Industrial activity threatens Faroese rural settlements

Industrial expansion in the Faroe Islands is increasingly encroaching on rural settlements, according to Sámal Matras Kristiansen, a social scientist speaking on the KVF radio program “Oyggjar undir trýsti.”

Kristiansen argued that some current industrial zones were originally sited in residential areas due to historical precedents that prioritized production over living conditions. “We have people making decisions that were rooted in rights granted to producers long ago,” he said. “We forget that industry today is far noisier, more space-intensive and more dominant than it used to be.”

He highlighted five towns—Klaksvík, Fuglafjørður, Runavík, Tórshavn and Tvøroyri—to illustrate how industrial and residential zones interact differently across the islands.

In Tvøroyri, Kristiansen noted that authorities placed a large facility in the town center rather than in the surrounding municipality, despite ample available land. “Tvøroyri could have planned much better given its extensive territory,” he said.

Klaksvík, by contrast, shows how industrial zones can be relocated outside urban cores. “Residents have realized it is necessary to move industry out of the town to make space for services and cultural activities,” he said.

Fuglafjørður presents the opposite challenge: efforts to bring industry into the town center while relocating services and cultural facilities to the outskirts near Kambsdalur. “This is clearly backward,” Kristiansen said.

Runavík attempts a balance, expanding service sectors within the town while retaining industrial zones at its core.

Tórshavn benefits from its proximity to Kaldbaksfjørður and Kollafjørður, where much industrial activity is already located offshore. Shipyards at the harbor, the Fisheries House and oil terminals at Viðarnes demonstrate a functional mix of industrial and cultural spaces.

Kristiansen also addressed the need for the Faroe Islands to diversify beyond service and knowledge-based economies. “The Faroes have long been service- and knowledge-driven, with most people working in services,” he said. “I’m not saying we should eliminate industry, but it should occupy less land. We must use the land for more future-oriented purposes, and industry should be concentrated in fewer locations.”

He emphasized that municipal planning must balance competing interests. “Industry should not dominate all municipal priorities,” he said. “Municipalities must balance economic, social and environmental goals to achieve the best overall solutions.”