The Finnish Nature League FNL

Press release January 7, 1999

Environmentalists protest against the state loggings in Malahvia old-growth forest in Eastern Finland

Dozens of environmental activists representing The Finnish Association for Nature Conservation (FANC) and its Kainuu district, Finnish Nature League (FNL) and Friends of the Earth Finland have since the beginning of this year been protesting against the loggings of Finnish Forest and Park Service in Malahvia old-growth forest.

The protest was asked for and is supported by the local people, who during the Christmas holidays collected 111 names in an appeal for the saving of the area. This is a large amount of people in a sparsely populated area such as the surroundings of Malahvia. The locals also organised a place for the activists to stay and have shown warm hospitality during the action. Malahvia is of great importance for the local use, such as hunting, fishing and other recreation.

On Tuesday, January 5, there was a protest on the area clearcut earlier by the state enterprise Forest and Park Service (FPS). Further loggings have been postponed as FPS had heard about the presence of the environmental NGOs some days earlier, so there was no logging going on during that day.

The activists hanged several banners in the few remaining trees at the site, which stated:

• Finnish forestry 1999: logging old-growth forests
• Stora Enso and UPM-Kymmene: pulping national heritage and in Finnish:
• FPS knowhow: celebrating the 150th anniversary of Kalevala by logging
• Logging your national property: Forest and Park Service
• Logging old-growth forests is wrong

The protest received wide interest in both national and regional media, including national TV news.

Despite the appeal by the local people, the protest of the NGOs and the temporary halt in the loggings by FPS, the representative of FPS has stated to the media that the loggings will continue and be brought to an end as planned.

Major buyers of the pulp wood from the loggings, Stora Enso and UPM-Kymmene, have not shown any intention of withdrawing their purchases from Malahvia or any other on-going or planned old-growth logging in Finland.

Photos, maps, background on Malahvia-case

Map of the Malahvia area - proposed Finnish-Russian Kalevala-park

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

• Reduce your paper consumption.
  
  
• Send a fax or an e-mail expressing your concern and disapproval of the old-growth logging to the state enterprise Forest and Park Service. Demand an immediate stop of all old-growth logging in Finland.
  
  Forest and Park Service / CEO Mr. Jan Heino Fax: +358-2056 44 350
  
  
• Send a fax or an e-mail to Stora Enso and UPM-Kymmene demanding for an immediate stop of purchasing of old-growth timber. You can also ask the company representatives why they cannot join a logging moratorium for remaining old-growth forests in Finland when they have done so on the other side of the border in Russia.
  
  Stora Enso / CEO Mr. Jukka Härmälä and Björn Hägglund Fax: +358-2046 21 471
  
  UPM-Kymmene / CEO Mr. Juha Niemelä Fax: +358-2041 50 300