A new fishway has just been completed next to the Pouttu regulation dam on the Lapuanjoki River. The project was carried out in collaboration with the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) of South Ostrobothnia, Kone-Kovera Oy, and Pipelife. The construction of the fishway was a technically demanding process, but the result exceeded expectations. Migratory fish can now pass smoothly upstream past the dam.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Pouttu regulation dam, originally built in 1991, is located about three kilometers downstream from the center of Lapua.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe dam keeps the water level stable, prevents shoreline erosion, and enables various recreational activities in the area,\u201d explains Pekka Hyyti\u00e4inen<\/strong>, water resources specialist at the ELY Centre, who oversaw the fishway construction project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The design and construction of the fishway were carried out jointly by the ELY Centre, civil engineering contractor Kone-Kovera Oy, and Pipelife, which supplied the necessary culvert pipes. The fishway was constructed using a 1600 mm diameter spiral-welded pipe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPipelife was chosen as the supplier due to their design expertise and deep understanding of suitable pipe materials and implementation methods. Together, we found good compromises and solutions,\u201d says Jarkko Yli-Kojola<\/strong> from Kone-Kovera Oy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe fishway consists of four sections of spiral-welded pipe, with a total length of about 40 meters. Plastic lamellas are installed inside the pipe at five-meter intervals to hold it in place, and various sizes of stone material have been added to replicate natural flow conditions. In addition, three light shafts help create an even more natural environment inside the pipe,\u201d explains Joni Vihanta<\/strong>, Product Manager at Pipelife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Building the fishway was challenging due to the soft soil at the riverside construction site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe used sheet piling and dug down to depths of four to five meters \u2013 in some areas, even deeper. Now we can say the pipe is in place and water is flowing,\u201d Yli-Kojola says with satisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During construction, the site experienced significant flooding followed by a two-meter drop in water levels. Despite this, the slopes of the fishway channel remained intact, confirming the durability of the build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe water flows smoothly, and according to fisheries experts, everything looks good. We already spotted bream and perch near the outlet \u2013 the fish are finding their way in,\u201d Yli-Kojola smiles shortly after the opening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The end result is something everyone involved can be proud of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBuilding the fishway was essential to allow migratory fish to continue their journey upstream. In my opinion, the outcome is excellent. The setting is beautiful \u2013 a river flowing through the flat plains with thousands of cubic meters of water passing every minute. The fishway has created a stunning new channel. It\u2019s been a great project to be part of,\u201d says Vihanta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt actually turned out better than we expected. The pipe structure seems very promising, and we hope it becomes a model that can be replicated at other sites as well,\u201d Hyyti\u00e4inen concludes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The new Pouttu fishway enables migratory fish to bypass the dam A new fishway has just been completed next to the Pouttu regulation dam on the Lapuanjoki River. The project was carried out in collaboration with the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centre) of South Ostrobothnia, Kone-Kovera Oy, and Pipelife. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4370,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_improvement_type_select":"improve_an_existing","_thumb_yes_seoaic":false,"_frame_yes_seoaic":false,"seoaic_generate_description":"","seoaic_improve_instructions_prompt":"","seoaic_rollback_content_improvement":"","seoaic_idea_thumbnail_generator":"","thumbnail_generated":false,"thumbnail_generate_prompt":"","seoaic_article_description":"","inline_featured_image":false,"seoaic_article_subtitles":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4647","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-customer-stories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA technically demanding project successfully completed<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A replicable model for future sites<\/h3>\n\n\n\n