Hollola plans recycling hub despite wildlife costs

Hollola and Lahti expect a planned recycling and industrial area in Nostava to attract tens of millions of euros in investment, but residents and conservationists warn it could harm waterways and wildlife, Yle reports.

The Nostava eco-industrial and logistics area is planned for Aikkala and Nostava, in Hollola. The municipalities say its location and transport links make it suitable for the project, which they expect to create at least 100 jobs once complete. A protected butterfly is also set to lose habitat to a planned quarry.

Business Lahti estimates the project could attract 50 million to 100 million euros in investment and host eight to 12 companies. It forecasts 100 to 210 direct jobs in the long term, with construction generating 430 to 980 person-years of employment, including indirect effects. During operations, the estimated employment impact is 180 to 390 person-years.

The estimates also include more than five million euros in one-off tax and land-sale revenue for Hollola, followed by annual tax revenue of about 350,000 to 750,000 euros. Spending by businesses and services is forecast to rise by 1 million to 2.1 million euros a year in Hollola, with an impact on the wider Lahti region about three times greater.

The plans have drawn criticism from landowners, conservationists and nearby residents, who question whether the location is suitable and whether the project will be economically viable. The planning area was expanded last November, and another expansion is being considered. The land is currently mostly forest, with some strips of farmland.

Concerns over waterways and wildlife

The proposed area lies in the headwaters of the Porvoonjoki river. The Koivusillanjoki stream runs along its edge, and several natural rills within the area flow into it. The Itä-Uusimaa and Porvoonjoki Water Protection Association described the chosen location as the worst for nature among the four options considered in the final planning stage.

Association director and limnologist Juha Niemi said the Porvoonjoki is already heavily burdened and its ecological status is well below good. He said the cleanest possible water should flow from the headwaters into the main river, and that the project must not add pollution. Water discharged from the development should be cleaner than the river water, he said.

The local plan marks areas for stormwater treatment near the upper sections of the rills, but Hollola’s chief planning officer, Pentti Klemetti, said the detailed stormwater arrangements have not yet been decided.