May 2023 • SwedeInternational

How to grow a steel forest

**wind energy at sea**
*image source: https://www.mvrdv.com/projects/98/north-sea-wind-park*

Earlier this week, the government gave the green light to two offshore wind parks. It’s a start.

Conflicts of interest

The wind park application process is known to be expensive and extremely complicated. However, the Swedish Armed Forces and the municipal veto are the two main reasons many new “steel forests” (stålskogar) haven’t been approved in the last ten years.

While Sweden is working hard to up its military capacity in response to the war in Ukraine, it is also trying to increase its energy production. Unfortunately, the operations of the Swedish Armed Forces and operating wind parks are often not compatible. Wind parks want wide, open spaces – where the military has operations as well, particularly at sea. In addition, wind turbines disrupt radar, sensors, and other communications which strikes at the very heart of Swedish military capacity. Adding to the conflict is the impression that the military won’t discuss the issue. When Radio Sweden requested a comment, it responded by saying it wasn’t their job to talk about wind power.

The veto

The Swedish military’s ability to do their job is a national security issue. But local concerns can stop a wind park’s establishment just as effectively, albeit with more discussion. According to Timbro, over 1300 new wind park proposals have been nixed since the “veto” was first allowed in 2009. (It’s actually not a veto, but more an absence of support for an application. If the municipality doesn’t indicate support for a project, the project doesn’t happen.)

The reasons for not supporting a park establishment are many. Steel forests kill migrating birds and get in the way of migratory animals. They make a distinctive sound that many find unpleasant, and can’t exactly be said to increase the value of one’s home.

Compensation

Animals are out of luck, but various compensation plans have been floated in an attempt to make wind parks more attractive to people. One popular suggestion is that some compensation would be paid to the municipality for its pain and suffering. However, there is disagreement on what amount would be needed to placate a hesitant municipality, and how it would be granted.

Compensation based on how near one is to a turbine, the height of it, and a rebate on the electricity it generates are some options. Locals might also have the right to sell their property based on its value before the local wind park went up. These possibilities are all difficult to implement. Another worry is that compensation could be so expensive that no wind park is built at all.

The government’s go ahead doesn’t mean the wind parks will be built. The Land and Environment court has yet to give its approval, and there is enormous opposition on behalf of the fish- and birdlife. It takes time to grow a forest.

Lies, damned lies, and statistics.

**I love statistics so should you, statistics say what I want them to.**
*image source: mentehealth.com*

The above quote was at one time attributed to American writer Mark Twain. That has now come into doubt, but there is no doubt the phrase still comes in handy. Still, sometimes statistics, though imperfect, are what you have. What we have as of last Thursday are the Swedish unemployment figures for April.

According to the Swedish Public Employment Service (for those in Sweden, arbetsförmedlingen), only 6.3% of working age persons were signed up with the unemployment bureau as of the end of April. According to Statistics Sweden, it hasn’t been this low since 2008.

Not ‘pink slip’ as in Cali car ownership

The economy these last years has been very confusing. We’re supposed to be in very bad shape. Pink slips have been handed out left and right. Volvo, Trustly, Kry, Storytel and Klarna are some big Swedish names that have signaled coming layoffs. Offsetting these numbers, however, is an overall shortage of workers that is left over from covid.

How much workers work is another figure that gets tossed around in regard to a country’s economy. The Swedish measure, sysselsättning, is translated as employment in this context (although it can also mean just keeping busy). Statistics Sweden defines an employed, sysselsatt, person as someone who, during a reference week, performed some work for at least one hour as an employee. April statistics show that the vast majority of people in Sweden work 35+ hours a week., as opposed to part time.

For the first quarter of 2023 and using this employment standard, 69.5% of people (this figure adjusted for seasonal variations, etc.) between the ages of 15 to 74 years old were employed.

The foreign borns

“Foreign borns” is a huge, and hugely diverse group, but Statistics Sweden works the numbers anyway. To start, 87.9% of Swedish born persons are in the labor force, which means that they are between 20 and 64 years of age. That number is 86.7% among foreign borns. Most of Sweden is in the work force.

The relative employment rate (see sysselsättning above) for the first quarter of 2023 was 85.5 percent among Swedish born persons and 74.7 percent for foreign born persons. Happily, the number of foreign borns who got a job is up a couple percentage points since last quarter. (Both figures are adjusted for seasonal and other variations.)

The biggest difference was in the unemployment figures for the first quarter of 2023. For Swedish born persons, the unemployment rate was only 3.4 percent. It was 13.8 percent for foreign born persons according to official statistical figures. It’s a significant difference. It could be more, or less, than one thought.

Statistics Sweden is the source for all these figures. If going down a rabbit hole on numbers is a fun way of spending an early summer afternoon for someone, a look at the latest numbers gives an interesting picture of Sweden.

Getting an upgrade

**Making Stockholm look good for the tourists – plus defending the city**
*image source: https://www.beridnahogvakten.se/historik/*

One of the fun, touristy things to do in Stockholm is to see the parade of the Royal Mounted Guard. Even jaded Stockholmers look as the horses trot from the Cavalry Barrack to the palace. In a country where the monarchy is a bit of a side note, the pomp and circumstance of the changing of the guard is a diverting anomaly.

But nothing goes unregulated. Apparently, the helmets worn by the Royal Mounted Guards (with or without plume) are sub-par. When it comes to safety, the 1800s-style helmet hasn’t kept up with the times. Falling on the helmet spike would no doubt cause a nasty gouge. But, SvD reported, rumor has it that just dropping it on the ground causes it to dent.

a helmet for the times

Meanwhile, the city environment has become louder and busier, stressing the horses. “Riding through the city, with its construction, trams, motorcycles and cars, is to be put in a vulnerable position” Andreas Lundin, safety representative for the music corps of the Defense Association said. “To have the security of a proper and tested riding helmet is the least one can wish for.”

A request that the Swedish Work Environment Authority look into the issue has been on the books since 2012. SvD’s article about the helmets on Thursday of this week sped up the wheels of bureaucracy. On Friday, the Swedish Armed Forces’ Royal Guard representative promised that new helmets would be forthcoming.

The Royal Guards aren’t just pretty. They are actually responsible for defending the Stockholm and Drottningholm palaces, the royal family, as well as helping defend Stockholm city if it were threatened. Every blue-coated, stone-faced, poorly-helmeted guard is a trained soldier or sailor. Respect.