Local administration of agricultural areas

Arable land comprise fully cultivated land, surface-cultivated land and infield pastureland.

Fully cultivated land

Agricultural area that has been ploughed and can still be ploughed further. The area can be used for cultivating field crops or meadow and pasture renewed by ploughing.

Surface-cultivated land

Agricultural area that is mostly cleared and levelled in such a way that it can be mechanically harvested.

Infield pasture

Pastureland that cannot be mechanically harvested. At least 50 % of the area must be covered by grass species. The area must be fenced in unless it has natural boundaries such as rivers, lakes, sea, mountains etc. Areas of woodland, bogs, lakes and rocks each exceeding 1.0 decares are deducted.

Cultivable land

Area that after land cultivation fulfils the standard of easy or less easy arable land, and which fulfils climate and soil conditions for growing crops.

Conversion of cultivated and cultivable land are distributed on different aims according to the Planning and building Act:

1. Building areas Including areas for dwellings with associated facilities, shops, offices, industry, buildings for leisure purposes (leisure cabins with connected outhouses), as well as sites for public (state, county and municipal) buildings with a specified purpose, other buildings of specifically defined use to the general public, hostels and catering establishments and garages and petrol stations.

2. Agricultural areas Including areas for farming and forestry, reindeer farming and market gardening.

3. Public traffic areas Roads- for the purpose of this Act this also includes streets with pavements, footpaths, cycle paths, courtyards and squares - bridges, canals, railways, tramways, bus stations, parking areas, harbours, airports and other traffic facilities and the necessary land for installations and means of making the traffic areas safe etc.

4. Public outdoor recreation areas Parks, hiking trails, camping sites, areas used for play and sport, and sea areas used for such activities.

5. Danger areas Areas for high voltage installations, shooting ranges, stores of flammable goods and other installations which may represent a hazard to the public, and areas where, due to risk of landslide, flood or other special hazard, building is not permitted or shall be permitted only on special conditions out of consideration for safety.

6. Special areas Including areas for private roads, camping, areas for installations in the ground and in watercourses or for marine installations, areas with buildings and installations which should be preserved on account of their historical, antiquarian or other cultural value, fishing settlements, reindeer farming areas, areas for open-air recreation that are not included under item 4, green belts in industrial areas, nature conservation areas, climate conservation zones, sources of water supply with catchment area, areas with unobstructed visibility close to roads, areas where building is restricted around airports, and areas and installations for operation of radio navigation aids outside airports, areas for installation and operation of municipal technical facilities, graveyards and cemeteries, water and sewerage installations, areas for construction and operation of plants for energy production or district heating, cableways, amusement parks, golf courses, stone quarries and soil extraction sites and other areas entailing significant encroachment on terrain, installations for the Telecommunications Administration and exercise areas with appurtenant installations for the Defence Forces and the Civil Defence.

7. Common areas Common exit roads and common parking areas, common playgrounds for children, courtyards and other areas common to several properties.

8. Areas for renewal Densely built areas which are to be totally renewed or improved.

Several land use categories may be established within the same area or in the same building. However, the land use categories open air recreation area and nature conservation area may not be combined with the category agricultural area. It may also be stipulated that an area or building, after a specifically defined period of time or when other specific conditions have been fulfilled, shall be transferred from one land use category to another.

The municipalities in Norway are divided into 16 groups, based on inhabitants and economically framework conditions. Documentation is given in Rapport 2011/8 Statistics Norway: Gruppering av kommuner etter folkemengde og økonomiske rammebetingelser 2008