Government’s analysis, assessment and research activities
Financial benefits of reducing air pollution can be assessed with a new tool

The Finnish Environment Institute has together with the National Institute for Health and Welfare and the Finnish Meteorological Institute developed a method for assessing the costs caused by air pollution and the financial benefits of reducing it. The benefits result from the reduction in adverse health effects. The tool can be used to support decision-making concerning air pollution control both at the municipal and at the national level.

Particulate matter that is harmful to human health is emitted from transport, energy production and wood burning by households. There are internationally established methods for calculating the adverse health effects. IHKU, the Air Pollution Damage Cost Model for Finland project, developed an easy-to-use tool for assessing the costs caused by air pollution and the financial benefits resulting from reducing air pollution in Finland. The tool can be used to support strategic decision-making concerning air pollution control both at the municipal and at the national level.

Compared with Central Europe, concentrations of particulate matter in ambient air are relatively low in Finland. However, even low concentrations of particulate matter have adverse effects on health. One of the central conclusions made in the project is that, by limiting emissions, it is possible to reach considerable financial benefits in public health in Finland, as well.  The greatest benefits can be achieved when the emissions from transport and wood burning by households are reduced in urban areas.

The majority of the costs caused by the adverse health effects are composed of the costs resulting from the shorter life expectancy. Costs also result from hospital visits and the lower capacity to work.

Final product is a tabular tool

The results of the project are based on a chain of many calculation models. First, the emissions were modelled and, based on them, the concentrations of particulate matter in ambient air. Next, the exposure of the population to particulate matter was modelled and, based on that, the health effects were calculated. In the end, the health effects were converted into damage costs. The examination was conducted on primary particulate matter and the most important gases forming secondary particulate matter (nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and ammonia). The final product of the project is a tabular model describing the health costs that can be avoided by reducing emissions by one tonne. The costs have been estimated separately for transport, small-scale combustion by households and for power plants. Examinations at the national level also take into account the population density and the locations of the emission sources. The calculation methods have been chosen in a way that enables comparisons with examinations carried out elsewhere in the world as well as possible.

The effects of air pollution are not limited to adverse health effects. For example, air pollution reduces the diversity of nature. In the final report, the significance of these adverse effects has been assessed on the basis of a literature review.

The analysis was coordinated by the Finnish Environment Institute and it was implemented in co-operation with the Finnish Meteorological Institute and the National Institute for Health and Welfare. The study was part of the implementation of the Government plan for analysis, assessment and research activities for 2017. The steering group for the project had representatives from the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of Finance and from local authorities. Stakeholders were also heard regarding the development of the calculation model.

The demand for batteries will grow more than tenfold from 2015 to 2020, especially in response to the increasing use of electric transport and renewable energy. Business Finland has launched Batteries from Finland, a two-year activation programme for the battery sector to get Finland into the European and global battery networks.

Asia produces 80 per cent of the world’s batteries, especially primary batteries. Europe, too, has versatile expertise in battery technologies, and Maroš Šefčovič, Vice President of the European Commission in charge of Energy Union, encourages operators to develop safer batteries with longer lifetime. He emphasises the need to further develop the European batter expertise.

Finland has some of the raw materials and chemicals needed in the manufacturing of batteries. Now the goal is to master the higher value part of the chain, including the manufacturing and developing of battery cells. Finland will also invest in battery recycling.

“Finland has what it takes to build a significant battery cluster for raising added value in Finland. We can provide a unique combination of raw materials, processing and energy expertise in a reasonably-sized geographical area,” Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä says.

“Finland wants to be more than just the producer of raw materials. Our companies have competitive concepts and know-how throughout the value chain. The market is booming, and our primary objective is to get a slice of the new market, not to compete with existing operators. Business Finland sees here a great opportunity for Finland,” says Director-General Pekka Soini from Business Finland.

Finland is an attractive place for mining investments

The growing battery manufacturing sector needs new mining capacity, since at the moment there is not enough minerals to meet the rapidly growing demands, even with recycling. Finland is an attractive place for international mining investments.

“Finland has unique reserves of raw materials and strong geological and mining expertise. Finland is attractive for mining due to its good operating environment and one of the world’s most comprehensive geological databases. We have high levels of expertise in chemistry and material research, including analysis of global raw material chains. Finland has excellent opportunities to become a leading country in the European battery market,” says Director-General Mika Nykänen from the Geological Survey of Finland.

Transport and renewable energy drive battery market growth

Electric transport is a major contributor to the growth of the battery market. Emissions reduction targets increase the demand for electric cars, buses, bicycles and scooters, which are now available at more competitive prices. Many major cities have already announced plans to restrict the use of internal combustion engine cars in their city centres. Ferry transport is also going electric, followed by mining and forestry machines.

Another factor contributing to the battery market growth is grid-connected batteries. A problem with the renewable wind and solar energy is that energy is produced when the wind blows or the sun shine, but not necessarily at times when energy is needed.

“Batteries are increasingly used to replace peak-load power stations. Power stations have been necessary to cover peak load, but in the future it will be possible to deploy energy storage to replace at least some new power stations. Similarly, households, too, can use batteries and store solar energy, for example,” says Head of Industry, Cleantech & Bioeconomy Vesa Koivisto from Business Finland.

“From the perspective of sustainable development, battery recycling will be a key sector for development in the future. Recycling can also mean new second-life applications for batteries: electric car batteries, for example, could be re-used for home energy storage,” Koivisto says.

