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Three species of mosses (Bryophyta: Philonotis yezoana, Protobryum bryoides, Rhynchostegium murale) and one of liverworts (Marchantiophyta: Moerckia flotoviana) are presented new for Finland. Timmia megapolitana, previously thought to be regionally extinct, is reported to being found again. New records in biogeographical provinces for 82 species of mosses and 34 species of liverworts are listed. Finally, 8 occurrences in provinces are removed due to misidentifications or missing specimens.

Tutkimusmatkoja saarille : luonnon monimuotoisuutta kartoittamassa / Ilkka Hanski. Helsinki : Gaudeamus, 2016.

The traditional way of living has affected forest landscapes surrounding the villages. We analyzed forest structure of old landscapes using satellite images and forestry maps, in the Kostomuksha region, in the western White Sea Karelia. The signs of past agricultural communities were still clearly visible in the forests surrounding the old villages. Using the population data from the two population censuses done in the early 20th century, we created scaled land use zones based on the results of our forest data analysis and put them on the map in order to reconstruct the past landscape. Finally, we discuss the activities that have affected forest structure around the villages.

Bioenergy is one important form of renewable energy where Finland, Norway and Sweden have considerable potential. Greatly increased use of biomass for energy will, however, have considerable effects on environmental values like biodiversity, landscape appearance, outdoor recreation, and the cultural heritage. This review concludes that positive or marginally negative effects of biomass harvesting are likely for harvesting of logging residues, clearance of trees under power lines, along roads, and from marginal agricultural land, as well as production of energy crops on arable land. Negative effects are likely from harvesting of stumps, more intensive forest cultivation on logged areas, and harvesting of biomass from currently non-commercial forests. The environmental effects of production of biomass from reed canary grass or short rotation forestry will depend on where and how such production takes place.

Kutistuva maailma: elinympäristöjen häviämisen populaatioekologiset seuraukset, Ilkka Hanski, Helsinki (2007)

Karjalan luonto / Pertti Siilahti. Jyväskylä : AtlasArt, 2008.

The estuary of the River Kyronjoki was echo sounded and, on the basis of these results the delta was delimited and areas of erosion and accumulation were separated. Samples of the sediment surface (0–2 cm) from 65 sites in the estuary were analysed for organic content, C, N, P, Ca, Fe, Mn, Pb, Cu, Zn, Cd and Hg. On the basis of the chemical analyses the delta was divided into two parts according to the sedimentary conditions: (I) In the inner part, where acid fresh water of c. pH 5.5 from the river is predominant, the conditions were reducing. The Fe/Mn ratio of the sediment was high. The heavy metal content was usually low. The Hg content in the organic compounds of the sediment was, due to the acidity, higher than in the outer part. (II) In the outer part of the delta, where neutral brackish water of pH c. 7.0 dominates, the sedimentary conditions were mostly oxidizing. The Fe/Mn ratio was very low. The heavy metal and organic content was mostly high in the accumulation areas. This is because the fine-grained allochthonous material, which has a high heavy metal and organic content, flocculates and precipitates when it reaches the brackish water of the Gulf of Bothnia, and the salinity and the pH are higher.

[Introduction] Approximately half of Finnish peatlands have been drained for forestry. However, there is considerable variation regionally, and in particular in southern southern half of Finland ca 80-90 % of the original mire area has been ditched. Drainage was most intensive in 1960s and 1970s, but ditching has gradually decreased since that. Drainage has extensive effects on flora and fauna of mire habitats (Laine & al. 1995b, Aapala & Lappalainen 1998a, Aapala & Lappalainen 1998b, Vasander 1998, Heikkilä & al. 2002). Restoration of drained mires has began relatively recently and the research based knowledge of the ecological effects of the restoration are still forthcoming. Nevertheless, in order for the restoration to be effective, the ecological effects of restoration must be known. Therefore, the monitoring of the effects of restoration should be planned and carried out carefully in experimental setups with appropriate controls. [Continues, please see the article] nonPeerReviewed

