FINLAND:

ENVIRONMENTAL
POLICIES

GROUP 4

Malayang, Jan Christian

Malinao, Diane Mae
Manahon, Donabella
Maxino, David Timothy
Miraflor, Bryan Matthew
Montebon, Keziah Marie
Montecino, Diane
Pakilit, Katrina
Po, Gabriel Vincent
Poliran, Kweena Lou
Porlucas, Eden Pearl
Ramos, Christopher King
 ECHE 2017
Why Finland?
Finland has often been described as an active
country in the field of environmental policy.
Finland joined the EU in 1995: integration of
environmental policy since then.
Wide-ranging and detailed environmental data and
high levels of technological skill form the basis of
Finlands effective environmental protection policies.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION IN
FINLAND:
1. ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES
With a strong record of cooperation on
conservation issues, Finland receives a good
overall score (rank 7) with respect to
environmental policies. Its score on this measure
has improved by 0.3 points since 2014.

The country has focused strongly on water

pollution, curbing industrial emissions and
cleaning polluted waterways. Forest protection
has also been a top priority. Efforts to halt a
decline in biodiversity have been insufficient,
and contributions to combating climate change
have been modest overall.
 The country has engaged in and honors a large
number of international environmental
agreements, but is rarely a forerunner in
creating these regimes. It has been more
proactive with regard to shaping Arctic-region
policy.

Finland faces specific environmental challenges

in terms of climate change and population
growth. Yet the countrys contributions to larger
efforts in combating climate change have to
date been fairly modest. In the Yale 2014
Environmental Protection Index, Finland was
ranked 18th out of 178 countries overall, and
was top-ranked in the categories of health
impact along with water and sanitation. Water
pollution is indeed a large issue in Finland. While
pollution emissions from large industrial facilities
have been to a large extent successfully curbed,
and polluted lakes and rivers have been cleaned,
waterborne nutrient emissions generated by
farms remain a pressing problem. According to
calculations, some 1,500 lakes are in need of
more active restoration measures to combat
eutrophication.

Finlands most valuable natural resource is its

forests, the management of which is of vital
importance for sustainable economic
development. The overall annual growth rate of
 trees in the forests exceeds the total timber
harvest, a result of institutionalized protections.
Separately, efforts to halt an ongoing decline in
biodiversity have proved insufficient, though the
government has created networks of protected
areas.

2. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION

International regimes are often sector-specific. The
core of each international regime is formed by
international regulatory and administrative
systems, which are created and implemented
through formal agreements. While Finland is
certainly committed to observing many
multilateral and bilateral environmental
agreements concerning climate change and air
pollution, for example, Finland is still not among
the agenda-setters with regard to the
advancement of international regimes. However,
the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy, a
multilateral agreement among Arctic states
adopted in 1991, was a Finnish initiative.
Furthermore, Finland has received ratings ranging
from good to satisfying in several international
comparisons of environmental-protection
standards, such as the Global Economic Forums
Environmental Sustainability Index.

3. WATER AND MARINE LIFE PROTECTION

 The Finnish Government's resolution 'Programme
for Implementation of River Basin Management
Plans 20102015' in 2011 followed the approval of
all the seven river basin management plans
(RBMPs) in 2009. The aim is to improve
considerably the ecological status of the waters.
The Implementation Programme is based on the
RBMPs and defines the national level priorities
amongst the measures.
Finland's Marine Strategy reflects the importance
of a good status of the Baltic Sea. The first phase
of the marine strategy was addressed in a
Government resolution in 2012. There are now five
marine programmes and action plans.

4. AIR POLLUTION MANAGEMENT

The Environmental Protection Act includes air quality.
The Air Quality Programme 2010 is the National
Programme for the implementation of Directive
2001/81/EU on national ceilings for certain
atmospheric pollutants. The Programme defines the
measures to reduce emissions e.g. from energy
production, transport, agriculture, and industry.

5. NATURE CONSERVATION
Finland is party to all the global wildlife conventions
and most regional ones. As part of the programme to
acquire land for nature conservation, it has recently
allocated funds to the protection of habitats
important for threatened species. Good progress has
 been made on plants, and conservation programmes
cover more than 50 plant species. A system of fines
for illegal collecting, killing, hunting or removal of
wild plants and animals is a unique way to protect
species.

6. SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT

Recycling has consistently remained at a level of

about 35 % of MSW generated during the whole
period from 2001 to 2010;
A significant effort would be required in order to
meet the EU requirement on 50 % MSW recycling in
2020;
The 2016 target of the EU Landfill Directive for
diverting of biodegradable municipal waste sent to
landfill was almost met in 2010;
A ban on landfilling of non-pretreated MSW and an
increased landfill tax have been important policy
initiatives in diverting biodegradable municipal waste
away from landfills; and the creation of inter-
municipal waste organisations has improved MSW
management

Sources:
http://www.eea.europa.eu/soer-2015/countries/finland
http://www.sgi-network.org/2014/Finland/Environmental_Policies