Reindeer Blog

ICR Director Anders Oskal was interviewed by NRK Sami Radio on January 29th about the impacts of oil and gas development on Nenets reindeer husbandry. Oskal pointed out that there were a great many actors on the scene, some of whom are not willing to negotiate with reindeer herders.

Oskal also said that on his recent visits to the region (Yamal Nenets Autonomous Okrug) it was quite visible how oil and gas installations impacted the landscape and in particular, how pipelines cut reindeer pastures in two.

You can read a summary and listen to the interview here.

In another story on ‘Russia Today’ there is a short video clip on how oil and gas development is bringing economic opportunities to reindeer herders in the Nenets region. You can watch the video clip here. 

The english edition of the national Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat carried an article by Kirsikka Moring on the impact of the oil and gas industry on reindeer husbandry. The journalist attended the ENSINOR seminar in Rovaniemi, December 2007. You can read a more nuanced summary of that seminar on the Reindeer Portal.

Read the rest of this entry »

Reindeer Luck is a TV series that is to premiere on NRK national TV next week. It follows the Eira family in Kautokeino, one of the largest herding families in the region,  on their reindeer migration, slaughter and earmarking and more besides. See more about the series here.

Reindeer have been much in the media this last week. Several thousand reindeer from the Swedish side of the border have moved into Trøndelag region in Norway, in search of better pastures, according to this NRK report. This has meant a lot of extra work for reindeer herders on the Norwegian side of the border, who are also dealing with marginal winter pasture conditions. The case drew comment from a Norwegian parliamentary representative who drew attention to the fact that the Convention that governs cross border reindeer  movements has been allowed to lapse for several years.

In other news, East Finnmark (Polmak/Varanger) is the best place to be a reindeer calf in Norway, in terms of pasture and predation with losses, which are estimated to be lowest there compared to the rest of Norway. The worst place is the Troms region with 42% of all calves born being lost to predation, poor pastures etc. By comparison, herders in East Finnmark are estimated to lose 18% of their calves.

Last week, NINA, the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, released a report that concluded that larger reindeer herds gave rise to weaker animals and increased risk of predation. You can download the report on the Reindeer Portal (Norwegian).

By STEPHEN CASTLE / The New York Times SUOMUSSALMI, Finland — Close to the tiny Finnish village of Saaravaara, bloody tracks lead through the snow to the frozen carcass of  an 8-month-old male reindeer lying on its side, its neck torn, its  underbelly ripped open.

Within minutes, Ilmari Schepel, a local agriculture official, identified the culprit: a wolf. His evidence was the shape of the bite to the animal’s throat and the belly tear; wolves are particularly fond of reindeer intestines.

This town, a 20-minute drive from Finland’s border with Russia and more  than 375 miles northeast of Helsinki, is on the front line of Finland’s wolf wars. The fight is between backers of European Union regulations,  which are meant to halt sharp drops in the population of wolves and  other endangered predators across Europe, and the roughly 7,000 reindeer
herders whose livelihoods are threatened by increased attacks on their animals. Read the rest of this entry »

Gold prices are at an all time high and this will certainly prompt a renewed gold rush in the Finnmark county, according to Jørgen Stenvold, Director of Store Norske Gull (SNG) in todays NRK Sami Radio. SNG is one of the largest mining companies in the region - with activities aleady underway in Karasjok and on the border with Porsanger. While municipal leaders in Kautokeino and Karasjok have welcomed the possibility of increased mining activity, several representatives from reindeer husbandry have openly expressed their concerns (Maret Sara in Karasjok)  and Mikkel Nils Sara in Kautokeino about how mining will negatively impact reindeer husbandry. Meanwhile, in a report in  todays NRK Sami Radio, Bjørn Johansen, the District Secretary of LO (The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions) the largest and most influential workers’ organisation in Norway has reacted strongly against reindeer husbandry for blocking the entry of new industry to Finnmark and the new and secure jobs that it would bring. Mikkel Nils Sara responded that there is much unrealised potential for reindeer husbandry in the region which should be investigated.

