Hooghkamer achieves sustainability predicate NL Gebiedslabel

13-10-2021

Kokon is proud to announce that they have received the sustainability predicate NL Gebiedslabel for phase 3 of new residential area Hooghkamer. Kokon designed the urban plan for this phase. Read more about the urban plan here.

Together with Van der Hulst Bouwbedrijf and Heijmans we have strived to improve the natural environment during the area development and construction activities. For example, at Hooghkamer we ensured that biodiversity was improved and a climate-adaptive neighbourhood was created. Realization began around 2012 and the last of a total of 882 homes will be built in early 2022. For the third and final phase of Hooghkamer, Kokon, partner companies and the municipality received the well-deserved sustainability designation NL Gebiedslabel from Lodewijk Hoekstra of NL Greenlabel and TV Gardener. Hooghkamer achieved the second-highest possible label, a B. 

Lodewijk Hoekstra complimented the developers and the municipality on this achieved result. "It has been a quest and a learning process that has produced some beautiful concrete results. All kinds of nature-inclusive measures have been realized in the neighborhood, such as 78 swallow boxes and more than 2 kilometers of nature-friendly banks. A variety of indigenous tree species and biodiverse planting was chosen. Climate adaptive water management and the reduction of heat stress were also taken into account, and more sustainable materials were used in the public space. We held garden workshops to inspire buyers to continue the public space thinking in their gardens as well."

The NL Gebiedslabel makes sustainable area development measurable and insightful, and evaluates it independently. It is supervised by a Scientific Advisory Board. The NL Gebiedslabel is an initiative of TV gardener Lodewijk Hoekstra and landscape designer Nico Wissing, who founded the organization NL Greenlabel for this purpose. By means of seven main indicators and no fewer than 21 sub-indicators, a design is assessed on the use of sustainable materials, the treatment of biodiversity and landscape values, soil and water, mobility and health. In addition, the way in which it is ensured that a sustainable environment is maintained in the future is also examined. The NL Gebiedslabel also contributes to several Sustainable Development Goals, as formulated by the United Nations. The NL Gebiedslabel is more and more embraced in the Netherlands as the instrument par excellence to achieve healthy and sustainable living environments.