Vilnius architects can check the greenness index of projects with free online calculator

The municipality provides the tool to encourage more sustainable thinking and planning in the field of urban design

Vilnius has become the first local authority in Lithuania to evaluate the greenness index of development projects on its territory. In that framework, the local government has decided to help the work of architects and urban planners when they are crafting their new projects by providing them with a free online ‘greenness index’ calculator.

The digital tool can let the professionals see how sustainable their project will be and the impact it would have on the urban environment even before the ground is broken.

“I hope it will encourage the creation of projects aimed at forming a healthy and high-quality urban environment and will help to look at the project as a small but important part of a huge organism – the city,” says Laura Kairienė, chief architect of the City of Vilnius.

The greenness index will be considered in public projects in the Lithuanian capital from now on. As for private development, it won’t be binding, however, it is a recommendation for developers to take into account, hence the launch of the free calculator.

What does the ‘greenness index’ calculator do?

The greenness index is an estimate that shows how green the city’s territory is and how ready it is to withstand the effects of climate change.

The calculator’s job is thus to assign a numerical value to a building’s readiness in these terms. It evaluates the total area of ​​the development, the built-up area, and the area of ​​non-conductive and semi-conductive surfaces before giving a certain score.

Separate scores are assigned to lawns, meadows, bushes, green roofs, water surfaces, and trees. A lawn gives a higher score than a hard surface, but a lawn mowed several times a year is even more valuable. Higher scores are given to newly planted trees. Even more points will be given to saved trees.

The creation of the greenness index was first developed about a decade ago in Sweden and since then it has also been adopted by other European cities, such as Berlin, Helsinki, Riga and Tallinn.

Thanks to the index, the creation of better green spaces in the city also contributes to the strategic goals of Vilnius as the 2025 European Green Capital.