The Baltic States and Poland discussed opportunities and challenges in achieving climate neutrality

On Friday, the Ministry of the Environment hosted an event on Climate Week entitled 'Challenges and opportunities of green transformation: what can we learn from each other?' where politicians, experts and social partners from the Baltic States and Poland shared insights on how to effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions and discussed best practices and challenges. They also presented measures to mitigate climate change as set out in the National Energy and Climate Action Plans (NECPs).

Calls for greater involvement of municipalities

Presenting Lithuania's plan to decarbonise by moving away from fossil fuels, Minister of the Environment Simonas Gentvilas noted that the starting point is the European Green Deal guidelines and the targets set out in the National Climate Change Management Agenda, which are more ambitious than those set by the European Commission, and are linked to the sectors, which is Lithuania's specialty.

'I would like to welcome the fact that we have a data-driven NECP, which has been discussed with scientists and experts, and that we are fulfilling the commitments it sets out, and that we will indeed be a clean, climate-neutral country. To this end, 8 decarbonisation working groups were set up to present and discuss the existing measures, social and institutional partners submitted around 600 proposals for measures during the meetings, and 126 were added to the list of additional measures', - said the Minister of Environment.

The new NECP foresees that, with existing and additional measures, Lithuania will meet its greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction target of 21 % by 2030 compared to 2005. It will also achieve 70 % renewables in total final energy consumption and 100 % in electricity consumption.

According to the Minister of Environment, it is realistic for Lithuania to achieve these goals after a number of important decisions, including the recent amendments to the Excise Duty Law. The transport sector poses the biggest challenge - on the one hand, it has the highest emissions growth and on the other, the greatest potential for change. Reducing transport emissions requires leveraging private investment in less polluting private transport. These emissions can also be reduced through rail decarbonisation, heavy transport and energy efficiency improvements.

'Green transformation is a success story for Lithuania. Up to €6 billion that we currently pay for imported electricity, oil, gas and coal can stay in Lithuania if we manage to increase energy efficiency, develop wind and solar energy, and create new jobs. But we also have challenges: it is more difficult to bring about change in the buildings, transport and industrial sectors, because large investments are needed there,' - Gentvilas pointed out.

The Minister of the Environment stressed that municipalities could be more involved in the Green Transformation, for example by setting up low-carbon zones in cities. This is particularly relevant as transport pollution is increasing and fuel consumption is rising rapidly. Some municipalities have already implemented a number of green initiatives, but others need to be more active.

Similar challenges in neighbouring countries

All EU countries are currently updating their NECPs for the period 2021-2030. Representatives from Poland, Latvia and Estonia presented their country's commitments, the steps in the NECP update process, an overview of sectoral GHG reduction targets and the most effective measures contributing to it.

Dagnis Dubrovskis, Deputy State Secretary at the Latvian Ministry of Climate and Energy, welcomed the fact that Latvia has the lowest per capita CO2 emissions in the EU. Their biggest challenge is reducing emissions from the transport sector. The situation in Latvia is similar to that in Lithuania, with a very high number of old cars. In order to reduce emissions in this sector, the purchase of electric cars needs to be encouraged, but this requires first investing in dedicated infrastructure.

Marta Kocon, Councellor of the energy policy unit at the Polish Ministry of Climate and Environment, shared that Poland is unique in having a much larger coal-intensive industry compared to the Baltic States. Its main ambition is to secure energy independence, which will be achieved through the development of wind and nuclear energy. Our neighbours are planning to open a nuclear power plant in 2040, which would allow the coal mining country to transform its industry. An agreement has been reached to move away from coal in the domestic sector and to use it only for electricity generation.

Estonia has high hopes for its recently established Climate Ministry, which is responsible for 90% of the country's GHG emissions. It deals with all environmental issues, including wind energy and households, presented Kristi Klaas, Deputy Secretary General of the Climate Ministry. The Estonian Climate Action Council has also recently been created, composed of experts and scientists, and is consulted in the planning of NECSAP measures. Ms Klaas presented the transformation of Estonia's North-Eastern region, where the shale industry is concentrated and accounts for 80% of the country's GHG emissions. The transformation of the region will receive the bulk of EU funds.

People need to experience the benefits of green transformation

Participants also discussed the challenges and opportunities of green transformation. According to Minister of the Environment S. Gentvilas, the green strategy being implemented in the European Union is contributing to Lithuania's economic growth, and people are already seeing this. 'Biomass production, wind energy, wood processing industry - all these sectors create many additional jobs in our country. Foreign capital companies are investing in wind energy for decades. This means that the governments of those countries will also want their companies to be safe in Lithuania. This also contributes to regional security issues,' - said the Minister.

Speaking about the green transformation, Latvia's D. Dubrovskis said that emission reduction planning tries to find the best solutions to increase the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth and improve the country's economic performance. Poland's M. Kocon argued that rapid innovation will also come at a higher price. It will not be easy to abandon Poland's highly developed coal mining industry. It is therefore necessary to convince people that such changes are necessary. This idea was echoed by Estonia's K. Klaas, who argued that the country's population wants change, but that the benefits of change need to be better explained.

Speaking about the promotion of private investment, Minister of the Environment S. Gentvilas mentioned that Lithuania leads the European Union in terms of the number of people generating renewable electricity for their households. 'People are willing to invest because they feel the economic benefits. The situation is more difficult with gas boilers, which are not being replaced as quickly as we would like. State support for this should be much higher,' said the Minister. He mentioned the replacement of old cars, of which there are about 1.8 million in Lithuania, with electric cars as a problem sector. In addition to increasing financial support for this sector, he said, there is a need to change consumption habits, such as using public transport, cycling or walking.

For Poland, the phase-out of polluting coal in the power sector and the transition to renewable energy sources are important. 'The Poles want to invest, but that investment will not happen in a few days', said Ms Kocon. Latvia's D. Dubrovskis said that tax policy is also key to attracting green investments.

Estonia's K. Klaas also gave concrete examples. One Estonian company has started to produce "clean" asphalt, while another is producing new materials from shale ash used in Estonia.

Everyone at the event was optimistic that the goals of becoming a climate-neutral continent by 2050 will be achieved. 'Everything made from oil can be replaced by other cleaner products. Lithuania has recently changed its legal framework and now more buildings will be constructed using wood,' said Gentvilas.

Estonia's K. Klaas argued that today waste is not seen as rubbish, but as a renewable resource that offers new opportunities. Ms Kocon from Poland explained that people cannot be forced to produce green energy, but must be persuaded to do so: "The most important changes depend on the country's citizens and private companies".