Batteries from Finland

Business Finland aims to accelerate the construction of a national battery ecosystem. The activities aim to contribute to improving the Finnish knowledge base and increasing Finland’s international competitiveness throughout the value chain from raw materials and battery cell manufacturing to various battery-related applications and services.

“Our companies have competitive concepts and know-how throughout the value chain. We have already a national knowledge base, thanks to Business Finland’s earlier innovation programmes promoting electric vehicles and green mining, among others. This base will serve as an excellent foundation for a new battery ecosystem,” says Director-General Pekka Soini from Business Finland.

“Products, services and business concepts related to electric transport and energy storage are developing at a rapid pace, and the expanding market naturally creates a lot of interest.

Business Finland is creating operator networks to access the European battery network and through it the global network. We also aim to attract foreign battery investments into Finland. In February, Business Finland invited 70 industry representatives to develop together the future of battery technologies in Finland. The event was extremely well received. Next, Business Finland and the companies involved will be planning measures to develop the battery market.

Finland has published, for the first time, a National Action Plan on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Action Plan will implement the UN Convention that entered into force in summer 2016. The aim is to strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities and to improve their opportunities for participation.

The objective of the Action Plan is to raise awareness of the rights of persons with disabilities and to take account of their rights in all activities in the different administrative branches and in society at large. Accessibility, availability and participation are essential when implementing the rights of persons with disabilities.

– Everyone is entitled to basic and human rights. However, there are groups of people who cannot use these rights until particular attention is paid to the implementation of these rights and special measures are carried out to secure the rights. Persons with disabilities is one such group. Therefore, we need the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as national actions. This is what Pirkko Mattila, Minister of Social Affairs and Health, stated at the publication launch of the National Action Plan on the UN Convention on 13 March.

The Action Plan contains 82 measures that the ministries are committed to implement. Part of the measures will be implemented during the current Government’s term of office. Some measures take a longer time to carry out.

There is much room for improvement in the implementation of the rights of persons with disabilities

According to a survey conducted last autumn, persons with disabilities felt, as a rule, that their rights are secured relatively poorly. The right to work was considered as the objective that was achieved least well. An adequate standard of living and social protection emerged in the survey as the primary issues to be rectified.

– Work and an adequate income are in a key position when we think about the opportunities of people with disabilities to live independently and to participate. I find it very important that working should always be economically profitable. We must remove people’s fear that their income will weaken if they start to work, said Minister Mattila.

– Safeguarding employment for people with partial work capacity is one of the Government’s goals, and it is being carried out by the key project Career opportunities for people with partial work ability. The key project is constructing, among many other measures, a linear model to combine pension and earned income, Minister Mattila continued.

Services are also part of social protection. The Social Welfare Act, and particularly the Disability Services Act, secure that persons with disabilities receive assistance in their everyday lives. The services will be further developed as part of the ongoing reform of regional government and health and social services.

Persons with disabilities participated in drawing up the Action Plan

A key principle of the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities involves the inclusion of persons with disabilities in decision-making that concerns them. The Advisory Board for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (VANE) was responsible for drawing up the National Action Plan, and the Advisory Board will also coordinate the national implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Advisory Board includes representatives of disability organisations, labour market organisations and the ministries with key significance to the rights of persons with disabilities.

Disability organisations and persons with disabilities were heard, as agreed, when drawing up the Action Plan. They provided important information on how the matters relating to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities should be primarily promoted.

Source Finlands website.

During Finland’s EU Presidency in 2019, Helsinki will host six informal meetings of ministers and dozens of meetings of officials. In line with the practice of recent holders of the presidency, Finland will hold all meetings to be paid for from the EU Presidency budget in a single location in the capital city.

Finlandia Hall was selected as the venue following a competitive tendering process. The choice of venue took into account the facility requirements specified for EU meetings, the costs and the venue’s availability on the dates in question.

“Having a centralised venue in the capital is an economically advantageous solution. It saves time, money and staff resources. For example, once the arrangements are planned and put in place, there is no need to dismantle or transfer them, as they can be used in most of the meetings. Having a venue in the centre of the capital also means that the best transport connections are close at hand,” says Head of the Secretariat for Finland’s EU Presidency Anja Laisi from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Finlandia Hall will host informal meetings of the finance, competitiveness, environment, agriculture and justice and interior ministers. A joint meeting of the foreign and defence ministers will also be held. In addition, Finlandia Hall will host meetings of officials.

All formal meetings of Heads of State or Government and of ministers will be held in accordance with normal practice in Brussels and Luxembourg during Finland’s EU Presidency. The idea is also that all informal meetings of Heads of State or Government arranged during Finland’s EU Presidency will be held in Brussels, with the EU responsible for both the arrangements and the costs.

Finland’s forthcoming EU Presidency will be its third and will cover the six-month period 1 July – 31 December 2019. Finland’s previous Presidencies were in 1999 and 2006.

Arrangements already well under way

The practical arrangements for the meetings to be held in Finland are the responsibility of the Secretariat for Finland’s EU Presidency, which has been set up in the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Up to the start of the Presidency there are twenty of us altogether. We are currently busy with the preparations that cover the Presidency as a whole, and putting together the meetings calendar and site arrangements. Now that the venue has been chosen, we can get up to speed with the details, too,” says Anja Laisi, who also led the Secretariat during Finland’s second Presidency in 2006.

For the second Presidency the total budget was EUR 75 million, at 2006 prices. A sum of EUR 70 million has been reserved for Finland’s EU Presidency in 2019. This covers all the costs of the Presidency, including additional personnel and the meeting arrangements.