SwedishDescription
The Swedish Urban Soil Living Lab (LL) is part of URSOILL and spans approximately 11 urban test sites across the Mälardalen region (Stockholm and Uppsala). Sites represent typical urban soil health challenges:
- Soil sealing and compaction in schoolyards and parks.
- Contamination from legacy sources (e.g., ash landfills with heavy metals, PAHs, dioxins) and firefighting foam (PFAS).
- Nutrient poor, dry and hydrophobic soils with low biological activity that limit plant growth and ecosystem services.
The Living Lab is coordinated by RISE with partners and participants from academia (SLU, Linnaeus University), municipalities (Stockholm, Uppsala), agencies (Naturvårdsverket), state/municipal companies (Akademiska Hus, SISAB, Stockholmshem), SMEs/startups (MycoMine, Ecotopic) and citizen groups (Ultuna täppförening).
Challenges
- Soil contamination: diffuse spreading of PFAS and at fire stations; legacy ash deposits with heavy metals, PAH, dioxins (e.g., Björkeby school, and Barkaby exploitation area and Ekebydalen).
- Soil sealing & compaction: impermeable surfaces in schoolyards and parks (e.g., Tullgård school and Flogsta) and leading to flooding, reduced accessibility and reduced tree health (Ulls väg site).
- Degraded soil function: dry/hydrophobic growing media, low nutrient supply and low biological activity (e.g., Kunskapsparken).
Possible Solutions
- Bioremediation: fungal-based remediation (MycoMine), phytoremediation; biochar and other carbon-rich sorbents for adsorption (PFAS, organics).
- Soil amendments & new substrates: composts, engineered soils, and alternative growing media to restore infiltration, aeration and fertility (incl. MUDs, gravel/grass mixes where relevant).
- De-sealing & nature-based solutions: replacing asphalt with permeable designs (school yards), amendments to de-seal compacted soils (city park), and planting concepts that improve water infiltration and gas exchange.
Monitoring & assessment: physical (bulk density, infiltration), chemical (pH, EC, nutrients, contaminants incl. PFAS/PAH/metals/microplastics), biological (respiration, microbial biomass, ARB, earthworms), plus continuous sensing (moisture, temperature, redox, runoff, compaction).
“We are facing several compaction issues due to the heavy clay soil, but also – due to previous actions that were done, like firefighting or other actions – there is some pollution with heavy metals or potentially PFAS is reported in several areas. So that’s important to be monitored, […] and then, together with the stakeholders and interested parties, researchers and users and whoever is interested, create a life living lab that is sustainable, lasting long and finds solutions.”
Fereshteh Pourazari, RISE Institute, LL Lead Sweden
