Comments for the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Action Plan
in Krakow on 15th November 2007 by the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference
Is time running out for the Baltic Sea?
The HELCOM Ministerial Meeting in Krakow, Poland, is the most important meeting to save the Baltic Sea from an ecological disaster in the future. For 30 years HELCOM has been actively trying to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea.
There is nothing new about the severe status of the marine environment of the Baltic Sea. Intensive agriculture in the riparian states has lead to run-off of abnormal amount of nitrogen and phosphorus into the Baltic Sea. In turns, this excess of nutrients give algaes highly favorable growing conditions, at the expense of all other life in the Baltic Sea. The sea, which is the world largest brackish water, is also under the pressure of heavy shipping and receive various sources of pollution form the densely populated areas along the coast. The once thriving fishing industry is strictly regulated and high level of dioxins in fish from the Baltic Sea give no ground for making a living out of fishing in the future.
The leaders of the Baltic Sea states have a golden opportunity to agree upon an Action Plan to save the Baltic Sea and restore the ecological balance to be enjoyed by future generations.
Short-term gains take the upper hand
HELCOM has worked for years on an Action Plan to save the Baltic Sea. The Contracting parties; Denmark, Estonia, the European Community, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and Sweden, principally agree that an ambitious Action Plan is needed to restore the Baltic Sea to a sound ecological state.
However, the last meetings of Heads of Delegations to discuss the Baltic Sea Action Plan reveals that countries have chosen to listen more to the interests of the agricultural sector, shipping industry and the fishing industry, rather than to take long-term responsibility for the environment. We believe this position will lead to a loss for all parties in the long run. We cannot advance further than the limits set by our environment.
Parliamentary support for an ambitious plan!
We feel this is the right time to remind the governments of the Baltic Sea States about the “Working Group on Eutrophication” of the Baltic Sea that presented its work during the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) in Berlin, in August this year. The mandate of the Working Group was to raise awareness about the problem of eutrophication and to suggest mitigations. The Berlin conference approved the political recommendations of the working group. All member-states of the BSPC are also members of HELCOM.
The recommendations consist of 25 concrete measures; most of them can be implemented shortly. All recommendations are equally important, but we will highlight the third recommendation to the Governments of the Baltic Sea states; “The HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP), which is based on ecological objectives, is welcomed. All governments of the region are strongly urged to support an ambitious action plan, to commit to the plan, and to implement it fully.” The main tasks which must be implemented are an extensive reduction of nutrients and harmful emissions from agriculture, stringent wastwater treatment and the ban of phosphatic detergents.
We will urge all parties involved in negotiations of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan to take a second look at the recommendations for the 16th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, and remind themselves that these 25 recommendations do have public support. The Governments political room for maneuver is bigger than perceived. Our hope and wish is that the recommendations of the “Working Group on Eutrophication” will – last minute – show representatives of the governments that they have parliamentary support for agreeing on an ambitious Action Plan that will save the Baltic Sea for coming generations to thrive from.
on behalf of the BSPC signed by:
Sinikka Bohlin Sylvia Bretschneider
Chairman of the BSPC-Standing Committee, President of the Parliament of
Head of the Swedish Delegation Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
to the Nordic Council Official HELCOM-Observer of the BSPC
Asmund Kristoffersen Ole Stavad
Chairman of the Nordic Council Head of the Danish Delegation
Environment Committee to the Nordic Council
Former Chairman of the Official HELCOM-Observer of the BSPC
BSPC-Working Group on Eutrophication
Veronica Thörnroos
Member of the Ålands Lagting