Finland\u2019s target of becoming climate neutral by 2035 is one of the strongest among industrialized countries. Not perfect<\/strong>, for sure. But it was recommended by scientists (The Finnish Climate Change Panel<\/a>) in the aftermath of the IPCC 1.5 degrees report, called for by citizens<\/a>, adopted with a broad majority across political parties, and is supported by Finnish business<\/a> and trade unions alike. Finland will reach climate neutrality by 2035 if emissions are cut by 70 % and removals are increased to a level they were historically, on average, since 1990 – and then not stopping there! Beyond 2035, Finland must become climate negative<\/strong>, meaning removals become bigger than emissions.<\/p>\n\n Sounds dodgy? Avoiding emission cuts by relying on removals? No, not really. It just means that Finland will have to deliver both<\/em><\/strong> on emissions and<\/em><\/strong> removals, and not stop at net zero. Fossil emissions must keep declining steadily towards zero, but in parallel, Finland will also have to strengthen its natural carbon sinks and stocks and reduce agriculture emissions, and gradually implement technological sinks for permanent removals, should they materialise. For a country like Finland, with a big forest industry, high use of biomass for energy and lots of peatlands in commercial use (and electricity already nearly fossil free<\/a>), this is actually the hard part.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n International offsets have not played part in the target-setting or implementation plans. <\/p>\n\n Finland has<\/em> taken action. Our energy sector emissions have already declined by nearly 60 % since their peak in 2003. Fossil fuel use is down to 30% of total energy consumption<\/strong>, and 6 % of electricity. In a couple of years, wind is becoming the biggest source of power, and by 2030, wind is set to<\/a> produce half of Finland\u2019s electricity, while solar could contribute 5\u201310 %.<\/p>\n\n But then there\u2019s the rest. Transport emissions aren\u2019t declining as fast as they should, agricultural emissions have not declined at all, and then there\u2019s the whole land use sector, where the main problem lies.<\/p>\n\n Despite warnings by scientists, wood harvesting levels have been allowed to grow too high, clearcuts still dominate in peatland forests, biomass use for energy exceeds sustainability, measures to reduce emissions from peat fields remain undone and even some deforestation still occurs for agriculture purposes. At the same time forest growth has slowed. As a result, in 2021 for the first time, Finland\u2019s land use sector was revealed to be a net emission source<\/em><\/strong>. This means we\u2019re really badly off track from our binding sink targets under the EU LULUCF regulation<\/a><\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n In fighting global heating, phasing out fossil fuels is a priority. But alone that\u2019s not enough. As the IPCC has underlined<\/a>, we\u2019ll also have to protect and restore natural ecosystems to remove carbon and build resilience, and transition to climate smart food systems.<\/p>\n\n Finland\u2019s carbon sink did not collapse on its own. Scientists have been warning for years<\/a> that if logging levels are increased, the ability of forests to cool the climate will decrease and biodiversity goals won\u2019t be met. And so it happened. The situation won\u2019t change unless policies and economic incentives change. Instead of restoring Finland\u2019s net sink with tools available right now<\/em>, the Finnish government and forest industry would rather talk about so-called technological sinks (technology-based carbon removal) that might produce removals in the future<\/em>, by capturing and storing emissions from facilities burning biomass. And ok sure, there is technical potential, as Finland\u2019s biogenic CO2 emissions are already higher<\/a> than its fossil CO2 emissions! But then we\u2019re talking about measures that are multiple times more costly (\u20ac120\u2013240\/tCO2), and won\u2019t deliver in the near future anyway. Meanwhile, effective measures to restore the net sink in the land sector, with only a fraction of that cost, remain undone<\/a> right now, for no good reason. <\/p>\n\n So again, delaying action is not an option.<\/p>\n\n So there\u2019s a problem. But Mr Petteri Orpo should know what to do. For he is not only Finland\u2019s Prime Minister, but also the Co-Founder of the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, as he proudly mentions in his Twitter\/X profile<\/a>. This is a coalition of over 90 countries, aiming to wield fiscal and economic instruments to achieve climate goals<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n Now it\u2019s time for PM Orpo himself to walk the talk, and follow the coalition\u2019s \u201cHelsinki Principles<\/a>\u201d, to align Finland\u2019s economic tools with the Paris Agreement.<\/p>\n\n How? Well, Finland has been getting advice on this from the IMF<\/a>, the OECD<\/a> and the Economic Policy Council<\/a> (EPC), who\u2019ve all said in their economic<\/strong> reviews that more is needed to achieve Finland\u2019s climate targets, particularly in the land-use sector. They all point to economic tools and to the principle of making polluters pay. In the case of sinks, this means, for example, forest industry having to pay<\/a> for the loss of carbon sinks they cause, rather than taxpayers subsidising the forest sector.