Published: 17 March 2022
Finland has met its greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments
According to Statistics Finland's data, greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 amounting to 47.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (million tonnes of CO2 eq.) were the lowest in the reference period. Finland is meeting its emission reduction commitments under the EU and the Kyoto Protocol concerning the entire period 2013 to 2020. The fulfilment of commitments is ensured after international reviews and the so-called true-up period during 2022 to 2024.
The difference of emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System to the annual emission allocations defined in the EU Effort Sharing Decision in 2013 to 2020 and the cumulative sum of annual differences
Total greenhouse gas emissions in Finland amounted to 47.8 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020. The sum of emissions and removals in the land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector, or the net sink is not included in these total emissions. The net sink of the LULUCF sector amounted to -17.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020. Taking the net sink of the LULUCF sector into account total emissions would translate into 30.5 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020. The now released total emissions without the LULUCF sector fell by 0.3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent compared with the preliminary data released in December 2021. Further information from the review (in Finnish), database tables and revision table of the release .
Finland has obligations under both the EU's Effort Sharing Decision and the Kyoto Protocol for the period 2013 to 2020.
The EU Effort Sharing Decision defines annual national emission allocations for emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System . Emission allocations have tightened annually, but the emission allocations not used in previous years may have been used for emissions exceeding the target path in later years. The difference of Finland's entire period is below the target path and the targets will be reached. An EU review of the figures published now is under way and if no changes are made to them, the figures will be confirmed during spring 2022.
During the Kyoto Protocol's second commitment period (2013 to 2020), Finland's emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System must be limited to 240.5 million tonnes of CO2 eq. (so called assigned amount). LULUCF activities also affect the commitment under the Kyoto Protocol (afforestation and reforestation, deforestation, forest management). Different LULUCF activities are taken into account in the commitment using different accounting rules. Based on the data now released, Finland will also fulfil its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, but in addition to assigned amount units left over after subtracting the emissions not included in the EU ETS, it will also have to use additional emission units transferred from the previous Kyoto Protocol commitment period or acquired from the Clean Development Mechanism or Joint Implementation for this, due to the additional burden arising from LULUCF activities (according to the now released figures 5.9 million tonnes of CO2 eq.). More information about LULUCF calculations can be found in the Tieto&trendit article (in Finnish).
Final data on the emissions and removals affecting the fulfilment of the commitments under the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol are confirmed after a review carried out by an international group of reviewers coordinated by the UNFCCC Secretariat. After this, a so-called true-up period report is submitted to the Kyoto Protocol, where the parties to the Protocol report on how their commitments have been fulfilled based on the data in the emissions register. After the review of the true-up period, fulfilment of the commitments is confirmed. This is likely to take place only at the end of 2023 or in 2024.
More information on the implementation of the commitments under the EU and the Kyoto Protocol is available in the review of the release (in Finnish).
The fulfilment of the commitment under the second commitment period (2013 to 2020) of the Kyoto Protocol
| Commitment period 2013 to 2020 | ||
| mill. tonnes CO2 eq. | ||
| Finland's assigned amount | 240.5 | |
| Emissions not included in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) | 238.2 | |
| Difference between non-ETS emissions and the assigned amount | -2.3 | |
| Article 3.3. activities (sum of emissions and removals from afforestation, reforestation and deforestation) | 25.9 | |
| Article 3.4. activities (forest management) 1) | -20.0 | |
| Combined effect of Articles 3.3 and 3.4 activities to Finland's commitment | 5.9 | |
| Sum of the difference between non-ETS emissions and the assigned amount and the combined effect of the Articles 3.3 and 3.4 activities 2) | 3.5 | |
| Transferable assigned amount units from the previous commitment period 2) | -14.0 | |
| Units from the Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation projects 2) | -12.9 | |
2) To fulfill its commitment under the Kioto Protocol, Finland have to use surplus assigned amount units (AAUs) from the previous commitment period or units from Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation projects (CERs and ERUs) acquired during the second commitment period.
This is the last statistical release of Statistics Finland related to monitoring the greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments for the period 2013 to 2020 in case EU and UN reviews do not change the reported data. In May instant preliminary data for 2021 will be released, which are the first data in accordance with the EU Effort Sharing Regulation and the obligations of the Paris Agreement valid until 2030. The guidelines on reporting of emissions and removals (e.g. GWP coefficients used to measure the impacts of various gases are updated) and the rules governing the calculation of commitments are revised.
Source: Greenhouse gas inventory unit. Statistics Finland
Inquiries: Pia Forsell +358 29 551 2937, Päivi Lindh +358 29 551 3778, Sini Niinistö (LULUCF) +358 29 551 2954, kasvihuonekaasut@stat.fi
Head of Department in charge: Katri Kaaja
Publication in pdf-format (217.1 kB)
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- Revisions in these statistics (17.3.2022)
Updated 17.3.2022
Official Statistics of Finland (OSF):
Greenhouse gases [e-publication].
ISSN=1797-6065. 2020. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 19.4.2024].
Access method: http://www.stat.fi/til/khki/2020/khki_2020_2022-03-17_tie_001_en.html