Greenhouse emission decreases by 9%

According to Statistics Finland’s instant preliminary data, the total emissions of greenhouse gases in 2020 corresponded with 48.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Compared with the previous year, emissions decreased by nine per cent. The fall in emissions was affected by the warm winter, recent changes in the structure of electricity production and a decrease in transport performance.

The effect of the corona pandemic on emission reductions is not available from the inventory data, because the amount of emissions was affected not only by exceptional circumstances but also by weather and cyclical fluctuations in industry, but the exceptional conditions were visible as a decrease in transport emissions.

Emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System fell by three per cent but exceeded the annual emission allocations set by the EU by 0.1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent. On the basis of data so far, Finland will meet its emission reduction commitments for emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System for the period 2013 to 2020.

Especially the decrease in fellings from the previous year increased the net sink of the LULUCF sector, i.e. land use, land-use change and forestry, which according to the instant preliminary data was -23.0 million tonnes of CO2 eq. Emissions and removals in the LULUCF sector are not included in the total emissions described above. In the instant preliminary data, the emissions and removals of the latest year are produced at a less detailed level than data for previous years.