<\/p>\n\n For over two years now, Finnish scientists have been pointing to different solutions to bridge the gap between targets and action, but decisions have not been made. On the contrary, Orpo\u2019s government has even canceled some earlier agreed climate policies. There are no signs of the government taking the situation seriously, or aiming to respect the relevant provisions of the Climate Act, which is why NGOs decided to take legal action. <\/p>\n\n An administrative appeal was filed to the Supreme Administrative Court in August 2024, with a simple demand: respect the law.<\/strong> The government must decide on sufficient additional measures and revise essential policy plans to meet its climate targets and other obligations laid out in the Climate Act and EU climate legislation, the Constitution of Finland and the European Convention on Human Rights.<\/p>\n\n Finland is an Arctic country, the northernmost country in the European Union. Having snow, ice and healthy nature is essential to our wellbeing and identity – forming a key part of who we are as Finns. Now the Arctic region is warming much faster than other parts of the world, putting everything we love at risk. For the S\u00e0mi, whose homeland is in the northernmost part of Lapland, this is particularly the case. The legal case has been filed by the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation, Greenpeace Norden (Nordic), Amnesty International Finland, Grandparents for Climate, the Finnish Nature League and the Finnish S\u00e1mi Youth.<\/p>\n\n Primarily, it builds on a previous court ruling by Finland\u2019s Supreme Administrative Court, which put the government on notice<\/a>. But it\u2019s also the first national case to build on the groundbreaking climate ruling by the European Court on Human Rights in the case of KlimaSeniorinnen v Switzerland<\/a>, which is expected to inspire a new wave of climate justice litigation in the member states of the Council of Europe. (Yay! We got there first!)<\/em><\/p>\n\n Finland\u2019s climate law isn\u2019t perfect. The targets could and should be stronger and fairer still, and cover consumption emissions too. And that will come, as the climate law does<\/em> require the targets to be monitored for scientific and legal adequacy. But now we want to ensure the current targets are swiftly implemented. (1) Preliminary data for 2023 <\/em>shows<\/em><\/a> some decline in Finland\u2019s net emissions, compared to 1990, but this isn\u2019t changing the big picture, as wood harvests are set to <\/em>grow<\/em><\/a> again this year and next year, turning the curve back up.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Greenpeace together with 5 other NGOs took the state of Finland to court, for failing to respect its own climate law. 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It\u2019s all people-powered. Finland\u2019s climate law was originally initiated by a determined NGO campaign (The Big Ask<\/a>) and came into force in 2015. Then later the Act was strengthened, including with net zero 2035 and other new emission reduction targets, under Sanna Marin\u2019s government, following the biggest climate uprisings in Finland\u2019s history in 2018\u20132019. (Read more here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2021\/09\/6719e17f-gp0stslqc_web_size-1.jpg\")
2. It\u2019s less dodgy than you might think<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
3. We\u2019re cool with wind, but in trouble with cars, peatlands and forestry<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
4. Forests and land really matter<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
The results are mindblowing<\/strong>: Finland\u2019s total emissions are now -43 % below 1990 levels, but this excludes the land sector (so-called LULUCF). When all sectors are included Finland\u2019s <\/em><\/strong>net emissions<\/em><\/strong> haven\u2019t practically declined at all since 1990! <\/em><\/strong>(1)<\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2024\/11\/2cc29a8f-screenshot-2024-11-21-at-12.21.42-1024x658.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n
<\/p>\n\n5. Technological sinks? Won\u2019t fix the current problem.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
6. Time to walk the talk on economic<\/strong>s<\/h2>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2024\/08\/fb68cfd4-screenshot-2024-08-22-at-19.50.22.png\" "\\"Petteri")
<\/figure>\n\n7. The way out? Listen to science and follow the law.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-finland-stateless\/2024\/08\/4d15c59f-ryhmakuva_portaikko_liisahulkko-1024x665.jpg\" "\\"Saamelaisnuorten")
8. We\u2019re defending our national treasures and rights<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
Finland’s Climate Act recognises the special rights and vulnerabilities of the S\u00e1mi, the only designated indigenous people in the European Union<\/em><\/strong>. By violating its own climate law, Finland is also violating the rights of the S\u00e1mi, which is why the Finnish S\u00e1mi Youth joined the coalition that\u2019s taking legal action.<\/p>\n\n9. We\u2019re grateful for the Swiss seniors who paved the way!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
10. This drop in the ocean matters<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n
Finland\u2019s emissions are a drop in the ocean, but every drop counts. Finland is a country ranking high in wealth, technological skills, capability, innovation and responsibility. It enjoys broad public support for strong climate action, and is home to Europe\u2019s largest climate business network CLC<\/a> – who also stands behind Finland\u2019s climate neutrality 2035 goal. If countries like Finland don\u2019t even try<\/em><\/strong> delivering their part in full<\/em><\/strong>, and instead give up when the first hurdles come, why should anyone else?
We want Finland to succeed!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n