TUSKA OPEN AIR Metal Festival Secures Noise Level Permit For 2006

The difficult task of securing the noise level permit for Tuska Festival in Helsinki has finally come to a desired conclusion. The Helsinki Environment Center gave the festival organizers an early Christmas present.

Tuska Festival received a noise level permit with conditions similar to prior years. This means 70db noise level at the nearest residence and 101db at the festival area's mixing consoles. The limit is still strict and somewhat restricts the festival's operations but the difference to the suggested levels of 65 / 96 is significant. Tuska Festival will also carry out significant structural, sound limiting procedures.

The hassle started when the city of Helsinki confirmed environment regulations which ruled on level of disturbing environmental noise. The level of 70db that had been obeyed for years had been an unwritten law and the new official regulation was suprisingly lowered to 65db without consulting any of the event organizers. Since then, however, the Environment Center has displayed a remarkable use of common sense and consideration. The authorities carried out a survey to the local area residents and 56.4% of them felt that noise generated from the festival did not disturb them at all.

Although the permit is secured for 2006, Tuska Festival feels that it is very important that the law in question is changed for good. A council suggestion has already been initiated to do so. In this current situation the event organizers are at the mercy of several bureaucrats, year after year.

Tuska Festival's permit process was aided by the Helsinki Cultural Office who have initiated a process to improve the facilities to organize larger scale events in the city. "The city of Helsinki understands the importance of this festival. We are currently tightening the cooperation between the authorities in order to make Helsinki a better city for events of all kind," states Cultural Director Pekka Timonen.

The noise level permit is only one of more than ten permits or approvals from the authorities that organizing an event of this magnitude requires.

Tuska Open Air Metal Festival 2006 will take a couple of weeks earlier than in the previous years — kicking off on June 30 and ending on July 2.

Tuska Festival will be present at the second annual Finnish Metal Expo at the Cablefactory (Kaapelitehdas) in Helsinki, Finland, which takes place on February 17-18. The first artists of the 2006 roster will be revealed at the FME.

Tickets for Tuska 2006 will go on sale later in the spring through www.tiketti.fi and www.lippupalvelu.fi. Tuska Festival is an all-ages festival.