The river as an actor-network: the Finnish forest industry utilization of lake and river systems

Abstract The article analyses how the forest industry has utilized Finnish lake and river systems. One river, the Pielisjoki in eastern Finland, is used as an example. For decades the hegemonic position of the forest industry gave it a free hand to exploit the river as a transport route, a source of energy and a sewer. This was challenged by local actors in an environmental conflict in the late 1980s. The conflict changed the dominant meaning of the river and today the forest industry utilizes the river as a symbol of environmental protection. The paper draws upon an actor-network approach, which considers the river to be a combination of human and non-human actors. This allows it to be seen as a result of both social constructions and natural processes.