11. Sustainable cities and communities

Global urbanisation is taking place and growing cities create new opportunities for economic growth, but can also contribute to increasing social inequalities and pressures on ecosystems. As a result, migration to cities creates new demands that need to be met in an ecologically, economically and socially sustainable way. Sustainable urban development encompasses sustainable construction and planning, including housing, transport systems and public spaces such as parks and squares. It also addresses the environmental impacts of cities, such as air quality and waste management. In Sweden, substandard and unsafe housing is not as big a problem as in other parts of the world, but there are challenges around housing shortages and segregation.

The goal in a local context

The challenges that exist at the national level are also felt in Malmö, not least because Malmö has had a growing population since 1985. These include a housing shortage and residential segregation, pressures on ecosystems and a lack of greenery, the transition to a sustainable and space-efficient transport system and adapting to the increased risk of heatwaves and flooding. Competition for land in the city is a challenge. The City of Malmö can contribute to the fulfilment of the objectives through, for example, how the city is planned, including aspects such as land and water use and transport infrastructure. The municipality also has a statutory responsibility for housing supply.

What it looks like in Malmö

Access to housing

The objective includes ensuring access to affordable housing for all. One form of housing shortage is overcrowding, which means living in a smaller dwelling than is considered necessary for a good standard of living. The proportion of Malmö residents living in overcrowded conditions, according to the National Board of Health and Welfare's guidelines for overcrowding, was 14.5 per cent in 2022. In Malmö, the proportion living in overcrowded conditions is on a par with Gothenburg (14 per cent), higher compared to the country (10 per cent) but lower compared to Stockholm (18 per cent). Since 2012, overcrowding in Malmö has fluctuated between 14.5 and 16 per cent.

Homelessness, which has a significant negative impact on both physical and mental health, is also relevant to the goal of sustainable cities and communities. There are various reasons why a person is homeless. At the individual level, it is often because the person is excluded from the housing market due to social problems and ill health. At a structural level, it is a lack of suitable housing at a cost that is affordable even for people on low incomes.

The City of Malmö uses the National Board of Health and Welfare's definitions of homelessness, and in the statistics a distinction is made between individuals who have long-term and short-term housing solutions. The former means, for example, that an individual lives in accommodation organised by social services. Short-term solutions involve individuals who, for example, are staying with family, relatives and friends, or have second-hand accommodation without a contract or with a temporary contract.

In Malmö, the number of homeless adults and children in short- and long-term accommodation solutions decreased between 2019 and 2023. In 2019, a total of 5 000 adults and children were homeless (2 855 adults and 2 092 children), compared to just over 1 600 people in 2023 (1 288 adults and 322 children), a decrease of almost 70 per cent.

The large decrease in the number of homeless people in Malmö has various explanations. A report from 2020 highlights that changes in the labour market and migration flows can only explain a small part of the reduction in the number of homeless Malmö residents. The high rate of construction seems to have had an effect, mainly by increasing the number of apartments that the technical committee can rent out. Instead, what can explain the largest part of the reduction seems to be the Labour Market and Social Affairs Committee's internal work with new methods for better matching of available housing and improved investigation, follow-up and support for homeless households. In addition, the administration's adaptation to current legal practice, which means that structurally homeless people no longer have access to flats with municipal sublets, also plays a role (Malmö stad, 2020).

The strong population growth in Malmö means a continued great need for new housing. Creating the conditions for a sufficiently high number of new homes is an important task for the City of Malmö. The City of Malmö also aims to increase the opportunities for people on low incomes to gain access to acceptable housing. The public housing sector, in the form of MKB, fulfils an important function here, both by managing housing in different price segments and in different parts of the city, and when new housing is being built. However, the extensive housing construction in the city has contributed to rising prices, as newly built homes are more expensive than older homes. Mallbo, which means Malmö allemansrätt boende, is another example of how the City of Malmö is trying to create apartments with reasonable rents. It is a development project and a partnership between the City of Malmö and housing market actors where new methods of housing construction are being tested to reduce construction costs and thus enable lower rent levels.

Residential segregation

Growing cities create new opportunities for economic growth but can also contribute to widening social gaps. Tackling residential segregation contributes to inclusive and sustainable urbanisation. Segregation is a societal challenge when people's life chances are negatively affected, for example if people of lower socio-economic status are concentrated in neighbourhoods with low accessibility to jobs and a weak social environment. Living or having grown up in deprived neighbourhoods can have long-term consequences for individuals' health, education and income and thus for socio-economic mobility in society. Segregation reduces the social cohesion of cities and general well-being (Boverket, n.d.).

