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MARIA LATOKARTANO, Photos: Hanne Manelius & Minna Kurjenluoma
Environmental impact monitoring is an important part of the activities of Metsä Fibre’s mills. Work is carried out in close cooperation with expert companies and authorities.
The water swirls brightly around the stones as Antti Leppänen , a fish biologist, steps into the waves of Kapeenkoski rapids in Central Finland, bordering the municipalities of Äänekoski and Laukaa. He is wearing fishing waders and carrying a device resembling a large rucksack, which is used to create an electric field in the water. The electricity briefly stuns fish swimming nearby so that they can be weighed and measured before being released back. The fish are caught as part of monitoring carried out by Leppä- nen’s employer, KVVY Tutkimus Oy, in cooperation with Metsä Fibre, along the Äänekoski–Vaajakoski waterway. “In addition to test fishing operations, we interview holders of fishing permits, determine the contaminant concentrations in fish and study changes in pelagic fish using sonar detection. By combining several methods, we aim to form as accurate a picture as possible of the condition of fish along the waterway,” Leppänen explains. Upstream from Kapeenkoski rapids is a longish flow-through lake called Kuhnamo. This area around Äänekoski, which links Kuhnamo and Keitele, is where the forest industry began to develop in 1896. A sawmill, groundwood mill and paperboard mill were built first. The first pulp mill began operations in 1938. The mill brought prosperity to the region, but its environmental impacts were intolerable by modern standards. The waste liquor
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