Legally Obliged to Plan: Effective Climate Change Mitigation by Means of Policy Planning under the Finnish Climate Act?

This article analyses certain parameters relevant to the effectiveness of the Finnish Climate Act (609/2015) which obliges state authorities to plan and monitor the national climate policy. The Act was enacted predominantly for the purpose of achieving emission reduction in societal sectors outside emissions trading. Although policy planning with legislative basis may be a necessary first step for all-encompassing emission reduction in the said sectors, the architecture of the Climate Act raises questions on, for example, the legal form and specific contents of the climate policy plans, and how the plans are addressed by sectoral legislation. The article discusses certain measures, such as sector-specific governance of policy planning and integration of climate concerns into sectoral legislation, which may be necessary for effective emission reduction. The interface between the Climate Act and sectoral legislation is exemplified through climate law in the Finnish transport sector.