The Soviet Union began Russification, with hundreds of thousands of Russians and people of other Soviet nationalities being induced to settle in Estonia, which eventually threatened to turn Estonians into a minority in their own land. In 1945 Estonians formed 97% of the population, but by 1989 their share of the population had fallen to 62%. Economically, heavy industry was strongly prioritised, but this did not improve the well-being of the local population, and caused massive environmental damage through pollution. Living standards under the Soviet occupation kept falling further behind nearby independent Finland. The country was heavily militarised, with closed military areas covering 2% of territory. Islands and most of the coastal areas were turned into a restricted border zone which required a special permit for entry. That is why Estonia was quite closed until the second half of the 1960s, when gradually Estonians began to watch Finnish television in the northern parts of the country due to a good signal range, thus getting a better picture of the way of life behind the Iron Curtain. Watching Finnish television was unauthorized, but nevertheless it was watched with a special device made for this purpose.