Finland is on the right track towards its climate goals, but there are still key obstacles that need to be removed report Sitra has found the Finnish Innovation Fund.
The government’s current goals include a draft law according to which Finland will become carbon neutral by 2035, which corresponds to the goal of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
The law also aims to include targets for reducing emissions by 60 percent by 2030 and 80 percent by 2040. Targets can reduce emissions to 1990 levels.
Based on an extensive literature review and about a hundred expert interviews, Sitra investigated whether Finland is close to its goals.
According to the report, there are a number of obstacles to effective climate action, mainly a lack of long-term planning, inadequate and incorrect financial incentives, inadequate education and skills training, and the unfair distribution of the risks posed by climate solutions. The report suggests that licenses and other administrative barriers should also be removed from the path of climate solutions to make the transition smoother.
Sitra’s climate expert aims to reduce emissions from various sectors Mariko Landström said and added that the state and municipalities as well as businesses and citizens should act.
The state is responsible for regulation, setting incentives, and removing administrative barriers, while municipal decisions guide community structure and infrastructure. Businesses can continue to develop solutions and make practical investments as ordinary citizens and consumers vote on their feet, driving demand for products and services, Landström explained.
Sticks, carrots and clarification of long-term plans
The report also called on Finnish decision-makers to think longer-term in the fight against climate change.
The report states that an emissions budget and targets for carbon sinks should be set for 2040 and 2050, and also looks at what policymakers can do to encourage or discourage climate-friendly action.
"Solutions must be economically viable so that they can be deployed on a sufficiently large scale. Incentives are currently completely lacking, for example in carbon sequestration, agri-climate action and resource efficiency," Landström said.
The story continues after the picture is taken.
In other sectors, such as forestry, subsidies are being misdirected, according to Landström.
"Before long, we will have to give up subsidies in the wrong direction, but the move will be ad hoc. Instructions often need to be completely updated," he added.
With regard to forestry, Sitra’s expert said that climate action could be encouraged by rewarding the restoration of Finnish forests and carbon sequestration.
Wetland cultivation should be guaranteed the right to agricultural subsidies and other new emission reduction incentives should be developed, but at the same time support for peat cultivation should be abolished and replaced by emission-based payments and compensation claims.
The biggest daily changes in the Sitra report are related to food and transportation.
According to the report, transport should be subject to comprehensive tax, fee and subsidy reform, while sustainable food should be encouraged through public procurement and nutritional recommendations and education.
From carbon neutrality to carbon negativity
The Finnish Climate Panel estimates that Finland’s share of the world’s emissions budget by 2050 will be 79 megatons. Finland’s net emissions in 2019 alone were about 38 megatons.
However, if Finland becomes carbon neutral by 2035, it may soon achieve carbon negativity, which means that the country’s carbon sink will absorb more carbon dioxide than human activity emits, which will help offset the emissions of previous decades.
According to Sitra’s report, Finland should shift its focus from carbon neutrality to carbon negativity and prepare to make this change by the 2040s, Landström said.
Change can be slow, and climate measures such as an energy-smart building stock and a climate-aware society can take time to put into practice, the report warned.
"We already need to choose solutions that are in line with long-term goals in order to avoid unnecessary investment in temporary solutions. Developing solutions is often a slow process, so we need to be on the move in good time," Landström said.
Source: The Nordic Page