Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Programme 2014 - 2020 Karelia ENI CBC

Date of latest update: 2024-01-19

Description

Description (EN):

The specific objective of the project is “Improved ecological state and water quality in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki”. The objective is in line with Priority 3: Clean and comfortable region to live: Element 4: Using nature in the promotion of health and wellbeing, because the project aims to produce updated data about the pollution status of the cross-border rivers for establishing management plans to support, restore and protect biodiversity in the river areas. This supports maintenance of recreational activities in nature that promote health and wellbeing of the locals and tourists on both sides of the border.

Achievements (EN):

Both the Koitajoki and the Tohmajoki are located in the catchment area of the Ladoga River. Chemical substances are leached into the Ladoga River through the rivers, which degrade the water quality of the Ladoga River. The potential of both rivers to provide various ecosystem services to the inhabitants of the area, such as drinking water or fishing opportunities, is also reduced. For these reasons, the TohmaKoita project aimed to create the conditions for improving the ecological status and water quality of these border rivers. Main activities To achieve these objectives, the project monitored the water quality of both rivers for two years. The aim was to identify sources of harmful pollution. The monitoring was carried out by taking water samples for analysis of both chemical pollutants and heavy metals. The long-term impact of these was examined by means of a stepwise linkage calculation. Samples were analysed in a Finnish and a Russian laboratory. The laboratory analyses were used to develop proposals for water protection and land use in river basins. It was already known at the project design stage that one of the main sources of pollution is the Sortavala district municipality of Helylä, whose obsolete water treatment plant discharges some 250 cubic metres of untreated sewage into the River Tohma. The second objective of the project was to obtain the necessary approvals and permits to pipe the wastewater to the Sortavala wastewater treatment plant. In this context, the objectives of the project included the preparation of the terms of reference for a soil survey and technical plans. The project plan also included the preparation of tender documents and the organisation of public consultations. As the project was carried out in two countries, the aim was also to compare their water legislation and use this as a basis for recommendations for best practice in future projects. Achievements At the end of the project, a report was written based on the findings and published on the project website. The report identified agriculture and forestry, as well as settlements on the Russian side of the Tohma River, as the main sources of pollution. The report proposed measures to reduce these nuisances. One of the most important is adequate protection zones along riverbanks. The comparison of water laws proved more difficult than expected. However, a brief comparison was made, and the results outlined some best practices for future projects. To the best of our knowledge, this was the first attempt to compare the water laws of the countries from the perspective of project work on transboundary waters. The comparison is published on project's CBC-site. The land use and zoning plans required for the pressure collector at the Sortavala wastewater treatment plant in Helylä have been drawn up and sent to the City of Sortavala for approval. A tender for the provision of services for the preparation of project documentation, construction estimates and project documentation for the construction of a pressure sewer from Helylä to the Sortavala wastewater treatment plant was published in December 2021.

Expected Results (EN): The expected change the project is going to make is to improve living conditions of local residents along the water basins of both rivers and to enhance business environment for companies (SMEs) in the area.

Expected Outputs (EN):

The main outputs of the project: 1. Water and fish analyses are performed and monitoring scheme of the physical & chemical state of the cross- border rivers is developed. 2. Technical proposals and plans for reducing the load from Helylä to Ladoga are given. 3. Knowledge is exchanged and results disseminated to stakeholders and lay public.

Thematic information

Water management

Thematic Objective: Environmental protection, climate change mitigation and adaptation

Partners (3)

Lead Partner: Suomen ympäristökeskus

Department: Natural Environment Centre

Address: Yliopistokatu 7, PL111, 80101 Joensuu, Finland

Legal status: public

Website: http://www.syke.fi

Total budget: EUR 577 548.00

ENI budget: EUR 285 003.00

АНО Центр энергетической эффективности

Name: АНО Центр энергетической эффективности

Address: Engelsa str. 10, of.504, 185035 Petrozavodsk, Russia

Legal status: public

Website: http://kaeec.org

ООО "Карелводоканал"

Name: ООО "Карелводоканал"

Address: Sovetskaya str. 24, 186792 Sortavala, Russia

Legal status: private

Website: http://karelvodokanal.ru

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Partners and Projects info

ANO Energy Efficiency Centre (ANO EEC)

Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Partners and Projects info

Karelvodokanal LLC

Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Partners and Projects info

Finnish Environment Insitute

Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Lead partner

Project partner

Summary

Project name (EN): Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Project acronym: TohmaKoita

Project start date: 2020-04-01

Project end date: 2022-12-31

Project status: closed

Total budget/expenditure: EUR 577 548.00

Total EU funding (amount): EUR 285 003.00

Total EU funding (co-financing rate): 49.35%

Co-financing sources:

ENPI/ENI/NDICI: Amount, EUR 285 003.00.

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

Financing programme

2014 - 2020 Karelia ENI CBC

Last month that data in keep.eu was retrieved from the Programme's website or received from the Programme

2021-07-01

No. of projects in keep.eu / Total no. of projects (% of projects in keep.eu)

61 / 61 (100%)

No. of project partnerships in keep.eu / Total no. of project partnerships (% of project partnerships in keep.eu)

280 / 280 (100%)

Notes on the data

Information provided by the Programme. Partner budgets are not available in this programme, the Lead partners in Karelia CBC programme get all the funding. Fields project name (from 5 projects) translated from Russian into English using the European Commission's eTranslation machine translation service.

The projects which fields include an eTranslation English text are the ones with the following acronyms: BIOKARELIA, CULTA, Kalitka, Kantele-GO! and Urban Parks & Benefits.

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Improving the water quality for local use of water resources and ecological state in the cross-border rivers Koitajoki and Tohmajoki

Description

Thematic information

Partners (3)

Partners map

Summary

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

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