New locations added to Ministry of the Interior decree on restrictions on access, movement and stay

A total of 20 new locations have been added to the annexes of the Ministry of the Interior decree on restrictions on access, movement and stay, two old locations have been removed and the area of two current locations has been extended.

The new locations are Airport Sodankylä, the new main grid substations of Finland’s transmission system operator Fingrid, and a new emergency power plant. In addition, the following port areas were added to the decree: Hamina, Kotka, Hanko, Kokkola, Turku, Oulu and Rauma. The area of the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant will be extended. Two transformer substations which were previously used by Fingrid will be removed from the decree. The amendments to the decree will enter into force on 1 July 2018.

Due to a danger posed by or to a location, access, movement or stay in the location or its surroundings may be restricted under the Ministry of the Interior decree on restrictions on access, movement and stay, which was issued by virtue of the Police Act. The decree may also prohibit the bringing of objects or substances that would endanger the safety of the location. A fine may be imposed for violating such a restriction. The current decree covers a total of 106 locations where access, movement or stay is restricted. These locations include airports, ports, prisons, transformer substations, power plants and industrial sites.

The aim of such restrictions is to secure activities or items of property in a given location or to protect people in both the location and its surroundings. The locations where access, movement and stay are restricted are often extremely dangerous to safety, and movement and stay in such locations require that the person knows the location thoroughly. The decree requires that such locations must be marked out clearly and, where necessary, the most important areas must be fenced.

Inquiries:
Heidi Aliranta, Senior Specialist, tel. +358 295 488 367, [email protected]