Residential segregation can be calculated based on a so-called inequality index* between 0-100. The higher the value, the higher the segregation. Developments can be compared within the city over time, but the index is not suitable for comparing Malmö with other cities because the size, population composition and geographical conditions differ. Over a ten-year period (2012-2022), income-based segregation in Malmö has fallen from 54.9 to 53. Although this is a small reduction, the trend is therefore in the right direction and Malmö has become slightly less segregated over the last 10 years based on this way of calculating segregation.

*The index measures a dimension of segregation called evenness and is based on two groups in the population, i.e. the entire population of Malmö is not included in the calculation. The index used here indicates how even (or uneven) the distribution of the lowest income group (quintile 1) is between different neighbourhoods in relation to the highest income group (quintile 5). It is the housing patterns of these two groups that are studied in relation to each other. In simple terms, the value of the index can be interpreted in terms of the percentage of Malmö residents with the lowest incomes (quintile 1) who would have to move to other neighbourhoods in order for the proportions between the two groups to be the same throughout the city. If the index has a value of zero, it means that no segregation exists. A value of 100 means total segregation.

The environmental impact of the city

Malmö's population has grown rapidly in recent decades. Between 2015 and 2020, Malmö's population density increased from around 3,700 to 3,900 inhabitants per square kilometre, corresponding to an increase of 6%. Among other things, the increase in population places greater demands on the municipalities' core tasks of supplying quality-assured drinking water and managing wastewater and waste. The risk of poor air quality due to increased transport is also increasing.

The wastewater infrastructure in Malmö and south-western Skåne needs to be expanded and modernised, partly as a result of population growth. Climate change, with more torrential rain and periods of drought, also places new demands. The MAXIMA initiative involves expanding and modernising the water and wastewater infrastructure in south-western Skåne. The initiative will enable continued housing construction and business establishment. MAXIMA will also reduce the negative effects on the environment through modernised wastewater treatment that better purifies the water discharged into the Sound. A more robust and reliable sewerage system will also reduce the risk of discharges of untreated water in the event of torrential rain, known as overflow water (VA SYD, n.d.-1.).

Efficient and climate-neutral waste management is important for the living environment in the city and for reducing the city's environmental impact. The direction for waste management in Malmö has been decided through VA SYD's recycling plan, where the vision is a climate-neutral resource and waste management. Preventing waste, reducing waste and increasing reuse are important measures for transforming the waste system. Reducing the purchase of new materials and products has the greatest effect (VA SYD, n.d.-2.).

Air quality in cities is important for the living environment, partly because it affects the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Airborne particles, known as PM10 and PM2.5, are serious air pollutants that are transported into the body through inhalation. The main sources are the combustion of fuels, including energy production, heating and vehicle traffic. In Malmö, emissions of PM2.5, i.e. particles with a diameter of up to 2.5 micrometres, per inhabitant have decreased by just under 18% between 2015 and 2022. Emissions for Malmö are at a lower level than Stockholm and Gothenburg. This is partly due to the industries located within the municipality's borders.

Air masses with emissions can be transported long distances. This means that reducing emissions in Malmö contributes to better air quality also outside the municipality's borders. It also means that a large part of the measured particle concentrations in Malmö come from emissions on the continent. Ensuring good air quality therefore requires cross-sectoral co-operation and multi-level governance (City of Malmö, 2023a).

Another air pollutant of concern is nitrogen dioxide. Nitrogen dioxide also contributes to eutrophication of water and soil. The main sources of nitrogen dioxide emissions are vehicle traffic, energy production, heating and industries. At the two measurement points in Malmö, the reduction has been 47% (Dalaplan) and 60% (Rådhuset) between 2010 and 2023. Nitrogen oxide emissions are also used to measure air quality. Nitrogen oxide is a gas formed during combustion at high temperatures in, for example, transport and industry, and has a negative impact on human health and the environment. Between 2000 and 2023, nitrogen oxide emissions decreased by 67% in Malmö.

Sustainable transport systems

Malmö, like other cities, is facing a change in how Malmö residents and commuters from neighbouring municipalities transport themselves. Malmö's role as a regional growth engine combined with a growing population requires a high-capacity transport system that utilises the limited space in the city efficiently and has low emissions.

Today, road transport is one of the largest sources of emissions in Malmö (31%) and passenger car traffic accounts for two-thirds of these emissions. The impact of traffic on the climate and the environment needs to be reduced by switching to sustainable modes of transport. Sustainable modes of transport here include walking, cycling, rail and bus.

Over time, the share of journeys made by sustainable transport has increased from 57% in 2007 to 69% in 2023. During the same period, the share of journeys made by car has decreased from 41% to 30%. In order to reduce emissions, it is also important to switch to cars that can run on fuels other than petrol and diesel, such as electric and/or plug-in hybrids.

A continued shift to sustainable modes of transport is also important to free up more space in the city and create other values that provide a better living environment for Malmö residents. The car is the mode of transport that takes up the most space per person. It is also often the most expensive mode of transport. As Malmö residents depend on the transport system to reach different workplaces, places of education, healthcare facilities, leisure activities and more, a well-developed and affordable transport system is central to people's life opportunities and development. A shift to sustainable modes of transport is important to create affordable transport options.

