Launch of the Longyearbyen Land Use Plan
Notice of the commencement of planning work, as well as a public hearing and public review of the planning program.
Pursuant to Section 50 of the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act, the Longyearbyen Local Council hereby gives notice of the commencement of work on the Land Use Plan for the Longyearbyen planning area, and submits a proposed planning program docx, 6 MB. for public comment and review.
Purpose
The purpose of the planning work is to revise the Land Use Plan for the Longyearbyen planning area. The current Land Use Plan was adopted in 2017. Since then, Longyearbyen has undergone significant societal changes and is also facing new changes that the new plan is intended to facilitate.
The planning program is a “plan for the plan” and describes the objectives of the Land Use Plan, what will be assessed during the planning process, and how to participate. The planning program will be adopted by the Committee for Technical, Environmental, and Economic Affairs following a public hearing.
Consultation and Participation
The draft planning program is available for public review for 30 days from March 25 to April 24, 2026.
Anyone who wishes to do so may submit comments on the planning program. Comments must be in writing and submitted by April 24, 2026, to:
or to
Longyearbyen Local Council P.
O. Box 350
9171 Longyearbyen
Comments should be marked with case number 2025/863
Meet us
We are available to answer questions and discuss the land-use planning process at Lompen on Thursday, April 9, between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. We hope to see you there!
Next steps
After the public comment period, the submitted comments will be reviewed, and the planning program will be revised before being finalized by the Committee for Technical, Environmental, and Economic Affairs. A decision is expected from the Committee on May 19, 2026.
You can also follow the ongoing process via our Timeline for work on the new Land Use Plan
Updated