Reader opinion The Vantaanjoki has never been a major salmon river and it cannot be made that way

Opinion|Reader’s opinion

I live In Lieksa, where the mighty Lieksanjoki and Ruunaa rapids flow. The average flow of the Lieksanjoki is 90 cubic meters per second. Compared to the Lieksanjoki, the Vantaanjoki is small, with an average flow at the mouth of the river of only 16 cubic meters per second. The corresponding readings in the known salmon rivers are: Simojoki 36 cubic meters per second, Tenojoki 165 cubic meters per second and Tornionjoki with its huge catchment areas 380 cubic meters per second.

For a while in the spring, the Vantaanjoki River floods beautifully and under the Ring Road three in Vantaankoski, the water masses surge spectacularly. The river erupts rapidly, and for most of the year the flow is low, at a low of two cubic meters per second. Fortunately, the dam lands a long distance upstream of the river. The dam retains huge bodies of water above it and stores plenty of organic matter. It has good living conditions for pike, carp and eel.

In the 19th century, salmon rose in the Vantaa River, but by no means significantly. The environment of the river was then completely different: there were forests and swamps that leveled the flow. Now the riverbanks are surrounded by houses, factories, roads and fields and above that even more polluted air. Especially during floods, the water is visibly brown.

The water in the northern salmon rivers is much better and cooler. In the summer of 2014, however, a massive salmon death occurred in the Tornio River. Excessive heating of the water was suspected. In the future, the climate will warm even more. A hot summer in southern Finland could take even the last salmon out of the Vantaa River.

Since the repeal of the swimming rules, more than 2,000 rapids have been restored in Finland – always monomically on trout terms. At the same time, old, fine floating structures, stone estuaries, wooden dams or oaks, wooden coffins, thunderstorms and floating ravines have been destroyed. They were monuments from a time when war reparations were torn from logging and support mowing.

River rehabilitation plans always greatly exaggerate the recovery of salmon stocks. Follow-up studies have hardly come to terms with the original goals and have been up and running. According to a dissertation written at the University of Jyväskylä in 2010, rivers will not recover during rehabilitation. In restoration, the flows do diversify, but at the same time the bottom moss system is damaged and its healing is very slow. Large perch swarm in the ponds dammed by beavers in Lieksa. The dam stores organic matter well. The same effect once had on dams.

The Vantaanjoki has never been a major salmon river and it cannot be made that way. Therefore, the dam must be saved. Demolition and construction of new bottom dams is an absurd idea. I would have to build access roads for fish and they would be a difficult obstacle for boaters and paddlers.

What would be the purpose of the salmon rise in Vantaanjoki? Would you just like to protect your salmon, or even fish it up for food, or occasionally lift it up and throw it back catch and release principle?

Is restoration not the opposite of development, that is, going in a more backward direction. Effective restoration should demolish houses, blow up bridges, destroy telecommunications and eventually destroy people.

Risto Rantanen

veterinarian, Lieksa

The reader’s opinions are the speeches written by HS’s readers, selected and delivered by HS’s editorial staff. You can leave a comment or read the principles of writing at www.hs.fi/kirjtamielipidekirjoitus/.