The City of Malmö has been investing in improved public transport and cycling infrastructure for some time. Significant investments are also underway, including the expansion of super cycle lanes, mobility hubs for car sharing and Malmö Express lines to increase the capacity of the public transport system.

Another way of facilitating travel by public transport is to build housing in locations close to public transport. During the 2018-2022 measurement period, almost 100 per cent of new housing in Malmö has been located near public transport in three of the four measurement years.

Access to green and blue environments

Greenery is important for people's physical and mental health. Spending time in green environments can help people to reduce stress levels and recover mentally. Green spaces act as meeting places and contribute to social cohesion at neighbourhood level. In addition, green areas help to promote movement and active play.

The environmental objectives in Malmö emphasise that the supply of and access to green and blue environments in Malmö should increase. Green environments refer to parks and other public places with greenery. Blue environments refer to the sea and the coast, the canal, lakes, ponds, rivers and streams. To achieve the green and blue environments target, the amount of green space, urban water environments and canopy cover needs to increase in the city. The quality and availability of green-blue environments also need to increase. The City of Malmö is working to achieve the 3-30-300 rule of thumb, which means that every Malmö resident should see at least three trees from their window at home and at work, live and spend time in areas with at least 30% canopy cover and have a maximum of 300 metres to the nearest green area.

Canopy cover is the area of land shaded by trees. The canopy cover in the Malmö urban area was 13 per cent in 2022. There are also major differences between different sub-areas in Malmö, with some sub-areas having less than 10 per cent canopy cover.

Green space is any land covered with greenery in the city. It can be, for example, parks, residential gardens or a lawn on an industrial site. The quality and size can vary greatly. The area of green space is decreasing in Malmö. The reduction is occurring on both municipal and private land, mainly due to development. The amount of green space per inhabitant is also decreasing in Malmö, which is partly due to high population growth over many years. Malmö is still well above the WHO recommendations, but low in a Swedish context.

Statistics Sweden considers green areas to be contiguous green spaces of at least 0.5 hectares that are publicly accessible. In 2010, 95% of Malmö residents had access to green areas within 300 metres of their homes, according to statistics from Statistics Sweden. 300 metres refers to the distance as the crow flies, which means that the walking distance is usually longer. The figure was unchanged in 2015.

This means that Malmö is close to meeting the 300 part of the 3-30-300 rule of thumb. 30 per cent crown coverage, on the other hand, poses a major challenge, not least given the continued need for new housing. It is important to both protect existing trees and plant new ones in order to increase the canopy cover. The uneven distribution of greenery is also a challenge.

Although most Malmö residents have access to a green space within 300 metres of their home, the quality of green spaces varies. One challenge is to create a good sound environment in green spaces. Some green spaces are exposed to a lot of traffic noise. Noise has a negative effect on health and many of the recreational qualities are lost in noisy green environments. An analysis from 2020 shows that only half of the medium-sized (1-5 hectares) parks and cemeteries in Malmö have a good sound environment (City of Malmö, 2023b).

Heatwaves and flooding

As the climate changes, Malmö residents are exposed to new types of risks. Heatwaves will become more frequent, longer and more severe due to climate change. The risk of flooding will also increase, both as a result of rising sea levels and because torrential rain will become more frequent and more severe. It is important to mitigate the negative impacts with a particular focus on the most vulnerable groups.

Different groups of Malmö residents are differently vulnerable to the effects of heatwaves and floods. Heatwaves are the climate effect expected to have the greatest impact on people's lives, health and well-being in the near future. Groups particularly vulnerable to heatwaves include the elderly, young children, pregnant women, the chronically ill, people with limited financial resources and those with physically demanding outdoor work. In the worst cases, heatwaves can lead to death. Already today, people die in heatwaves in Sweden. In 2018, we had a national excess mortality of about 700 people during June to August (Public Health Agency of Sweden, 2022). The fact that Malmö, like Sweden, has an ageing population where residents over the age of 80 are the fastest growing age group presents a challenge.

The City of Malmö is working actively to increase knowledge and adapt the urban environment and Malmö's activities to a changing climate (City of Malmö, 2023c). Among other things, the City of Malmö has mapped which Malmö residents are most affected by extreme heat in Malmö and what measures can mitigate the effects (City of Malmö, 2024).

One important type of action is to increase the amount of greenery in cities. The high proportion of hard surfaces in cities poses a challenge in terms of both heatwave risk and flood risk. Hard surfaces, such as asphalt and concrete, store heat and radiate it to their surroundings over a long period of time. In cities, so-called urban heat islands can be created where heat is stored and then has difficulty leaving the neighbourhood. A high proportion of hard surfaces also increases the risk of flooding as water cannot penetrate surfaces such as asphalt and concrete.