Contamination of urban streams is a rising topic worldwide, but the assessment and investigation of stormwater induced contamination is limited by the high amount of water quality data needed to obtain reliable results. In this study, stream bed sediments were studied to determine their contamination degree and their applicability in monitoring aquatic metal contamination in urban areas. The interpretation of sedimentary metal concentrations is, however, not straightforward, since the concentrations commonly show spatial and temporal variations as a response to natural processes. The variations of and controls on metal concentrations were examined at different scales to increase the understanding of the usefulness of sediment metal concentrations in detecting anthropogenic metal contamination patterns. The acid extractable concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd were determined from the surface sediments and water of small streams in the Helsinki Metropolitan region, southern Finland. The data consists of two datasets: sediment samples from 53 sites located in the catchment of the Stream Gräsanoja and sediment and water samples from 67 independent catchments scattered around the metropolitan region. Moreover, the sediment samples were analyzed for their physical and chemical composition (e.g. total organic carbon, clay-%, Al, Li, Fe, Mn) and the speciation of metals (in the dataset of the Stream Gräsanoja). The metal concentrations revealed that the stream sediments were moderately contaminated and caused no immediate threat to the biota. However, at some sites the sediments appeared to be polluted with Cu or Zn. The metal concentrations increased with increasing intensity of urbanization, but site specific factors, such as point sources, were responsible for the occurrence of the highest metal concentrations. The sediment analyses revealed, thus a need for more detailed studies on the processes and factors that cause the hot spot metal concentrations. The sediment composition and metal speciation analyses indicated that organic matter is a very strong indirect control on metal concentrations, and it should be accounted for when studying anthropogenic metal contamination patterns. The fine-scale spatial and temporal variations of metal concentrations were low enough to allow meaningful interpretation of substantial metal concentration differences between sites. Furthermore, the metal concentrations in the stream bed sediments were correlated with the urbanization of the catchment better than the total metal concentrations in the water phase. These results suggest that stream sediments show true potential for wider use in detecting the spatial differences in metal contamination of urban streams. Consequently, using the sediment approach regional estimates of the stormwater related metal contamination could be obtained fairly cost-effectively, and the stability and reliability of results would be higher compared to analyses of single water samples. Nevertheless, water samples are essential in analysing the dissolved concentrations of metals, momentary discharges from point sources in particular. Kaupunkialueiden sade- ja lumensulamisvesien eli hulevesien aiheuttama vesistökuormitus on ajankohtainen aihe sekä maailmalla että monissa Suomen kunnissa. Hulevesikuormitusta koskevaa tutkimustietoa on kuitenkin melko vähän, koska luotettavien arvioiden pohjaksi vaaditaan runsaasti veden laadun mittauksia. Vesistökuormitusta voidaan tutkia myös vesistöjen pohjasedimenttiin kerääntyneiden haitta-aineiden avulla, mutta toistaiseksi virtavesien sedimenttianalyysejä on tehty varsin vähän. Sedimenttitutkimuksiin liittyvätkin omat ongelmansa, sillä ihmisperäisen kuormituksen lisäksi luonnolliset tekijät, kuten sedimentin koostumus, vaikuttavat pitoisuuksiin. Tässä tutkimuksessa selvitettiin purosedimenttien metallipitoisuudet sekä niiden vaihtelun ominaispiirteet ja syyt kaupunkialueilla. Tämän perusteella arvioitiin sedimenttien käyttökelpoisuutta kaupunkivesistöjen metallikuormitustarkasteluissa. Pääkaupunkiseudun pienten purojen pohjasedimenteistä ja vesinäytteistä määritettiin kuparin, sinkin, lyijyn ja kadmiumin pitoisuudet. Lisäksi analysointiin sedimenttien kemiallista ja fysikaalista koostumusta, ja määritettiin paikkatietomenetelmin kunkin näytekohdan yläpuolisen valuma-alueen maankäyttö. Tutkitut sedimentit olivat kohtalaisen likaantuneita, mutta eivät aiheuttaneet välitöntä vaaraa eliöstölle. Osassa pisteistä sedimentit olivat selkeästi likaantuneita kuparin ja sinkin suhteen, ja eliövaikutuksetkin olivat mahdollisia. Metallipitoisuudet kasvoivat kaupunkirakentamisen tiiviyden myötä, mutta suurimpien pitoisuuksien taustalla olivat paikalliset tekijät, kuten mahdolliset pistelähteet. Tulosten perusteella korkeimpia pitoisuuksia ei voida yhdistää tiettyyn maankäyttöluokkaan, vaan korkeita pitoisuuksia voi esiintyä yhtä lailla kaupallisilla, varasto-, kerrostalo- kuin teollisuusalueillakin. Tulokset korostavat alueellisten tutkimusten merkitystä suunniteltaessa toimia hulevesikuormituksen vähentämiseksi. Metallipitoisuudet vaihtelivat näytteenottojakson sisällä jonkin verran, mutta ajalliset vaihtelut eivät estäneet huomattavien alueellisten erojen mielekästä tulkintaa. Maankäyttömuuttujat korreloivat paremmin sedimentin kuin vesinäytteiden metallipitoisuuksien kanssa. Sedimentit ovatkin suhteellisen kustannustehokas ja luotettava tapa arvioida hulevesien aiheuttamaa metallikuormitusta. Ne tarjoavat mahdollisuuden metallilähteiden alueelliseen tarkasteluun yksittäisten näytteiden perusteella, vaikkakin tiheä vesinäytteiden otto on välttämätöntä, kun tarkoitus on havaita hetkellisiä tai liukoisia päästöjä.