{"id":51242,"date":"2022-11-07T07:43:50","date_gmt":"2022-11-07T04:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/?p=51242"},"modified":"2025-07-02T10:17:17","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T07:17:17","slug":"5-things-you-need-to-know-about-finlands-net-zero-by-2035-climate-target","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/blogit\/ilmastonmuutos\/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-finlands-net-zero-by-2035-climate-target\/","title":{"rendered":"Net Zero Finland by 2035? Seriously?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><br><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-orange-hover-color\"><em>This blog was originally published 7 Nov 2022, and updated 16 Jan 2023<\/em>.<\/mark><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Five things you should know about Finland&#8217;s climate targe<\/strong>t<\/h2>\n\n<p>Finland made international headlines in 2019, as Sanna Marin, at the age of 34, became the world\u2019s youngest prime minister, and started leading a five-party government <strong><em>with four other women<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Finland\u2019s government is now led by these five party leaders. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/newgeneration?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#newgeneration<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/vis0qB9tO8\">pic.twitter.com\/vis0qB9tO8<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Tuomas Niskakangas (@TNiskakangas) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TNiskakangas\/status\/1203729511658995713?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 8, 2019<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>Yea, pretty cool!<br><br>But it wasn\u2019t just their gender and age. It was their goals too. According to their<a href=\"https:\/\/valtioneuvosto.fi\/en\/marin\/government-programme\"> government programme<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n<p><strong><em>Finland will achieve carbon neutrality by 2035 and aims to be the world\u2019s first fossil-free welfare society.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>The carbon neutrality target, along with decadal emission reduction targets, are now enshrined in law. Finland\u2019s<a href=\"https:\/\/valtioneuvosto.fi\/en\/-\/1410903\/new-climate-change-act-into-force-in-july\"> new Climate Change Act<\/a> entered into force in July 2022.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&quot;We can build a climate sustainable society and we can build it in a way that is just and fair for all.&quot;<br><br>Prime Minister <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MarinSanna?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MarinSanna<\/a> spoke about climate sustainable welfare society in her open lecture <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Columbia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@Columbia<\/a>.<br><br>Full text of the speech: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HJmg2nyRN5\">https:\/\/t.co\/HJmg2nyRN5<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/S8ZBpnc4W4\">pic.twitter.com\/S8ZBpnc4W4<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Finnish Government (@FinGovernment) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FinGovernment\/status\/1236056813877047298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 6, 2020<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p><br>Unfortunately, now the target is in serious doubt: Due to high levels of logging, and forests growing slower, Finland\u2019s carbon sink has collapsed. As a result, Finland&#8217;s net emissions are now <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stat.fi\/julkaisu\/cktlf0i203azm0a519to5exzc\">higher than in 1990<\/a>. So now what?<br><br>Here\u2019s a few things you need to know about that target, and Finland\u2019s action towards it.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Finland&#8217;s climate target is based on science<\/h2>\n\n<p>Finland&#8217;s net zero 2035 goal was set based on analysis by the <a href=\"https:\/\/ym.fi\/en\/climate\/science-supports-climate-policy\">Finnish Climate Change Panel<\/a>, an independent, government-appointed advisory council consisting of top-level Finnish scholars.<\/p>\n\n<p>The target has often been called the <em>most<\/em> ambitious in the world, and <em>much<\/em> stronger than that of the EU\u2019s, but actually, that isn\u2019t quite the case. Finland had a relatively big sink to start with, and was therefore assumed to reach net zero earlier than the EU as a whole, simply by cutting it&#8217;s emissions while maintaining its carbon sink at the historical level (1990-2018). <br><br>Looking at the actual emission reductions, Denmark, Germany and the UK, for example, have stronger 2030 emission reduction targets than Finland (-60 %), compared to 1990 levels.<\/p>\n\n<p>Despite often being called a \u201ccarbon neutrality target\u201d, the target actually covers all greenhouse gas emissions, not just carbon (CO2).