UPM Biofore Magazine 1-2019

T he challenges for decisive action is glaringly visible especially in transport, which is currently the main source of carbon dioxide emissions. A sustainable transport model would be in everyone’s best interests, but it’s not always easy to balance environmental targets with everyday personal needs. Fortunately, there are experts such as the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland figuring out how countries like Finland can achieve the objective of halving transport greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 in line with the Paris Climate Agreement. presented by climate change are a source of deep concern and fierce debate across the globe. The need

But there are challenges, notes Nils-Olof Nylund , VTT Senior Advisor specialising in engines, vehicles and fuels: existing vehicle fleets and fuels simply fail to meet demanding environmental standards. “Imagine removing all existing buses, trucks and vans as well as 15% of passenger cars. That’s the scale of the challenge. We need to reduce the number of kilometres driven by each vehicle category per year. In addition, we also need to improve the energy efficiency of vehicles and energy used in transport,” Nylund says. One fifth of Finland’s carbon dioxide emissions derive from the transportation sector, 90% of which are caused by road traffic. Passenger cars account for about 60% of road emissions, with trucks representing one third. Replacing fossil fuels with

Renewable biofuels and plywood offer solid solutions for green transport – without requiring costly investment in new cars or fuel distribution systems.

DRIVING THE ROAD TO SUSTAINABILITY

TEXT Janne Suokas   PHOTOGRAPHY UPM; Courtesy of the interviewee

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