Climate change has far-reaching consequences on the natural environment and people of Finland. Finland was among the top five greenhouse gas emitters in 2001, on a per capita basis. Emissions increased to 58.8 million tonnes in 2016. Finland needs to triple its current cuts to emissions in order to be carbon neutral by 2035.Finland far behind climate goals, think tank says YLE 22.1.2020 Finland relies on coal and peat for its energy, but plans to phase out coal by 2029. Finland has a target of carbon neutrality by the year 2035 without carbon credits. The policies include nature conservation, more investments in trains, changes in taxation and more sustainable wood burning. After 2035 Finland will be carbon negative, meaning soaking more carbon than emitting.
Greenhouse gas emissions
Overview
National In 2016, Finland's carbon dioxide emissions amounted to 58.8 million tonnes; 12.5 million tonnes less than the amount in 1990. However, this figure was a 6 per cent increase from 2015; nevertheless, it is still 18 per cent lower than in 1990. The largest factors explaining the growth in emissions between 2015 and 2016 were the increase in coal consumption and the decline in the proportion of biofuels used in transport. Emissions grew in some sectors. These sectors include energy, where it went up by eight per cent (or 3.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent); industrial processes, where product use increased by four per cent (or 0.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent). Emissions from agriculture grew by one per cent (or 0.04 million tonnes of CO2). Emissions from transport rose by 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent, and from the production of electricity and heat, they rose by 1.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent.
Approximately 60% of Finland's anthropogenic methane emissions—3.17 MMTCO2e—come from agriculture (manure management), municipal solid waste and natural gas and oil systems. A majority of the remainder comes from enteric fermentation.
The major changing factors for the annual emission changes were the consumption of coal and peat. In 2006 the hard coal increase was 92% subject to industry(including energy producing industry) separate electricity generation from hard coal. At the same time the controversial peat consumption was increased. The district heating used 42% of hard coal in average 1990–2006, but its annual variation was small compared to the industry separate electricity generation.Energy Statistics 2007: Table 2.4.1 Consumption of Hard Coal
Carbon Dioxide Emissions by FuelsEnergy Statistics Yearbook 2009, Carbon Dioxide Emissions by Fuels Table 11.3.1, Statistics Finland 2010 mil. t CO2 % of fossil fuels total Year Biomass Fossil Coal Oil N. gas Traffic 1990 19.3 53.0 38 31 9 22 2000 29.4 53.1 37 26 15 22 2004 32.9 64.3 45 21 14 20 2005 30.7 52.8 35 25 16 24 2006 34.5 64.1 45 20 14 20 2007 33.0 61.8 45 21 13 21 2008 33.1 53.7 39 22 15 24
Carbon Dioxide Emissions by Fuels: Coal mil. t CO2 % of fossil total Fossil Hard coal Other coal Peat Coal total Peat Coal total 1990 53.0 12 3 6 20.1 10.6 37.9 2000 53.1 9 4 7 19.4 12.2 36.5 2004 64.3 16 4 9 28.7 14.5 44.6 2005 52.8 8 4 7 18.3 13.6 34.7 2006 64.1 15 4 10 28.9 15.3 45.1 2007 61.8 13 4 11 27.4 17.3 44.3 2008 53.7 9 3 9 20.7 15.8 38.5 Other coal: coke, blast furnace gas, coke oven gas, coal tar and other non-specified coal
Regional Greenhouse gas emissions in the Helsinki region in 2017 were 5 million tn CO2, including transportation, 1.4 million tn and heating, 2.6 million tn.Helsinki Region Environmental Services Authority Greenhouse gas emissions. Note More detailed data in Finnish Greenhouse gas emissions from construction in the Helsinki Region in 2017 were 2 million tn CO2: more than from transportation and almost 1.5 times transportation emissions.Helsingin Sanomat 23.10.2018 B10
Year 2017 climate gas emissions compared to 1990 were in Helsinki - 24%, Espoo + 8%, Vantaa +2% and Kauniainen -9%. About 80% of emissions were from heating and transport. The summary report does not include emissions from air travel and construction nor verifies that these emissions were indifferent to climate change. The summary report does not specify domestic industry emissions abroad. E.g. Fortum's acquisition of Uniper Germany may increase this company's total emissions so meaningfully that foreign emissions affect climate change. Fortum's headquarters is in Espoo Finland.Pääkaupunkiseudun kasvihuonekaasupäästöt
The carbon foot print was twice as big in the new houses compared to more spacious detached house areas in 2003–2012 in Finland, In the city carbon foot print was 11.7 tn and suburb 8 tn per person.Helsingin Sanomat 8.8.2018 A17
Municipal emissions were calculated in 2020 excluding industry, construction, aviation and foreign shipping.Kuntien päästöt vähenivät, mutta päästölaskennan tulos epäilyttää – Miksi maaseutua syyllistetään, mutta helsinkiläisten lentoja ei lasketa? YLE 11.2.2020 klo 19.01 For example, aviation was not included in evaluation. In comparison, the Swedish aviation emissions are in total approximately equal to the emissions from the Swedish passenger vehicle traffic.Measuring greenhouse gas emissions from international air travel of a country’s residents methodological development and application for Sweden Jörgen Larsson, Anneli Kamba, Jonas Nässéna and Jonas Åkermanb, Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 72: 137-144Climate footprint from Swedish residents’ air travel Anneli Kamb and Jörgen Larsson Chalmers Göteborg, February 2019
Energy consumption
Coal and peat
Finland will phase-out coal in 2029, compared to 2024 in the UK, 2027 in France and 2028 in Denmark. In 2018 there was zero new installed wind power in Finland to replace coal. Sandbag UK 18.9.2019 This was due to Sipilä government wind power policy concerned of the negative influence of wind power.