The proportion of hard surfaces in Malmö has increased from 45 per cent in 2000 to 61 per cent in 2020. Reversing this trend without building on valuable agricultural land and at the same time meeting the need for new housing, offices and business areas is a major challenge for Malmö.

Conditions in the local environment have a major impact on local temperatures and the ability of Malmö residents to cool off outdoors. Access to greenery is crucial as green environments store less heat. They also create shade and cool their surroundings by releasing water into the air. Increasing the amount of greenery and creating a more even distribution of greenery in the city are examples of measures that are important to reduce vulnerability to heat waves.

Indicators

11.1 Refrain from going out alone, ages 18–84, percentage (%)

11.2 Population change over the past 5-year period, percentage (%)

11.3 Bicycle paths in the municipality, meters per resident

11.4 Demographic dependency ratio, value

11.5 Fuel types in the vehicle fleet, percentage (%)

11.6 Fuel types in new car registrations, percentage (%)

11.7 Completed housing units in multi-family and single-family homes during the year, number per 1,000 residents

11.8 Mode of transportation distribution, percentage (%)

11.9 Homelessness, number of residents

11.10 Paved land within urban areas, percentage (%)

11.11 Population density, residents per km²

11.12 Nitrogen dioxide, concentration, micrograms per cubic meter (m³)

11.13 Nitrogen oxide, emissions, number of tons

11.14 Average rent in rental apartments, SEK per square meter

11.15 Littering, number of pieces of litter per 10 m²

11.16 Newly built housing near public transportation, percentage (%)

11.17 Inequality index, index

11. 18 Overcrowding, percentage (%)

11.19 Overcrowding, standard 2, percentage (%)

11.20 Nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, total, kg

11.21 PM2.5 emissions, kg per resident

11.22 PM2.5 emissions, total, kg

References

Boverket (u.å.). Vad får boendesegregationen för konsekvenser? Tillgänglig: https://www.boverket.se/sv/samhallsplanering/boendesegregation/konsekvenser/

Folkhälsomyndigheten (2022). Att hantera hälsoeffekter av värmeböljor. Vägledning till handlingsplaner. Tillgänglig: https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/contentassets/ea328afcc93f4ad6a37693176fbb3158/hantera-halsoeffekter-varmeboljor.pdf

Glokala Sverige (u.å.). Arbetsbok – Agenda 2030. Tillgänglig: https://fn.se/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Arbetsbok_Glokala_Sverige_2021.pdf

Malmö stad, Miljöförvaltningen (2023a). Luften i Malmö 2022. Tillgänglig: https://miljobarometern.malmo.se/content/docs/luften-i-malmo-2022.pdf

Malmö stad, Miljöförvaltningen (2023b). Nulägesanalys mål 6 – Utbudet av gröna och blå miljöer har ökat i Malmö. Miljöprogram för Malmö stad 2021–2030. Tillgänglig: https://cityofmalmo.omniacloud.net/komin/verksamhet/miljo-och-stadsutveckling/miljo-och-klimat/arbetet-mot-miljo-och-klimatmalen/mer-natur

Malmö stad, Miljöförvaltningen (2023c). Nulägesanalys mål 8 – Malmös resiliens vid ett förändrat klimat har ökat. Miljöprogram för Malmö stad 2021–2030. Tillgänglig: https://cityofmalmo.omniacloud.net/komin/verksamhet/miljo-och-stadsutveckling/miljo-och-klimat/arbetet-mot-miljo-och-klimatmalen/klimatanpassning

Malmö stad, Miljöförvaltningen (2024). Extremvärme i Malmö. Vem drabbas och hur kan vi lindra effekterna? Rapportnummer 04/2024. MN-2023-5606. Tillgänglig: https://malmo.se/download/18.724ecffc19377eed037e92/1733730125314/MN-2023-5606-V%C3%A4rmerapport%20Malm%C3%B6_Korrigeradekartor-tillg%C3%A4nglig2.pdf

Malmö stad, Stadskontoret (2020). Bakomliggande orsaker till kostnadsutvecklingen och budgetavvikelsen inom arbetsmarknads- och socialnämndens verksamheter. Delrapport: Ramkonstruktionen, hemlöshet samt kostnader inom arbetsmarknads- och socialförvaltningens ram. STK-2020-1330.

VA SYD (u.å-1). MAXIMA. Tillgänglig: https://maxima.vasyd.se/

VA SYD (u.å-2). Kretsloppsplan 2021–2030. Tillsammans för en klimatneutral resurs- och avfallshantering. Burlövs kommun och Malmö stad. Tillgänglig: https://www.vasyd.se/-/media/Dokument_ny_webb/Avfall/Kretsloppsplan-2021-2030_malmo.pdf