Siilinjärvi () is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. It is located in Northern Savonia, north of the city of Kuopio, which largely surrounds Siilinjärvi. Another neighbour municipality with Kuopio is Lapinlahti. The name, in Finnish, apparently translates literally as "Hedgehog's Lake", although its etymology actually stems from a Sámi word meaning "winter dwelling". Lakes are essential part of the geography of Siilinjärvi. There are 123 lakes, and the biggest of them are Kallavesi and Juurusvesi–Akonvesi. Water area is 106.85 km², which is 21% of the whole area of Siilinjärvi. The median age is relatively low; 23% of the population are under 15 years old. Siilinjärvi has eleven elementary schools and two

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

s (one is located in Suininlahti and one downtown). The Kuopio Airport is located in the village of Rissala in Siilinjärvi along the Highway 9. The airport is also the home of the Karelian Air Command and the 31st Squadron of the Finnish Air Force. Siilinjärvi is the birthplace of politician and former prime minister of Finland and European Commissioner Jyrki Katainen.

Economy

The main sources of income are services and industry. One of the most important employers in Siilinjärvi is Siilinjärvi apatite mine owned by Yara International. The other largest companies in Siilinjärvi are Yara International's factory and apatite mine, Lujabetoni Oy, Hydroline Oy, Recreational Pool Fontanella and Spa Hotel Kunnonpaikka. 5% of jobs are in primary production, 29% in industry and construction and 66% in services. Unemployment figures are the lowest in North Savonia, averaging 9,4% in 2016, while at the same time the average unemployment rate in North Savonia was 13,4% and in the whole country 13,2%. Siilinjärvi's income tax rate in 2017 was 21,25.

Services

Energy production and water supply

The use of district heating has increased in recent years. Most of the district heat is produced from the Yara plant's process waste heat and from Savon Voima's Tiprusniemi bioheat plant. At the Tiprusniemi bioheat center, heat is produced with domestic wood fuel. In addition, Sulkavantie has a LPG back-up and peak heating center. In Siilinjärvi,

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available fresh water in the world is groundwater. A unit ...

is used as

raw water Raw water is water found in the environment that has not been water treatment, treated and does not have any of its minerals, ions, particles, bacteria, or parasites removed. Raw water includes rainwater, ground water, water from infiltration wells ...

, which is obtained from three groundwater intakes, two of which are located in the church village and one in the Toivala-Vuorela area. In addition to the municipal water supply plant, there are 15 water cooperatives in the municipality's sparsely populated areas.

Fire and rescue services

There are two fire stations in the Siilinjärvi municipality, the North Savonia Rescue Department station and the Yara TPK station. Siilinjärvi's main fire station is located in Simonsalo at Sulkavantie 6, a few minutes' drive from the center of Siilinjärvi. The station has a 24-hour on-call service. Station 15 houses an inspection car PS 020, a fire truck PS 151, a fire truck PS 1512, a tank truck PS 153, a crew transport, an off-road and boat tractor PS 157, and a snowmobile and boat. Yara TPK has a fire truck PS 191 and a boat. In addition, it has been proposed to build a third fire station in Siilinjärvi near the Vuorela residential area.

Culture

A local

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

called ''Uutis-Jousi'' is published in Siilinjärvi. Siilinjärvi also has its own library.

Food

In the 1980s, each of Savonia's then municipalities voted for its own title dishes. The traditional food of Siilinjärvi was a cockscomb, a

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

gruel and a red

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...

kissel with whipped cream.

Notable people

* Katri-Helena Eskelinen (1925–2014), Finnish politician * Jessica Grabowsky (born 1980), Finnish actress * Ilkka Herola (born 1995), Finnish skier * Jyrki Katainen (born 1971), Finnish politician * Sanni Leinonen (born 1989), Finnish alpine skier * Eetu Luostarinen (born 1998), Finnish ice hockey player * MC Raaka Pee (born 1980), Finnish musician * Topi Piipponen (born 1997), Finnish professional ice hockey player * Kimmo Savolainen (born 1974), Finnish ski jumper * Sexmane (born 2000), Finnish musician

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Siilinjärvi is twinned with: * Sunne, Sweden * Elverum, Norway * Haslev, Denmark * Hajdúböszörmény, Hungary * Kamennogorsk, Russia * Amberg, Germany

References

External links

Municipality of Siilinjärvi
– Official website
Kasurila ski resort

Tarina Golf
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siilinjarvi Mining towns in Finland Populated places established in 1925