Kemijoki Oy praises North Finland agency’s support for new fishing obligations along Kemijoki River

The recent decision by the North Finland Regional State Administrative Agency regarding new fishing obligations has been met positively by the river company Kemijoki Oy. On Monday, the agency mandated hydropower companies to assess and design fish passages for the power plants on the Kemijoki River. The companies must investigate and plan the structures necessary for enabling salmon and sea trout access to spawning areas at the Taivalkoski, Ossauskoski, Petäjäskoski, and Valajaskoski plants, as well as, where needed, at the Isohaara plant.

Kemijoki Oy’s CEO, Tuomas Timonen, expressed satisfaction with the agency’s decision aligning with the company’s strategy. He noted, “We consider this a positive development.” However, he acknowledged that the nearly thousand-page decision must be thoroughly reviewed to understand all its details. Of particular concern is the significant increase in stocking obligations, prompting a need to investigate the rationale behind these requirements for salmon and sea trout, as the goal is to enhance natural populations.

The agency rejected some of the suggestions from the Lapland ELY Center, which Kemijoki had previously deemed unreasonable. Specifically, demands for fish passages and downstream migration routes at the Vanttauskoski, Pirttikoski, Seitakorva, and Raudanjoen Permantokoski plants were declined.

If the ELY Center’s original requests had been accepted, Timonen estimated costs for Kemijoki Oy could have reached up to one billion euros, whereas the current expectation is in the range of hundreds of millions.

The timelines for submission of studies and plans to the permitting authority are realistic, with one year for the Taivalkoski and Isohaara plants, and two years for the others. Timonen emphasized that the agency’s decision does not yet finalize any construction of fish passages.