Sunday|Torsti knows
On this page, Torsti and his lollipops answer readers’ questions. Not satisfied with the answer? Or do you have your own question in mind? Send mail to Torsti: [email protected].
Hi again, readers, this is Thursday.
Two weeks ago on the site we talked about radiation, and it’s a tickling topic.
Sanna Korhonen would have needed a more precise definition of what radiation is in the answer: “Some people get a panic attack just from the word radiation, and some grossly take advantage of people’s irrational fear of radiation by selling them all kinds of nonsense as ‘radiation protection'”, he writes and reminds that even visible light is electromagnetic radiation.
Juha Suominen adds that direct current is stored in the battery, while magnetic fields are generated by alternating current. In an electric car, they are only in the engine.
Teemu Mykkänen wonders why the magnetic and electric fields of subways, trams and electric trains have not made headlines for decades, but worries about electric cars continue like this.
According to the Uudehko law, the landowner must remove harmful alien species from his area. In particular, lupine has taken over roadsides and wastelands. Can any citizen cut the flower stalks of a lupine while walking and thus prevent the seeds from developing? And what can you do if you encounter a harmful species in a nature reserve?
– Nature wanderer from Vantaa
Alien species, i.e. species that have spread to new habitats as a result of human activity, are a very significant risk to biodiversity worldwide.
In 2015, a law was enacted in Finland on the management of risks caused by alien species, after which the landowner has had the obligation to intervene precisely in species such as lupins and red rose. However, the law is in conflict with the legislation on nature conservation areas.
Torst is told by Metsähallitus that even alien species cannot be removed while walking in the protected area. Instead, the citizen should report his observation to Metsähallitus as soon as possible, and the experts will take care of the problem. Lupine can get mixed up with, say, a deer bell, and well-intentioned civic activism can result in significant damage.
Metsähallitus also cooperates with the nature conservation organization WWF Finland, where trained workers remove alien species from nature reserves, such as lupines, giant balsams and Spanish hornbeams. The audience’s observations help in this work as well. The more preventive, the better. Even picking a single lupine at the right moment can save tens of hours of work a few years from now.
A more conservative nature conservationist considers the question to be tricky. He knows very well that, according to the law, it is not allowed to disturb alien plants found elsewhere without the landowner’s permission. Nevertheless, he says he likes to discipline alien plants with his dog runs.
The responsibility and obligation is always the landowner’s. Tikkaremmäinen states that the Road Administration in particular should do its job, as an official job, because the problem of lupine and kurturus has largely started from the grassroots.
In Sweden, non-native animals can be removed in the joint “rapid action forces” project of the nature conservation agency Naturvårdsverket and Metsästäjäliitto Jägarförbundet without having to ask permission from the landowner.
In Finland, a permit is always required, both for minks and raccoons, as well as for lupins and giant balsams. The conservationist also hopes for legislation in Finland that would emphasize the ecological perspective of alien species over the landowner’s perspective.
“Nobody wants to screw them up if they know at all what it’s about. Now all that is needed is a single cottager who likes raccoon dogs or doesn’t want to let Metsähallitus’ men on their plot, and the rest of the work will be reduced to zero,” says Tikkaremmäinen.
Who gets to decide on the language of traffic signs and signs? I know that the law regulates road signs in bilingual areas, but I wonder, for example, why the boundary sign of a reindeer herding area has Finnish, Swedish, English and German. The sign was still on the road between Suomussalmi and Kuhmo. Wouldn’t Russian be a more logical language so close to the border?
– Mai Frick, Oulu
The Väyläfikursto’s instructions on the use of road signs give a simple answer. Additional languages may be used on traffic signs for “special reasons”. For example, there are often additional languages in use near border crossings and ports.
However, it is written separately in the instructions for the traffic sign of the reindeer husbandry area that the four languages you mentioned must be used, and in addition to them, Sámi in Sámi areas.
The German language has been chosen because, in the summer months, Germans are the largest tourist nationality in Lapland in terms of registered accommodation. Many Germans arrive in Lapland with their own car either through Sweden or Finland. Since Germany is not used to things like reindeer, the danger is perceived to be so significant that they are warned about it in their native language.
Russia’s intervention is affected by the fact that traffic signs change slowly. The sign of the reindeer herding area is also from decades ago, when Russian tourism was less. If the sign had been renewed a few years ago, Russian would probably have been added near the border. Right now the situation and tourist numbers are of course different.
#Torsti #harmful #alien #species #neighbors #house #kill
