In recent years, wooden buildings have reached new heights, with tall skyscrapers made from the material completed or underway in countries such as Norway, Switzerland and Australia.
Singapore can lay claim to Asia’s largest wooden building, with a sprawling 43,478 square meter university campus, which opened in May.
Now, real estate developer Atrium Ljungberg has announced plans to build the world’s largest “wooden city” in Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, starting in 2025.
Stockholm Wood City will have 7,000 offices and 2,000 homes in the southeast of the city and will offer “a vibrant urban environment with a mix of workspaces, residences, restaurants and shops,” according to a press release.
In a space of 250,000 square meters, the city was described by its developer as the “largest known wooden construction project in the world”.
The project is being built in Sickla, a neighborhood that is already home to more than 400 businesses, according to Atrium Ljungberg, which owns a commercial park on the former industrial site.
The developer describes the area as a “five-minute town,” meaning that workplaces, homes, leisure facilities, and amenities would all be within a five-minute walk of each other.
Wood has been championed as a sustainable alternative to concrete and steel, with ambitious new construction projects using wood beyond family homes and modest residential or office buildings.
A mixed-use development of this size would, however, be “a historic milestone for Swedish innovation capability,” Annica Ånäs, CEO of Atrium Ljungberg, said in a statement.
While some experts have raised concerns about the fire hazards posed by wooden buildings, advocates argue that engineered wood burns at a relatively slow and predictable rate, making it safer than many conventional steel structures.
Wood is also a “carbon sink”, meaning that the carbon dioxide removed from the air by trees is stored in the material rather than being returned to the atmosphere.
Wooden buildings enjoy better indoor air quality and can be built with significantly lower carbon emissions than those made with conventional materials. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature estimated that building enough mid-rise wooden buildings to house 90% of the city’s new residents between now and 2100 would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 106 gigatons (the planet currently emits about 40 gigatons per year).
A transformation of this magnitude would require sustainable timber plantations, so as not to cause deforestation. But Sweden is a country primed to innovate with wood, with nearly 70% of its land covered in forests.
The real estate sector has a huge carbon footprint and is responsible for just under 40% of global emissions, according to consultancy McKinsey. Atrium Ljungberg said it hopes to build a model for other developers by being a “catalyst of innovation”.
“Our industry leaves a big mark and it’s important for us to make a positive difference in both the short and long term,” said Ånäs.
The first buildings in Stockholm Wood City, which are being designed by architecture firms White Arkitekter and Henning Larsen, are due for completion in 2027.
Source: CNN Brasil
Charles Grill is a tech-savvy writer with over 3 years of experience in the field. He writes on a variety of technology-related topics and has a strong focus on the latest advancements in the industry. He is connected with several online news websites and is currently contributing to a technology-focused platform.
