Between Development and Protection: Different Discourses in Urban Planning

摘要

This article identifies topical storylines centred on the future use of a Norwegian urban forest. All stakeholders accept a 'protection storyline' where species, artefacts and places deemed as unique and valuable shall be spared from development. The tension is, however, between a reductionist approach where the remaining forest can be exploited and a comprehensive approach where the quality of the forest as a whole supersedes the unique qualities it hosts. Supporters of the reductionist approach enforce their argument by drawing on the enhanced attention to health effects of near recreation and accessibility. Over time, this understanding of accessibility as topical value for outdoor recreation may in the future give weight to a more reductionist approach to management of the recreational areas.