According to a report on the NRK Sami TV Oððasat 17.01.08, the pastures in all the Sami reindeer herding areas except Norrbotten are in a terrible condition. Due to the mild weather, ice has penetrated to the ground and covered plants and lichen with ice rendering them inedible. Reindeer owner from the Jingevarie sameby, Marianne Persson described the situation as catastrophic, and expressed her deep concern for the future in the light of climate change. Per Gustav Idivuoma (Chair of SSR, the Swedish Sami Association) said the situation was very precarious. It also carries a high economic cost, as reindeer have to be fed, with costs running into millions of Kroner, of which the state only pay a certain amount. Watch the clip here (which also shows public reaction to the 1852 Rebellion premiere in Tromso and the upcoming TV series ‘Reindeer Luck’).

(Pic NRK Sami Radio) A much awaited film premiere occurs this month (January 18th) with the release of Nils Gaup’s film, The Kautokeino Rebellion (Kautokeino-opprøret) an epic that cost NOK 53.6 million (10 million USD), based on a real-life event in 1852.  Gaup, whose Oscar-nominated feature, Pathfinder (Ofelas/Veiviseren/1987), was based on an ancient Sami legend, has again returned to Sapmi. In 1852, against the backdrop of a religious awakening, a group of 35 Sami – outraged by years of subjugation – staged a riot in Kautokeino, killing the sheriff and the merchant and flogging the clergyman. Two years later in Alta, two of the leaders were decapitated and were buried without their heads. After years of research the skull were found in Oslo and Copenhagen and were finally reunited with the skeletons.

“Until recently the uprising was a taboo subject among the 1,600 population in Kautokeino; still it has inspired five novels, two operas, one symphony, and several documentaries. But since most families have ancestors who were involved, it was not considered proper tea time conversation,” explained Gaup, who has worked on the project for 10 years

Born in Kautokeino, himself a descendant of Aslak Hætta – one of the executed leaders - Gaup has written the script with Nils Aslak Eira, Reidar Jönsson and Pelone Wahl. His production team includes cinematographer Philip Øgaard and set designer Karl Juliusson, and he has shot several scenes with a rare contingency of extras – 1,500 reindeer. (Norwegian Film Institute)

The events in 1852 are also linked to the closing of the border between Finland (then Russia) and Norway which had a momentous impact on the traditional migration routes of Sami reindeer husbandry in the region, the effects of which are still being seen today. 

You can watch a trailer of the Kautokeino Rebellion here. The film is in Sami, Norwegian and Swedish, presumably with English subtitles to come in the near future.

You can watch the internationally renowned Mari Boine’s song and video for the movie here, which also features a good number of those reindeer..

(Pic: NRK Sami Radio) And no, they were not being careless.. According to a report in todays NRK Sami Radio, reindeer herders in Finnmark reported 45800 reindeer as being lost and of this number, made applications for compensation for 37,159 because of losses to predators. The County paid compensation for only 8 637 reindeer amounting to a total of 20.6 Million NOK (2.62 Million Euros). While this is a long way short of the reported losses by reindeer herders, it is actually an increase on previous years, apparantly because of better documentation.

©Pekka Komi

It is the responsibility of reindeer herders to document losses and these are judged by the Statens Natursoppsyn who look for carcass marks that show sign of predation.  Finnmark county has two reindeer herding regions, East and West, with reported losses being higher in the Western region (23 201).

(Yle Sami) Bohcobierggu haddi lea gorŋon lagábui 15 proseanta manjimus jagi áigge sihke Ruoŧas, Suomas ja Norggas. Gávppin lea šaddan divrasut oastit bohccobierggu, muhto dál maiddai boazoeaiggádat fitnejit buoret kilohatti. (English summary below)

Mikkel Triumf eaiggáda njuovahaga MT slakt Kautokeino ja son jahkká ahte haddeloktaneapmi čatnasa čielgasit dasa ahte man ollu leat olbmot geat hálidit bohccobierggu. - Jos lea váttis fitnet bohccobierggu, nu olbmot leat garvásat máksit eambbo bierggus, lohká Mikkel Triumf.

Okta dain stuorimus biergogávpaseaddjiin Ruoŧa bealde lea Eliassons Gárasavvonis ja Alexander Eliasson maid sihkkarastá loktanan biergohatti.
- haddi lea goarŋumin, sulai 10-15 proseanta lea loktanan manjimus jagi áigge. Read the rest of this entry »