<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Strong climate action was demanded by the people<\/h2>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>The government adopted a stronger climate target because that\u2019s what we Finns wanted. The launch of the IPCC 1.5\u00b0C science report in 2018 catalysed a massive new wave of climate awakening in Finland, leading to several mass demonstrations and school strikes, and to <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/climate-europe-ap-top-news-elections-voting-60c36a88693d48498c437681e9422680\">climate becoming the number one election topic in the April 2019 general election<\/a>. As a result, climate action took a central role in the government programme, and Finland\u2019s climate neutrality target was advanced by a decade, from 2045 to 2035.<\/p>\n\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/ek.fi\/ajankohtaista\/tiedotteet\/2019\/11\/20\/ek-hiilineutraalia-suomea-vuoteen-2035-mennessa-kannattaa-63-prosenttia-suomalaisista\/\">poll<\/a> conducted by the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK) found that 63 % of Finns supported the government\u2019s carbon neutrality 2035 goal while only 13 % opposed it. This was in alignment with two other polls on climate, the <a href=\"https:\/\/valtioneuvosto.fi\/en\/article\/-\/asset_publisher\/ilmastobarometri-2019-suomalaiset-haluavat-ilmastokriisin-ratkaisut-politiikan-ytimeen\">Climate Barometer<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tieteentiedotus.fi\/files\/Tiedebarometri_2019.pdf\">Science Barometer<\/a>, which found that a clear majority of Finns supported strong climate action.<br><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018-1024x683.jpg\" title=\"Yli 10 000 ihmist\u00e4 vaati p\u00e4\u00e4tt\u00e4jilt\u00e4 ilmastotekoja marssilla Helsingiss\u00e4 syksyll\u00e4 2018. Kuva: Jonne Sippola \/ Greenpeace.\" alt=\"Yli 10 000 ihmist\u00e4 vaati p\u00e4\u00e4tt\u00e4jilt\u00e4 ilmastotekoja marssilla Helsingiss\u00e4 syksyll\u00e4 2018. Kuva: Jonne Sippola \/ Greenpeace.\" class=\"wp-image-7564\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018-510x340.jpg 510w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/08\/b6b9d4c8-ilmastomarssi-helsingissa-2018.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Climate march in Helsinki, October 2018<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>3. The goal is supported by business and workers alike<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Strong climate targets are good for business, as they provide long-term certainty for investments. <a href=\"https:\/\/toolbox.finland.fi\/themes\/nature-and-sustainable-development\/finlands-unique-approach-to-climate-roadmaps-for-carbon-neutrality-by-2035\/\">This is the view of Finnish business and industries<\/a> who have endorsed the new, stronger climate goals and conducted their own sectoral <a href=\"https:\/\/www.climate2035.fi\/\">roadmap exercises<\/a> to reach them.<br><br>Trade unions have supported the target too. In fact, the video below, illustrating leaders of business, workers, municipalities, science, and NGOs (i.e. key players of Finland\u2019s climate team) convening a message to Prime Minister Sanna Marin (captain of the climate team) in February 2020, is just one of many examples demonstrating the broad societal support for the goal.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/GreenpeaceSuomi\/status\/1224308823827062793\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>4. Some sectors are doing fine, others less so<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Now, over three years after the adoption of the target, implementation is ongoing. In sectors covered by EU emission trading things are progressing well. Once the EU, too, updated its climate targets, carbon prices finally started reaching levels that catalyse change. Finland\u2019s energy emissions (power &amp; heat) are falling faster than anticipated, having already halved in a decade on their way to full decarbonisation during the 2030s. (This, by the way, assumes bioenergy is emission free,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wwf.eu\/?2128466\/500-scientists-tell-EU-to-end-tree-burning-for-energy\"> which it actually isn\u2019t<\/a>.)<br><br>However agriculture and transport emissions are not on track. Agriculture emissions haven\u2019t seen a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.luke.fi\/en\/greenhouse-gas-emissions-from-agriculture\">significant change in 2000s<\/a>, while transport emissions are declining but not yet fast enough.<br><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>5. But now there\u2019s a real problem &#8211; net sink collapsed<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Finland&#8217;s land use sector, such as forests and fields, has been a relatively large sink. But in 2021 the land use sector turned for the first time from a carbon sink into a <strong><em>source of emissions, <\/em><\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.stat.fi\/en\/publication\/cktldez2g39g20c53gh3lp5jo\">according to official data<\/a>. The large harvesting volumes and slower forest growth are <a href=\"https:\/\/ym.fi\/-\/ilmastovuosikertomus-2022-kokonaispaastot-pysyivat-ennallaan-maankayttosektori-muuttui-nieluista-paastolahteeksi?languageId=en_US\">assumed to be the main reasons for this<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>While the size of sink can vary annually, this is a serious warning sign as Finland\u2019s carbon neutrality by 2035 depends on the country\u2019s ability to both reduce emissions and maintain or increase our sinks at the same time. Overall, Finland\u2019s net sink has been on a decreasing trend for the last 10 years, with forest land (mets\u00e4maa) being less than a fourth of the level it was in 2012.