The Norwegian company Bergknapp AS is a leading supplier of green roofs, both in Norway and Sweden. They work hard to provide high-quality natural products (sedum and heather mats, flower meadows, turf, etc.). In addition to green roofs and lawn production, they are now focusing heavily on sustainable mass management by developing production lines to sterilize soil. They are the first in their industry to use SoilSaver. They want to be able to steam treat the soil they use in existing production, as well as recycle other types of masses and waste fractions. In Norway alone, it is estimated that 500,000 tons of soil are taken out of circulation each year because it is infected with plant diseases or contains invasive alien species. If we continue like this, the UN warns that we risk running out of arable land in 60 years.
“It is urgent that we think differently if we are to achieve the sustainability goals of 65% reuse of masses by 2035. By adopting this technology, we want to contribute to developing tomorrow’s solutions to save arable land while improving our existing products,” says Jakob Årsvold of Bergknapp.
Long-term innovator
Bergknapp has a clear ambition to be forward-thinking and do what makes sense for the environment. They are a company that thinks long-term and contributes to making cities greener and more sustainable. With solid ownership, curiosity about new solutions, and a willingness to lead the way in the industry, they make a significant difference on the path to a more sustainable future. “We have the ambition to be at the forefront when it comes to sustainable soil management, both for the company’s development and to be an inspiration for others,” says Jakob, owner and founder of Bergknapp.
Positive development in the soil industry
Bergknapp experiences that more of their industry colleagues also have sustainability high on their agenda now, which he finds very positive. “There have been significant changes in the industry in recent years,” says Jakob. He explains that it forces a more circular mindset and sustainable solutions. There is a greater focus on reuse and recycling than ever before. “The market leaders are now looking at investments in machinery and equipment that contribute to more reuse, and we are proud to be early adopters of SoilSaver, ends Jakob.
Sustainable mass management has been central to Bergknapp’s production for several years. Now, they are taking their sustainability efforts to new heights by using SoilSaver. By treating the soil with steam, this sterilization process will neutralize invasive alien species such as Japanese Knotweed and plant diseases. Bergknapp is now developing production lines to effectively reuse soil that would otherwise be lost. In this process, both eliminating weeds that would otherwise create significant problems and creating the potential to blend in different types of masses that do not function adequately as soil, can be achieved. In the long run, large quantities of soil masses can be delivered for sterilization at Bergknapp in Sandnes near Stavanger. The machine is also mobile and can be placed wherever desired in the future. In larger projects, this means huge amounts of transportation can be saved by treating the soil locally.
Professional partnership
Jakob says that he immediately found SoilSaver exciting when he first heard about the machine last autumn. Since then, the two companies have maintained close contact. The companies have complementary expertise on both sides. “The partnership with SoilSteam is a win-win: we get a Norwegian professional partner with competent expertise in mass management, and they get an industrial partner that is serious about sustainability,” says Jakob.
Soil is a valuable resource that is the fundament for more than 90% of the food we eat. For way too long it has been polluted and degraded to landfills. Now we have developed a machine that can stop some of this degradation. It is great that we have innovative customers like Bergknapp that adopt new technology and take the industry in a more sustainable direction says Hans Kristian Westrum, CGO and founder of SoilSteam.