Not Everything Can Be Repaired
Are irreplaceable natural and cultural values in Western Norway in danger of being destroyed by industrial development? For some time, there has been debates about future industrial development in the western Norwegian municipality of Bremanger. UNESCO Chair for sustainable heritage and environmental management, Inger Måren, is engaged in this debate.
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What is this case about?
Extensive industrial development is in the works in Bremanger municipality, as the company Bontrup is planning stone extraction and a shipping port in the area of Vingen. Professionals are now concerned that this development will affect important Norwegian cultural and natural values.
Cultural values at stake
The Vingen area is unique in many ways. It is, among other things, the site of a petroglyph field that counts approximately 2,200 figures that are more than 6,000 years old. In other words: irreplaceable national and international cultural values. Since the discovery of these rock carvings in 1912, they have been examined by professionals and researchers from the University of Bergen, and UiB is today the landowner and the University Museum manages the petroglyph field.
Natural values at stake
When it comes to nature, the Vingen area is one of the largest areas with an intact, road-free gradient from fjord to mountain in the outer fjord region in Western Norway. Here you will find the nationally important rock formation Hornelen, which is Europe's highest sea cliff. Inste Bårdvikneset is also located in the area, which is one of the largest areas containing rich boreonemoral rainforest in the region. 12 red-listed species and 9 species for which Norway has a special responsibility have been registered here.
Why is this industry development an issue for culture and nature?
The planned shipping quay in Frøysjøen; the fjord basin with both Hornelen and Vingen, will lead to light and noise pollution of Vingen. The development will also cause extensive damage to the forest in Inste Bårdvikneset, as a third to half of the forest will be destroyed with today’s plans.
Vingen is a holistic landscape where you can get the feeling of being in untouched nature, and at the same time get close to the past. This totality forms a unique framework that unites cultural and natural heritage. Although some types of nature can be restored, it is not necessarily possible to restore the totality of both cultural and natural values on a landscape scale.
Norway signed the World Heritage Convention in 1972 and the global Nature Convention in 2022. These agreements should be highly relevant for this fjord landscape of universal value.