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-1024x640.png\" title=\"Diakrammi LULUCF-sektorin p\u00e4\u00e4st\u00f6ist\u00e4 ja poistumista maank\u00e4ytt\u00f6luokittain vuodesta 1990. Diakrammi n\u00e4ytt\u00e4\u00e4 maank\u00e4ytt\u00f6sektroin muuttuneen nielusta p\u00e4\u00e4st\u00f6iksi.\" alt=\"Luken diakrammi, joka kuvaa LULUCF-sektorin p\u00e4\u00e4st\u00f6j\u00e4 ja poistumaa maank\u00e4ytt\u00f6luokittain. Diakrammista n\u00e4kee, ett\u00e4 maank\u00e4ytt\u00f6sektori on muuttunut nielusta p\u00e4\u00e4st\u00f6l\u00e4hteeksi.\" class=\"wp-image-52976\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-1024x640.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-300x188.png 300w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-768x480.png 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-1536x960.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-2048x1280.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2023\/01\/307d0d66-image-510x319.png 510w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Land use sector emissions and removals (million t CO2-eq). Mets\u00e4maa = Forest land. Yhteens\u00e4 = total. Source for the Graph by: Luonnonvarakeskus (Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke). www.luke.fi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p><br><\/p>\n\n<p>Finnish Climate Change Panel, as well as the state research center Finnish Environment Institute have expressed their deep concern about the situation, urging the government to adopt a rescue package for carbon sinks at the latest in autumn 2022. Yet, so far corrective action by the government has been insufficient, and mixed signals have been sent, as Antti Kurvinen, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry has stated that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.maaseuduntulevaisuus.fi\/metsa\/5d25f918-0f82-4691-b6c9-9db6858a5930\">\u201clogging can definitely increase<\/a>\u201d still.<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-1024x576.jpeg\" alt=\"Large clearcut in Puumala next to a lake.\" class=\"wp-image-51198\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280-510x287.jpeg 510w, https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2022\/10\/b9a14e89-dji_0280.jpeg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Clearcuts in an area classified as a protected area where only cautious logging is allowed. Katosselk\u00e4, Puumala, 2022. Photo: Harri Tahvanainen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p>Greenpeace and Finnish Association for Nature Conservation consider government inaction to be illegal in light of Finland\u2019s Climate Act. The organisations have, therefore, submitted an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/tiedotteet\/ilmastonmuutos\/finlands-first-climate-litigation-case-filed-greenpeace-norden-and-the-finnish-association-for-nature-conservation-have-submitted-an-administrative-appeal-due-to-the-state-of-finlan\/\">administrative appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court<\/a> in November 2022. <strong>This became the first climate litigation case in Finland.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>In conclusion<\/strong>&#8230;<\/h2>\n\n<p>Finland has a science-based climate goal, thanks to people insisting on stronger action. The societal support for the goal has been broad, and progress has been made, but now the collapse of the sink puts the whole target into question.<\/p>\n\n<p>The situation can still be fixed, but not by assuming it will fix itself. <strong>It will require strong political leadership.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>We Finns have made a commitment to do our part in fighting the climate emergency. And now we must turn the words into action, with the level of credibility the situation requires.<\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>5 things you need to know about Finland\u2019s climate target<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":7564,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_improvement_type_select":"improve_an_existing","_thumb_yes_seoaic":false,"_frame_yes_seoaic":false,"seoaic_generate_description":"","seoaic_improve_instructions_prompt":"","seoaic_rollback_content_improvement":"","seoaic_idea_thumbnail_generator":"","thumbnail_generated":false,"thumbnail_generate_prompt":"","seoaic_article_description":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"seoaic_article_subtitles":[],"p4_og_title":"","p4_og_description":"","p4_og_image":"","p4_og_image_id":"","p4_seo_canonical_url":"","p4_campaign_name":"not set","p4_local_project":"not set","p4_basket_name":"not set","p4_department":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[60],"p4-page-type":[16],"class_list":["post-51242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ilmastonmuutos","tag-ilmastopolitiikka","p4-page-type-blogit"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/40"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51242"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60140,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51242\/revisions\/60140"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51242"},{"taxonomy":"p4-page-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/finland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/p4-page-type?post=51242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}