjöstad helped it win the European Commission's first Green Capital of Europe award in and become recognised as a best-practice example of green urban policy-making by the World Bank and others.

Commonly cited reasons for its success include Stockholm's relative wealth compared to other cities, and an ongoing nationwide focus on green issues. Sweden's latest goal is to become a net zero greenhouse gas emitter by , with Hammarby Sjöstad aiming to get there by There has also been a much higher degree of co-operation here, between different state agencies and private companies, than in previous projects. While "it wasn't easy", he says being in such close proximity helped them tackle disagreements and "created a new model for city planning, which we still benefit from". The approach has influenced several other projects, the latest of which is Stockholm Royal Seaport, with plans for at least 12, new homes and 35, workspaces. Meanwhile the original eco-district is continuing to innovate with a renewed focus on the sharing economy - by encouraging people to use communal car, bicycle and DIY tool pools and installing more than electric vehicle charging points.

But there is some criticism of using the Hammarby Model as a perfect blueprint. Josefin Wangel says that while the area now operates in a highly sustainable way, that doesn't include its construction phase. That is something that I would like to see future sustainable urban districts pick up. Also, thanks to high property prices and rental fees social mixing has been limited, so most residents are "upper middle class", Ms Wangel argues. But she denies sustainability is something only rich countries can invest in. Just how much sustainability has become ingrained in Sweden is evident in the redevelopment of the area's old hosiery factory, Trikafabriken. As dozens of workers in yellow hard hats buzz around the building, the property is getting a visit from Mia Häggström, head of sustainability for Fabege, the real estate company leading the initiative. Building firms are helped by the fact that banks and lending institutions can offer more favourable terms for projects with an environmental focus, she says.

But even countries without this infrastructure could be making use of the sustainable materials and methods that have become standardised in Sweden, argues Ms Häggström. Image source, Getty Images.

The Swedish wasteland that's now a sustainability star

Can Hammarby Sjöstad really offer a template for green urban living? Färgaregatan 4, Göteborg. Max Öberg Man 21 år. Bålstavägen 11, Bålsta. Christopher Öberg Man 22 år. Apelgatan 4, Uppsala. John Öberg Man 29 år.

Request Rejected

Vendergatan 10, Kungälv. Sebastian Öberg Man 42 år. Hofsta Görelsberg 3, Björkvik. Albin Öberg Man 27 år. Salagatan 10 A, Enköping. Niclas Öberg Man 38 år. Aringsåsvägen 48 B, Alvesta. Peter Öberg Man 35 år.

Request Rejected

Stagneliusvägen 36, Stockholm. Tobias von Krusenstierna Öberg Man 19 år. Vidjavägen 5, Farsta. Malcolm Edén Öberg Man 24 år. Bergendorffsgatan 8 G, Karlstad. Lukas Öberg Man 21 år. Prästgårdsvägen 8, Bålsta. John Öberg Man 31 år. Västergarn Mafrids , Gotlands Tofta. Emilio Öberg Man 28 år. Storgatan 34, Nybro. Dan Öberg Liedman Man 38 år.