Suomussalmi mussel destruction | Minister Mykkänen demands Stora Enso to pay for the violins

Minister of the Environment and Climate Kai Mykkänen (kok) has three messages for Stora Enso and the forest industry, when Suomussalmi’s mussel die-off traces are still being cleaned up.

Mykkänen told HS about his thoughts in a phone interview on Friday. The first message concerns Stora Enso’s responsibility.

“First of all, it must be absolutely clear that Stora Enso, as the customer and the operator of the fellings, will fully compensate for these damages and the renovation work that is currently being done there,” says Mykkänen.

On Suomussalmi’s Hukkajoki, Metsähallitus employees have been carrying thousands of river pearl mussels upstream with buckets for the past few days, after the Stora Enso construction site’s forest machine drove over the mussel deposits an estimated 300 times and caused the river to become silted.

The river pearl mussel is an extremely endangered species, and before the damage, Hukkajoki was among the top ten occurrences in Finland. Stora Enso knew about the occurrence of mussels and had secured it from the supervisory authority clear instructions.

Minister Mykkänen says that he understands that between Stora Enso and the company that carried out the felling, it is still being arranged how the responsibilities will be distributed.

However, the state is not coming to the rescue when Viulija is paid for the rescue and renovation works.

“When you have acted completely and outrageously against clear instructions, it cannot remain in the account of society’s scarce resources,” says Mykkänen.

Mykkänen says that he discussed the matter with Stora Enso’s CEO By Hans Sohlsröm with.

“He assured that he understands the seriousness of the environmental crime and that he takes full responsibility within Stora Enso that this kind of thing must not happen again and that of course the responsibility lies with them as the customer for managing the supply chain,” says Mykkänen.

Second Mykkänen’s idea is related to the fact that most of the damage that has occurred cannot be repaired in Suomussalmi despite the rescue work.

It is estimated that thousands of river pearl mussels have died and the bottom gravel, which is important for young mussel beds, has been blocked hundreds of meters downstream by mud and sand at the point where the mussel deposit has been the densest.

Mykkänen urged Sohlström to consider Stora Enso compensating for the damage by investing in the protection of the river pearl mussel, i.e. the rockfish, now also in other parts of the country.

“I suggested that Stora Enso start a collaboration in which they bring their own contribution to this work of protecting raw materials and restoring raw habitats in Finland more broadly.”

According to Mykkänen, the company has already initiated a dialogue with Metsähallitus’ nature services. In Finland, the protection of the river pearl oyster is the responsibility of the Metsähallitus.

“I think it’s reasonable that it also produces results.”

I will mute the third message targets the entire forest sector.

In his opinion, the forest sector could now jointly commit to leaving a 50 protection zone along the banks of raw rivers where no trees will be cut down. Such a zone effectively prevents sand and silt from flowing into the water from the logging site, and it also helps the forest by leaving shade trees in place.

There are only 140–150 brook rivers left in Finland. In only a few of them, the raw material is no longer able to reproduce properly.

“I appeal to all large forest companies to publicly confirm their commitment to this 50-meter buffer zone around these 140 raw rivers, so that the matter becomes clear at this point,” says Mykkänen.

The brutes that often hang out in the shallow parts of the river don’t like too much heat.

Such a protection zone was also recommended by the Kainuu ely center to Stora Enso in the logging bordering the Hukkajoki, which caused the damage.