Kunnas, Jan, and Timo Myllyntaus. “Postponed Leap in Carbon Dioxide Emissions: The Impact of Energy Efficiency, Fuel Choices, and Industrial Structure on the Finnish Energy Economy, 1800–2005.” Global Environment 3 (2009): 154–89.
The article examines the growth and composition of energy consumption in Finland in the 19th and 20th centuries, focusing on energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. It is based on the results of a research project that estimated the energy production and consumption of Finland since 1800 and calculated the country’s energy balance, including both commercial and non-commercial energy sources. The article argues that, among European countries, Finland was “odd-man out” because it industrialized by means of renewable, indigenous energy sources. Only in the 1960s, in its mature phase of industrialization, did the country switch from indigenous energy sources—fuel wood, wood refuse and hydropower—to imported fossil fuels. The article analyses why Finland differed from the general model for such a long time and why it joined the ranks of other countries in a fairly short period. (Authors’ abstract at The White Horse Press)
All rights reserved. Made available on the Environment & Society Portal for nonprofit educational purposes only, courtesy of Gabriella Corona, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche / National Research Council of Italy (CNR), and XL edizioni s.a.s.
