For the fourth year in a row, the Tanaelva is closed to salmon fishing. The salmon stock is still too low. Now 15 lucky organizations and teams have nevertheless received a dispensation to fish – but on the Finnish side of the Tanavassdraget. Yle Sápmi mentioned the case first. On the Norwegian side, one organization has applied for a dispensation and been refused. – We believe that the prerequisites for being able to grant a dispensation with conditions are not present. There is not an expected harvestable surplus of Atlantic salmon in Tana in 2024, writes the Norwegian Environment Agency in the rejection letter. It is the National Villakssenter Tana – Joddu that has submitted the application and writes that they will run training fishing aimed at children and young people living in Tana and Karasjok municipalities. – Again, the Finns get to fish this year and it’s embarrassing for the Norwegian authorities, says board member Benn Larsen of the Tanavassdraget Fisheries Management (TF). He emphasizes that TF does not blame the fishermen on the Finnish side, but thinks it is worthy of criticism that the Norwegian authorities are not as responsive when it comes to local fishing traditions as Finland is. – They have refused to accept traditional and local knowledge and therefore we are being put on land, says Larsen. Allan Klo Dispensations for salmon fishing in the Tanavassdraget The Center for Industry, Traffic and Environment in Lapland, which manages the natural resources in the region, granted 15 dispensations for salmon fishing in the Tanavassdraget. They received 30 applications. The Norwegian Environment Agency received one application and rejected it. Allowed to fish salmon for two weeks. There are a total of 56 salmon. The organizations have the opportunity to fish until 28 July on the Finnish side of the river. is enough salmon to permit fishing. To compare, in the 1970s almost 250 tonnes of salmon were caught a year in the Tanae river, which accounted for almost half of all river-caught salmon in Norway. No individual can apply for a dispensation. Eilif Aslaksen Traditional culture must be allowed to live on The basis for the dispensations is the continuation of the local population’s and indigenous people’s traditional knowledge of salmon fishing. This must nevertheless be weighed against the state of the salmon stocks. Should have the same rules The Norwegian Environment Agency writes in the refusal letter dated 22 March that it will simply not be possible to get a dispensation to fish for salmon in the river this year, but nevertheless salmon is fished on the Finnish side of the river. The Tana Agreement states that Norway and Finland must have common fishing rules for the border river stretch of the Tana River. The Ministry of Climate and Environment (KMD) believes that they have. The ministry explains that the dispensations granted on the Finnish side apply to tributaries, and not the main river where the border runs. Thus, it is Finland that alone decides whether it is legal to fish in them or not. – It is therefore not the case that organizations on the Finnish side get permission to fish on the border river stretch, while Norwegian organizations with the same conditions do not, writes the ministry in an e-mail to news. New regulations In May this year, new fishing regulations came into force for the Tanavassdraget. Before that, it was only for scientific purposes that a dispensation was granted, but now organizations can also apply for permission to fish for salmon. Previously, news has stated that the exemption scheme only applies to Finnish fishermen, but this is not true. – In the new fishing rules, this has been changed so that dispensation from the fishing rules can also be granted to organizations in connection with educational fishing or cultural events, writes KMD. Such as the National Wildlife Center Tana – Joddu applied for. Hege Persen is an adviser at the center and says they are distraught after the refusal. Hege Persen at the Norwegian Villakssenter Tana – Joddu believes it is important that children learn about fishing traditions and the river culture in Tana. Photo: Knut-Sverre Horn / Knut-Sverre Horn She says that they have requested information from the Norwegian Environment Agency about what is needed to get a dispensation granted. Nevertheless, it ended in rejection. – Now this fishing season is almost over, but I hope that we will get an arrangement in place where we can fish for salmon with the children until next year, says Persen. Boycott scheme Benn Larsen in TF does not accept the dispensation scheme at all. Benn Larsen is a former leader of TF and is not satisfied with the current fishing regulations. Photo: Private – We are against that. We will not apply for a dispensation to fish in our own river. TF has proposed an alternative solution where the river will be open for salmon fishing for the local population between 4–8 days in July. They call this limited culture fishing. Have you heard that organizations can apply for permission to fish for salmon in the Tanavassdraget? He felt that their proposal was not properly assessed by the ministry. – Once again we were run over, says Larsen. But TF has been part of the negotiations on the new fishing rules, including the exemption scheme. Thus, they have had the chance to protest against the exemption scheme. – TF has been involved in these processes throughout and has not mentioned the dispensation provision in its consultation responses, writes KMD. Published 17.07.2024, at 16.45
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Salmon fishing in Tana is prohibited on the Norwegian side of the river, while it is legal in Finland – news Sápmi
