Compact city development has obtained a dominant status, now being the preferred model in Europe, as it combines the concerns of economic interests for dense development, the environmental concerns for climate change mitigation and political concerns for new dwellings to a growing population. However, this ideal, while reconciling many different concerns, also challenge other concerns, like biodiversity, recreational opportunities and other living qualities within the city. The paper focuses upon one of these concerns: the protection of biodiversity through protection of green structures and green landscapes. The question is how the mixture of different governance modes in urban planning (layers of market, network and hierarchy) affect the attention and influence of biodiversity concerns? The empirical basis of the paper is a broad survey to planners, local politicians and developers in all cities/municipalities in Norway as well as an in-depth study of four Norwegian cities.
