EC grants €9.1m to Finland to mitigate climate change

The European Commission has granted 9.1 million euros to Finland to help mitigate climate change, said a press release of Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) on Friday.

The 'Towards Carbon Neutral Municipalities' (CANEMURE) project, which has been approved for the Life programme, will promote practical measures to mitigate climate change over the next six years.

The total budget for the project is 15.3 million euros. Domestic funders for the project include the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Ministry of Agricultural and Forestry, the Energy Authority and Sitra.

'In the Paris Climate Agreement, all the countries of the world committed to reducing their emissions. The emission reduction commitments made so far, however, are not sufficient to achieve the recognised critical target of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees. Action is needed from many different parties, and cities and municipalities in particular find themselves in a central role. Through this new project, Finland will have better opportunities to respond to the huge challenge of combating climate change', said Project Leader and Senior Researcher Laura Saikku of SYKE.

'The aim of the project is to promote smart and low-carbon transport, increase the production of distributed renewable energy and improve the energy efficiency of buildings. In addition, we support processes which create a sustainable urban structure and the conditions for low-carbon production and consumption. The project also promotes the transition of agriculture and forestry to the use of low-carbon soil treatment methods, especially in peatlands,' said Saikku.

A total of 22 organisations are participating in the project, including municipalities and municipal organisations, research institutes and companies. Alongside promotion of practical climate measures, the project will also involve running courses and trainings, forming cooperation networks and disseminating good practices around the whole of Finland.