Restoration Group Demands Fish Passages Before Tammerkoski Overhaul

The Kokemäenjoki Route Restoration Association is urging Tampere and Tampereen Energia to plan fish migration routes before the Keskiputous power plant overhaul set for 2027–2029, telling Aamulehti it would be "quite a tourist attraction" if salmon and trout swam through the city. Association chairman Pekka Vuorinen warns that refurbishing the Keskikoski plant without bypass channels could push construction of fish passages decades into the future. That would be a long setback.

Tammerkoski’s dams have blocked natural runs of salmon and trout since the late 19th century. Original permits required restoring migration routes, but fish ladders were never built and a 1990s agreement instead substituted fish stocking.

Tampereen Energia's energy markets director Jukka Joronen says the site is unusually difficult, with costs, uncertain benefits to migrating stocks and the protected industrial landscape complicating the addition of new structures. He points to a 2023 Natural Resources Institute study and argues funds may yield greater gains in smaller streams.

Vuorinen notes the water management action plan recommends reassessing dam solutions as plants near the end of their lifespans, and he plans talks with the deputy mayor and Tampereen Energia this autumn to press the case. Earlier this year Tammerkoski was drained for maintenance and inspection, temporarily exposing the riverbed when the city drained the rapids for inspections. Volunteers have also been working to restore trout habitat in nearby Pirkanmaa streams this summer and autumn as part of organised habitat projects.