The Fishheart fishway at PVO-Vesivoima Oy’s Raasakka power plant on the Iijoki River has proved attractive for fish. So far, 112 individual salmon and trout, as well as many other fish species such as river lampreys, have used the fishway. The first whitefish have also been detected. The migration of whitefish is expected to start in earnest in October. The fishway was commissioned in mid-July after a test run.
“The first season at a new site is always a learning curve. We’re delighted with the good start of the fishway. Next year, with the experience we gain during this season, we’ll also be able to show in Raasakka what the Fishheart fishway is really capable of,” says Mika Sohlberg, Sales and Marketing Manager of Fishheart Ltd.
Fishheart has also been used to transfer salmonids. Fish rising along the fishway are collected in a container on the riverbank, from where they are transferred to the tributaries and the main channel of the Iijoki river upstream of the uppermost power plant. This year, transfers using the fish container focus on salmonids. The plan is to use the fish container also to obtain whitefish roe, as well as to test its performance in meeting the river lamprey transfer obligation.
“Fishheart has exceptionally diverse intended uses in Raasakka. It can support the work on migratory fish on the Iijoki river in several ways, not only as a migration channel but also by enhancing transfers and assisting in the regeneration of whitefish, salmon and sea trout broodstocks and the acquisition of roe. In turn, this will be an excellent support for the development and research work in the middle and upper parts of the Iijoki river, including the Haapakoski downstream migration route,” says Jyrki Salo, PVO-Vesivoima’s environmental specialist.
In Raasakka, the Fishheart fishway is being used for the first time at the lowermost power plant on a harnessed river flowing into the sea. Its operation will provide valuable additional information about the efficiency of the system as part of a solution for migratory fish in harnessed rivers. The purpose of Fishheart is to improve the upstream migration route at Raasakka during the delays in the permit processes for the Raasakka power plant and fishways. The use of Fishheart in Raasakka will have no impact on the promotion of the pending fishway projects.
As part of an extensive collaboration project, Finland’s first downstream migration route has been commissioned at Haapakoski, the uppermost power plant on the Iijoki river, allowing young salmonids travelling downstream access past the power plant.
Additional information about transfers:
Jyrki Salo, environmental specialist, PVO-Vesivoima Oy, tel. +358 50 305 8299, jyrki.salo@pvo.fi
Additional information about the Fishheart fishway:
Mika Sohlberg, Sales Director, Fishheart Ltd., tel. +358 500 03344, mika@kalasydan.fi
PVO-Vesivoima Oy produces electricity with its hydropower plants on the Iijoki, Kemijoki and Kokemäenjoki rivers. The average total annual energy production output of the company is 1.7 TWh. The company is part of Pohjolan Voima Group. www.pohjolanvoima.fi; X: @PVOVesivoima