Major cuts in agricultural emissions feasible

Carbon dioxide emissions from agriculture in Finland could be cut back by some 30 percent by 2035 and a 40-percent reduction could be attained by 2050 without reducing agricultural production, according to an agricultural climate roadmap published on Wednesday, reported Xinhua.

The roadmap was compiled by the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) and was commissioned by the country's two leading agricultural interest organizations, the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners (MTK) and the Central Union of Swedish-speaking Agricultural Producers (SLC).

The roadmap notes that agricultural emissions could be cut back primarily by changing land usage. The suggested measures focus on the reduction of peat soil lands that generate 60 percent of Finland's agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, though they comprise only 11 percent of its arable land.

Other measures include the production of biogas on farms and increased use of solar energy.

The roadmap underlines the importance of offering sufficient incentives to farmers to enable them to benefit from environmentally friendly farming practices and thus be motivated.

Luke noted that without the suggested additional measures Finland's carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by five percent only by 2035.

Finland had earlier pledged to reach carbon-neutrality by 2035. In late 2019, the Finnish Ministry for Economic Affairs and Employment assured that this goal could still be reached by 2035, but only if emissions are reduced in a "comprehensive and consistent" manner in all sectors of the economy.