Finland needs more actions to be carbon-neutral by 2035

The government on Wednesday submitted its second Annual Climate Change Report to parliament in which it said the measures included in the Climate Change Policy Plan to 2030 are likely to be sufficient to reach the present reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions set for both 2020 and 2030.

The report, however, said further actions and strengthening the measures that are already implemented will be needed to reach a carbon-neutral Finland by 2035, said a government press release.

Parliament will start discussions on the Annual Climate Change Report after the summer holidays.

“It is well possible for Finland to be carbon-neutral by 2035, but to achieve this we must find new means to reduce emissions and strengthen sinks,” said Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Krista Mikkonen.

The minister said the important stepping stones include reform of energy taxation in the autumn budget session and the government’s mid-term policy review, where the adequacy of the climate measures will also be assessed.

“The work on updating the different Climate Change Policy Plans in line with the carbon-neutrality target is under way. We must find adequate emission reduction measures for the update of the Climate and Energy Strategy and the Medium-Term Climate Change Policy Plan and the new climate change plan for the land use sector,” Mikkonen added.

The present objective for Finland is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the non-emissions trading sectors by at least 16% by 2020 and 39% by 2030 from the 2005 levels.

According to preliminary data for 2019, the total emissions decreased by about 6% from that in the previous year. In the emissions by the trading sector the reduction was 11% and in the non-emission trading sectors the emissions decreased by 2%, which slightly exceeded the EU’s annual emission allocation.

The release said municipal climate objectives have not yet reflected nationally as emission reductions, adding that the carbon footprint of households is growing