General Principles of Climate Policy until 2050

The General Principles of Climate Policy until 2050 is a national sectoral policy of Estonia for the period 2017-2050. It provides that, in 2050, Estonia will be a competitive economy with low carbon dioxide emissions. The preparedness and capacity of the state to minimise the negative effects and maximise the positive effects of climate change has been ensured.
The Policy aims to make agriculture, forestry and fisheries more productive and sustainable. To this end, it provides that the reduction of waste production will be continued and the separate collection of waste will be made more efficient; the soil’s carbon stock will be increased and maintained, and land areas of significant carbon stock will be developed and maintained; efficient and ecological use of agricultural land will be encouraged while the falling out of agricultural use of such land will be avoided; eco-friendly and climate-friendly cultivation styles and practices and efficient agricultural technologies and practices will be implemented for ensuring and increasing the fertility and biodiversity of agricultural land; the use of plant nutrients and the replacement of mineral fertilisers with organic fertilisers and eco-friendly soil conditioners will be enhanced; the focus will be on eco-friendlier manure management for limiting ammonia emissions; the capacity of research, development and innovation activities related to environment and climate change in agriculture will be increased through research projects; forest growth and the carbon sequestration ability will be increased through productive and sustainable forest management, and the carbon stock of forests will be maintained in the longer perspective; timber use will be consistently enhanced and the carbon stock in timber products and buildings will be increased, thus replacing the use of non-renewable natural resources; preservation of the current area under forest land will be facilitated, and in other categories of land use, techniques of increasing carbon sequestration and reducing emissions will be preferred; the carbon stock in the peat layer of mires will be preserved or increased; the optimal adaptation of natural species, habitats and ecosystems to the effects of climate change will be purposefully supported; and the sustainable operation of bio-economy sectors and consideration of the changing climate conditions will be ensured mainly through climate-aware planning.
In order to increase the resilience of livelihoods to disasters, the Policy provides that the emission of greenhouse gases by 2050 by 80% in comparison with the emission levels of 1990 will be reduced. As the country moves towards this target, emissions will be reduced by about 70% by 2030 and by 72% by 2040 in comparison with the 1990 emission levels; the climate-friendly attitudes and choices of consumers as well as companies will be shaped; it will be supported to increase the awareness of the society of the mitigation of climate change and adaptation to its effects; in manufacturing processes, the implementation of technologies with a low emission factor of CO2 and efficient use of resources will be facilitated; efforts will be made to minimise the emission of greenhouse gases in the oil shale treatment process in a way that does not entail an increase in other negative environmental impacts; participation in the European Union Emissions Trading System and improving its efficiency will be continued until there are more cost-efficient ways for achieving the desired results; resilience of settlements, mainly cities, to climate change will be increased by managing storm and flood risks through considering the location during land use and the planning of land use and through alleviating the so-called urban heat island effect; preparedness to consider the effects of climate change to the natural environment will be improved; and the raising of the competence and awareness of the central government and local governments in adapting to the effects of climate change as well as relevant research, development and innovation activities, implementation of pilot projects and training will be supported.
In the energy sector, the document states that the economic and energy efficiency of the system as a whole will be considered when renovating the existing building stock and planning and constructing new buildings with the aim of achieving a maximum energy efficiency of the entire current building stock; the gradual wider exploitation of domestic renewable energy sources in all sectors of final consumption will be facilitated with a view to increase the welfare of the society and the need to ensure energy security and security of supply; and the production of bioenergy will be steadily enhanced and such energy will be mainly used instead of non-renewable fuels with more energy intensive manufacturing processes.
The Government of the Republic will present the Riigikogu with a report on considering the main principles of the climate policy in the preparation and implementation of cross-sectoral and sectoral strategies at least once in every four years. Furthermore, the climate policy until 2050 will be reviewed and if necessary, updated in every four years.