Possibilities for Carbon Neutral Energy in Finland Kati Berninger February 28 th 2013 Drawings: Mirkka Hietanen
What is Carbon Neutral? A carbon neutral society produces the same quantity of greenhouse gases as it can assimilate Low level of emissions Carbon offset of the remaining emissions Maintaining the existing carbon storages Requires reduction of emissions by 80-95 % in industrial countries AND Avoiding carbon leakage
Distribution of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Finland 2010 Energy industry Key sectors and activities to reduce emissions/carbon footprint 9% 0% 8% 18% 8% 3% 13% 41% Industry and construction Transport Other energy Industrial processes Solvents Agriculture Waste disposal 16 % Distribution of climate effects of household consumption 33 % Housing Nutrition 23 % Free time Other 28 % Source: Statistics Finland, Seppälä et al. 2009
The building blocks of Carbon Neutral Finland
Reduce energy consumption 100 % renewal energy is only possible when the energy consumption is reduced Renewable energy production also has climate effects Thus we need to cut energy consumption radically from the current level TJ 1600000 1400000 1200000 1000000 800000 600000 400000 200000 0 Total energy consumption in Finland by energy source 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 Others Nuclear Renewable Peat Fossil fuels Source: Statistics Finland
Energy efficiency in buildings About 40 % of the total energy consumed in construction and use of buildings Improving energy efficiency of existing buildings Energy renovations Room temperature Lighting New 0 energy houses
Energy production in Finland Energy sources in Finland 2011 4 % 3 % 17 % 23 % 44 % Fossil fuels Peat Hydropower Wood Nuclear power Electricity imports Other 3 % 6 % Source: Statistics Finland
Energy production Stop using coal and peat Renewable sources for district heating Towards smaller units, local energy Houses outside district heating networks change from oil heating to geothermal energy, wood chips etc.
EWEA 2013: Wind in power 2012 European statistics Wind Power
Wind power Capacity increasing slowly in Finland Projects in different phases for 7800 MW Solving acceptability problems? Sharing profits with local people Using industrial sites or harbors with no landscape or noise problems MW 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Bureaucracy Installed capacity in Finland from 1997 to 2012 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Source: VTT and EWEA
Solar energy As good a potential in Finland as in Northern Germany Solar panels: electricity, may be fed into the electricity grid, normally not compensated for in Finland Solar thermal collector: heating, most often used for hot water The use of solar energy has not really started yet in Finland The Finnish feed in tariff system excludes solar energy
Sustainability criteria: Bioenergy No food crops nor taking up field area from food production No clearing of forests for bioenergy production No crops from developing countries for producing energy in the developed world Prefer waste products Sustainable wood energy: no stumps or roots Peat is not bioenergy because of its climate effects
Biogas Collected from landfills in 39 locations 76 % of the biogas collected used for energy production 19 biogas plants in waste water treatment plants, 8 plants used municipal solid waste Only a few farm level biogas plants Small units not eligible for feed in tariff Energy produced using biogas in Finland. Blue = electricity, yellow = heat Source: Biokaasulaitosrekisteri 2011
Why is it not happening? Information and how it is presented Psychology Price Carbon neutral is not trendy The system changes slowly Disagreement about the means
Some solutions: Economic policy instruments Electricity tax same for all, remove lower tax level from industry motivation for energy efficiency Feed in tariff for solar energy and small-scale energy production Electricity tax depends on the amount of production, not on how it s produced: Electricity cents/kwh Energy tax Energy security fee Total Class I 1,69 0,013 1,703 Class II 0,69 0,013 0,703 Class I = households, agriculture and forestry, construction and services Class II = industry, commercial greenhouses
Some solutions: Economic policy instruments Peat should be taxed according to its climate effect /MWh 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 Energy taxation of peat and natural gas in Finland Peat Natural gas 2 0 2011-2012 2013-2014 2015- Energy source Emission gco2-ekv./kwh Solar, wind, hydro power etc. 0 Natural gas 202 Light oil 267 Coal 341 Peat 382
Some solutions: Invest in renewables Buy certified EKOenergy and tell about it A positive market signal for renewables Install solar panels or solar thermal collectors Buy stocks of a wind energy company
Some solutions: Research and development Developing energyesco services for housing companies Affordable consulting services on energy efficiency and renewable energy for households and SMEs Research funding: focus on carbon neutral solutions Developing social innovations
Thank you! More info: Berninger, K. 2012. Hiilineutraali Suomi. Miten luodaan ilmastoystävällinen yhteiskunta? Gaudeamus. https://www.facebook.com/hiil ineutraalisuomi kati_berninger@yahoo.ca