Kilpisjärvi Biological Station

Research station belongs to the University of Helsinki (Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences).

Contact

Station Manager Anu Ruohomaki: anu.ruohomaki[at]helsinki.fi

Location

The station is situated in the community of Enontekiö in the northwestern part of Finnish Lapland (69°03’ N, 20°50’ E) on the shore of Lake Kilpisjärvi at 475 m a.s.l. close to Sweden and Norway.

Website

https://eu-interact.org/field-sites/kilpisjarvi-biological-station/
https://www.helsinki.fi/en/research-stations/kilpisjarvi-biological-station

Facilities

The station is easily accessible and has facilities to provide for a wide variety of users. Accommodation capacity is about 70 beds and meals are catered from the station´s eatery. There are two lecture halls (with space for either 40 or 60 people, larger serving also as a dining room), work spaces, a guest kitchen, and five laboratories. The laboratories are basic field laboratories, and have a supply of electricity, compressed air and running water, and are equipped with refrigerators, freezers (including ultra-low temperature freezer), a dry ice block machine, ovens, scales, microscopes, a centrifuge, pH- and conductivity meters, thermometers, etc. Also a wide variety of field equipment is available, eg. boats and a snowmobile. WLAN is accessible in the station area. The station´s facilities and logistics make it possible to host international workshops and conferences at the station. The station´s permanent staff consists of six persons. Kilpisjärvi Biological Station is a meeting place for arts & sciences, as it hosts an art residency program run by the Bioart Society.  Kilpisjärvi Biological Station is easily reached by public transport or a private car. There are two airports within three hours drive, Kittilä and Tromso in Norway.

Availability for access

It is open year-round.

Time frame for access preparation

Kilpisjärvi Biological Station advises researchers to contact them early on especially station´s busiest season, June-September, both in accommodation and in field services. Time frame depends on the scale of the project and the season in question, but e.g. for the summer season at least 2-3 month notice is advised.

Permits, licenses and training

Most of the needed permits, eg. for installation of sensors in the field, are applied from Metsähallitus, the authority in Finland who governs the state owned lands, which most of Kilpisjärvi area consist of. The research station has a licence for experimental animal activities, but a separate permit is needed for every project. Disturbing protected species, or, for example, conducting research fishing, needs a permit from ELY- keskus, the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment.  Please note that the primary investigator of the project is responsible for applying necessary permits.The station may assist in the process.Â

Medical guidelines

No medical examinations/health checks are required from RI users.