Arctic Railway plans are an ongoing threat to Sámi reindeer herding
Photo: Analogicus from Pixabay
The Nordic nation states have for a long time been planning Arctic railroads to traditional lands of the Sámi people. There are at least three recent plans by the transport authorities and ministries of Finland and Norway to build new railroads to the Sámi land (Sápmi). One plan has been to build a railway from Rovaniemi (Finland) via Inari (Finland) to Kirkenes (Norway). Another plan has been to build a railway from Kolari (Finland) via Kilpisjärvi (Finland) to Tromsø (Norway). A third plan, promoted recently by the Parliament of Norway, is to build a railway from Narvik (Norway) to Tromsø (Norway).
The first two of the planned new railways would go through the Sápmi in Finland and Norway. The third planned railway would go through the Sápmi in Norway. The aim of the railways is to exploit the natural resources and increase tourism in Sápmi. The Sámi Parliaments and the reindeer herding communities have been opposing the railway plans since the beginning. Any of the railroads would be a catastrophe for reindeer husbandry in the respective areas because they would, in many places, cut the reindeer pasture lands in two. Fences that would be built on both sides of the railway would also cut the reindeer migration routes. Railways would also require new infrastructure such as road networks, electricity lines and service buildings, which would reduce reindeer pastures.
Parliament of Norway voted in April 2021 to start working on an extension of the Norlandsbanen train line from Narvik to Tromsø even if it is not economically viable and although it poses a threat to traditional Sámi livelihoods.
On the Finnish side there have been many alternative routings for the Arctic Railway, but some of them have already been given up. The 2021 Arctic Policy strategy draft of Finland does not include the plan for the Arctic Railway from Rovaniemi to Kirkenes or from Kolari to Tromsø. The Regional Council of Lapland has voted to redraft provincial development plans for the area of Northern Lapland, which had included an Arctic Railway from Rovaniemi to Kirkenes in Norway. However, a railway plan still exists in the Regional Council of Lapland’s regional land use plan for the Fell Lapland area (Tunturi-Lappi). This railway would run from Kolari via Kilpisjärvi to the Norwegian side, in practice the Skibotn–Tromsø area.
There has also been a plan to connect and electrify the railway from Laurila–Tornio on the Finnish side to the railway that exists on the Swedish side. The goal is to electrify and connect the Finnish railway to the existing railway that goes from Haparanda (Sweden) via Kiruna (Sweden) to Narvik (Norway). The Government of Finland announced last month in its supplementary budget that it will reserve funding for the electrification of the above-mentioned rail link. This connection is also prioritized and mentioned in the 2021 Arctic Policy strategy draft of Finland. This would mean increased train traffic on an existing railway line passing through the Sámi reindeer herding area mostly on the Swedish and partly on the Norwegian side. The planned Laurila–Tornio–Haparanda electrification project would utilize the existing infrastructure and at the same time connect the traffic routes of Northern Finland via the port of Narvik to the Arctic Ocean and the Far East.
Increased pressure on the port of Narvik would inevitably mean expanding the port. This should be done in cooperation with the Sámi in the area. When using the Norwegian and Swedish railways, Finland must also finance the construction of fences and bridges to prevent, among other things, damage to reindeer. Funding should also be provided to ensure that fences are rehabilitated and repaired at regular intervals. This should also be done by listening to and respecting the Sámi in the regions.