United timber supplies to river valley factories
Timber companies set up dummy companies in order to get round the 1915 legislation which restricted their land procurement. In Jämsänkoski, land was purchased under the name of Maanviljelysosakeyhtiö Päijänne. The farms were situated in the Jämsä and Kuhmoinen areas, and a few forest estates in Vilppula, Multia, Keuruu and Petäjävesi. By the time it was merged with United Paper Mills Ltd in 1920, the Jämsänkoski factory had estates of 6,600 hectares, of which 4,300 was forest. From 1918, the Jämsänkoski factory had employed a forester to co-ordinate the company's timber supplies. The supply area was bordered by Lake Päijänne and rivers running into it. Expansions of production at the factories in the 1930s also increased the raw wood requirements. Due to low levels of water power, firewood consumption at Jämsänkoski was greater than at the other United factories. Only a few percent of the necessary quantities of timber were obtained from the company's own forests. After the company was split up, United Paper Mills Jyväskylä forestry office was established, and the timber supply area was extended to the northern parts of Central Finland and Savo. After the war, the price of timber had risen sharply. Spruce still accounted for 2/3 of all the raw wood required by the company. Jämsänkoski pulp mill had partially used broad-leaf timber as raw material as early as the 1950s. Kaipola also used small quantities of pine and aspen imported from the Soviet Union, although it weakened the quality of the paper. |
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