KESSI WILDERNESS THREATENED (Renewed article 15th July 91)
History
Kessi is one of the 'last wilderness' areas of Finland located in North
East corner of the country, which is also forest covered. It's not a
National park nor a so called 'wilderness' according to the wilderness law
and therefore it's among the biggest untouched and unprotected forest areas
in the country. It has been logged around 1930 when they took the biggest
and best trees for constructing. A hiker can see old stubs and branches
here and there in the forest. Logs were taken out with horses and were
floated to the arctic coast where construction wood was very valuable.
Kessi have always, maybe thousands of years, been a grazing and wintering
land for reideers (caribou) a land of hunters and fishers, swans, gooses,
elks and bears.
Kessi have remained until today very much because of its isolated
location: From West there is Inari lake, from East there's Soviet Union and
from South one have to cross Paatsjoki river that runs from Inari lake to
the Arctic Ocean. From North there is a very rugged landscape, lots of
small lakes and a long distance from the road.
Year 1985 a bridge was constructed over the river. Kessi was now
accessible by car although there are no roads. A year or two later a ten
kilometer long logging road was constructed to the forest, reaching from
the bridge towards North East to the heart of Kessi area. The bridge and
the road awaked a country-wide wilderness movement. One definition says
that if there are no roads in a distace of 8 kilometres, you are in
wilderness. Due to this road and the definition, nearly two hundred square
kilometres of wilderness disappeared.
Beacuse of public discussion a committee was created In the parliament
to research and establish so called wilderness areas to the state-owned
lands in the North. The aim was to ensure the future of the Sami people and
reindeer farming, to ensure that the natural sources of livelihood exists
and to ensure that some large roadless wilderness areas exists. Wilderness
areas were established according to the committee but their final report
have been critcised before and after the wilderness law.
First of all, some very wilderness-like areas were left out of the
areas handled in the law, like Kessi, because of recently built road. Some
other areas are considered to be wilderness even if the area has a road
through it. The boundaries have been drawn according to the forest
industry.
Secondly even though wilderness law protects the area, forestry can be
practised in the wilderness, in a soft or 'natural' manner, which can
hardly be defined. Is this the way to protect wilderness?
Thirdly it has been proved that the state has no legal rights to the
lands which have always been owned by original Sami people and their
villages. This has also been acknowledged by constitution committee.
To be truthful these are the National and Nature parks above the Arctic
Circle that are already protected (year 1984). Nature parks are more
protected with less tracks and more restrictions:
National parks sqkm
Lemmenjoki 2800
Urho Kekkonen 2530
Pallas-Ounas 500
Pyhatunturi 42
Nature Parks
Kevo 710
Malla 30
Sompio 176
Maltio 147
Varrio 110
Urho Kekkonen National Park includes the biggest roadless forest area
in the whole country. Lemmenjoki park include also wide forest areas
although the tree line divides the park and the northern part has no trees
at all. It's question of protecting wide areas of forest for future
generations and for large predators like bears, wolves and eagles.
What's going on right now, in the summer 1991?
In April -91 another forest road line was staked and opened to the
forest. Tens of people demonstrated at the site. At the same time forest
cuttings started in the frontier zone, where it's not allowed to move
without a special permission. Norway, for instance has no frontier zones,
but in Finland the zone can be up to three kilometers wide and you can't
approach the border. To start the cuttings from the zone was tactical:
fines will be enormous if one acts to stop logging there.
In June the new road line leads ten kilometers North West from the
remaining road, taking now approximately 100 square kilometers of
wilderness and dense Northern forest close to a road. But that road has not
been built, it's not yet in shape to be driven. Caterpillars can be there
at any time and then it goes. It's very possible that the work begins at
the end of August or at the beginning of September, when people have to be
back in schools and their work and when the soil is not frozen yet. But as
a matter of fact it can begin at any time.
July 15th 1991:
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Constructing of this road started last week and today it can be driven
about one kilometer. Next week a new digging machine may arrive and the
work continues faster also due to easier and less stony terrain. People may
soon be spontaneously collected to site to demonstrate and to stop
constructing.
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Please distribute this information as widely as possible. Ask for more
or send a post-card or a fax to the head of the National Board of Forestry.
If you travel in Finland, that's even better, come to see the area, tenting
is free and there is a simple cabin for free too. Remember mosquitos, bus
connections to the river are twice a day, on weekends only once. Observers
are badly needed. It's a great hiking area too, in August you'll find
plenty of lingonberries and mosquitos are gone then. Warm clothes are
necessary. Come and witness when the mankind is forcing himself into the
wilderness, and feel free to contact us too.
A good idea might be to write to the Council of State and to different
ministries. Recently they have created a very authoritative group to
support so called sustainable development in Finland and to make it as
truthful as possible.
Ministry of Environment
Sirpa Pietikainen
Ratakatu 3
PO BOX 399
00121 HELSINKI
FAX xxx-358-0-1991499
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
Matti Pura
Hallituskatu 3
00170 HELSINKI
FAX xxx-358-0-1602099
National Board of Forestry:
Mr. Jaakko Piironen
PO BOX 233
00121 HELSINKI
FINLAND
FAX: xxx-358-0-6163327
TELEX: 121132 metsa sf
If you can get this article through to any magazines or newspapers it
would be even better. In that case, please let us know, send or fax us a
copy of those articles, it'll be great mental support to us. If you want to
be sure that your letter or fax is not to be just thrown away send us a
copy of it too.
More Information:
Matti Pellinen
Janne Kumpulainen
PO BOX 169
00151 HELSINKI
FAX: 358-0-6221815
TEL: 358-0-642881
MOBILE: 358-49-306639 (NMT)
Information by electronic means,
especially Mac-formatted data
available, hqx-coded or otherwise:
Matti Pellinen
internet: k34340j@puukko.hut.fi
greennet: luonto