CO2 emissions from peat were 15% and coal and peat 39% of total fossil fuel emissions in Finland in 2006.
Peatlands are the main carbon storage and their protection is one of the main issues in climate change mitigation.Peatlands are Quick and Cost-Effective Measure to reduce 10% of greenhouse emissions , UNEP 11.12.2007 Peatland drainage destroys the habitat of many species, and heavily fuels climate change. Peat is the most harmful energy source for global warming in Finland.Jyri Seppälä, Kaisu Aapala, Kimmo Silvo and Raimo Heikkilä 2008: Muistio Suomen IPCC-ryhmän avoimesta Turpeen ilmastovaikutusten arviointi -seminaarista. Suomen ympäristökeskus
In conflict with the EU, IEA and IPCC reports Finnish Ministry of Trade and Industry claim that peat is renewable energy.Renewable energy sources and peat", the Ministry of Trade and Industry KTM 10.3.2006 (Finnish) However, it is an undisputed fact that peat is formed over 10,000 years in favourable conditions. Finland has ditched the majority of its wetlands. The Finnish peat companies have also been active abroad, in Sweden, Estonia and Indonesia. The Finnish subsidies for peat in 2007-2010 undermined the goal of reducing CO2 emissions and counteracted the European Union emissions trading scheme.Energy Policies of IEA Countries – ¨Finland 2007 IEA 26.3.2008, pages 9, 71, 80 and 83
The director of the state-owned research institute VTT, Satu Helynen, had close connections with the peat industry in 2010. She proposed that the government should exclude carbon tax for peat in 2010. Moreover, she tried to suppress all the second opinions of her colleagues in VTT in conflict with the freedom of speech and research ethics. After this conflict came public VTT wrote new directions following: "Scientists should prevent all criticism of the content of VTT publications publicly after the publications."VTT:n painostuspuheet eivät yllätä professoria, VTT on tarkentanut työntekijöidensä julkisuusohjeita, HS 27.8.2010 A10VTT:n johtajalla turvekytkös, Ministeriölle energiaveroraportin laatineen tutkijan tausta arveluttaa, Teknologiajohtajan esimies kiistää alaisensa edustavan turvelobbareita, HS 9.9.2010 A3VTT:n johtaja puolustaa jäsenyyttään turveyhdistyksessä, HS 10.9.2010 A5 Piia ElonenVTT:llä yhteys turvelobbareihin, Energiaselvityksen luotettavuudesta syntyi kohu HS 9.9.2010 A5"Tukka nousi pystyyn", Oikeusoppineet: VTT:n viestintäohje ristiriidassa perustuslain kanssa. Professori Mäenpään mukaan "pimittämisohjeet rajoittavat sananvapautta, HS 10.9.2010 A5
Use of peat as energy and land is responsible for a third of all Finnish climate change emissions. This includes energy use, agriculture, and digging ditches. Digging ditches in peat forests is also one of the major reducers of biodiversity in Finland. According to Statistics Finland use of peat as energy created 8 million tons of emissions in 2018. This includes emissions from peat storage and peat production area. Digging ditches in peatland fields in Finland created 6 million tons of emissions annually. Digging ditches in forest lands in Finland results in 7 million tons of emission annually.Turpeen päästöjä vähennettävä, Helsingin Sanomat 29.4.2019 A5; Ilkka Savolainen
Nuclear energy
In the Kyoto Protocol Sweden was permitted lower emission decline targets based on nuclear power phase-out. Finnish emission cut obligations may be increased based on higher nuclear dependency.
Fortum is a half state-owned energy company. Fortum's energy strategy is large investments in nuclear energy in Finland, Sweden, and Russia. Fortum aims to invest 15 percent in a controversial Finnish nuclear power plant to be built by Rosatom, the Russian state-owned energy company.Finland and Russia deepen energy ties Financial Times December 2, 2014, Fortum has saved no funds to invest in the new renewable energy forms. Until the end of 2014 Finnish governments have given no obligations in the new renewables for companies, industries, or municipals. Russia had the interest to build and share own a nuclear plant in Finland in 2014 during the 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine and 2014 Crimean crisis. Unlike Finland, most other European countries demanded to decline energy dependency from Russia.
Finland was among the top five greenhouse gas emitters in 2001: The consumption emissions per capita of greenhouse gases in 2001 of the top 5 countries were US 29 tonnes, Australia 21 tonnes, Canada 20 tonnes, Switzerland 18 tonnes and Finland 18 tonnes.Which nations are most responsible for climate change? Guardian 21 April 2011
Transportation European Union aims in 2014 demanding targets to decline emissions 40% from 1990 level to 2030. In Finnish traffic this goal demands a decline from 12.48 Mtn CO2 to 7.4 Mtn CO2. As a linear reduction this objective is an annual decline in value of 0.30 Mtn CO2 from the top year emission 13.36 Mtn CO2 in 2010. This objective equals maximum emission levels of 12.16 Mtn CO2 (2014) and 11.56 Mtn CO2 (2016). Finnish traffic warming emissions (million tonnes CO2) were:Liitetaulukko 3. Hiilidioksidipäästöt Suomessa 1990–2010Search emissions 1990 - 12.48 2008 - 13.42 2009 - 12.75 2010 - 13.36 2011 - 13.23 2012 – 12.68
In the Katainen Cabinet, minister Merja Kyllönen asked a leader of the multinational oil and gas company Royal Dutch Shell representative as head of the committee to give recommendations for the future traffic policy in Finland.
Jyrki Katainen suggested in December 2014 that the EU should fund a liquefied natural gas terminal in Finland. However, neglected initiatives in the fossil-fuel phase-out climate change challenge and ongoing 2014 United Nations Climate Change Conference.
Aviation