Fate of Heinola bird sanctuary still under consideration

Petition gathered more than 15,000 signatures

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On Monday, the Heinola City Board withdrew the proposal it had submitted to the City Council on March 30th to cancel the EUR 225,000 appropriation of the local bird sanctuary from the beginning of next year.
      A petition containing more than 15,000 signatures was handed over to Timo Ihamäki (Nat. Coalition Party), the Chairman of the City Council, early on Monday evening prior to the Council meeting. The petition appealed to the City Council to keep the sanctuary's doors open.
     
At present, attempts are being made to raise funds for the sanctuary with the possible help of the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
      In Ihamäki’s view, it would be desirable to find another keeper for the sanctuary to replace the city. He also thinks that an entrance fee would be appropriate in the future.
     
The problem is that the area should be surrounded by a fence. The estimated costs for a fence are EUR 60,000.
      For the time being, admission to the bird sanctuary has been subject to a voluntary fee, and the receipts have been negligible.
      Ihamäki notes further that for the City of Heinola the bird sanctuary is a question of image, which is why the issue is very difficult for decision-makers as well.
     
The City of Heinola’s plan to cancel its funding came as a surprise to the Ministry of the Environment.
      According to Senor Adviser Matti Osara, the ministry is to study the network of wild bird care centres in the country, including the related expenses, by the summer.
     
For the time being, only the Pyhtää wild bird care centre and the Helsinki Zoo are granted a state subsidy.
      In 1994, a working group set up by the Ministry of Environment proposed that a chain of wild animal care centres should be established in the country. The chain would include the Ranua Zoo, the Ähtäri Zoo, the Helsinki Zoo, and the Heinola bird sanctuary.
     
Osara reports that the situation is now to be examined relating to Ranua, Ähtäri, and Heinola, where wild animals are being taken care of by voluntary helpers and based on municipal goodwill.
      The sums in question are not large, but the institutions could at least partly be funded by the government.
      Bird guide Olli Vuori, who is in charge of the Heinola bird sanctuary, has been busy commuting between the sanctuary and the City Hall, incessantly speaking on his mobile phone.
      The present threat to close down the sanctuary came as no great surprise to Vuori. Because the appropriation of the bird sanctuary is not statutory, a reduction in the funds has been proposed in connection with a number of cost-cutting schemes.
     
”We are seen as a mere expense item, even though the Heinola bird sanctuary is the province’s second largest visitor attraction after Lahti’s Sibelius Hall. The annual number of visitors to the bird sanctuary is 120,000. The season starts in May with school groups and continues until the autumn”, Vuori argues.
     
The Heinola bird sanctuary has collected additional income with the help of a supporters’ association. With the accrued funds the sanctuary has acquired a kiosk that will be opened later in the spring. As a consequence of the news to close down the place, a number of individuals have joined the association, donating money to the sanctuary to be used for the relief of injured birds.
     
The Finnish Federation for Animal Welfare Associations (SEY) has also initiated a petition to help the Heinola bird sanctuary, while BirdLife Finland has appealed to the decision-makers in order that the operation of the sanctuary could continue.
      The Heinola bird sanctuary is Finland’s oldest care centre for injured native birds, and birds are brought there from all over Finland. At present, the number of birds in the sanctuary is around 250.
     
In addition to injured native species, the sanctuary accommodates a number of exotic pets which have been brought in because their owners have no longer been able to take care of them.
      On the arrival of spring, recovered birds can go back into the wild. At first, they are allowed a short flight under surveillance, and if they are strong enough they can fly away.


Links:
  Heinola Bird Sanctuary
  Finnish Federation for Animal Welfare Associations (SEY)
  Birdlife Finland

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