HELCOM RECOMMENDATION 10/2
Adopted 14 February 1989, having regard to Article 13, Paragraph b) of the Helsinki Convention
ASSESSMENTS OF THE EFFECTS OF POLLUTION ON THE COASTAL AREAS OF THE BALTIC SEA
THE COMMISSION,
RECALLING that according to Paragraph 2 of Article 4 of the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, 1974, (Helsinki Convention), each Contracting Party shall implement the provisions of the Convention within its territorial sea without prejudice to the sovereign rights with regard to these waters,
RECALLING ALSO that according to Paragraph 3 of Article 4 of the Helsinki Convention, the Contracting Parties undertake, without prejudice to their sovereign rights, to ensure that the purposes of the Convention will be obtained in their internal waters,
RECOGNIZING the importance of these coastal waters as recipients of discharges from land-based sources and as pathways of pollutants to the Baltic Sea Area,
RECALLING Paragraph e) of Article 13 of the Helsinki Convention, in which it is stated, inter alia, that the Commission shall, for the purpose to promote additional measures to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea Area, receive, process, summarize and disseminate from available sources relevant scientific, technological and statistical information,
RECALLING ALSO Paragraph 2 of Article 16 of the Helsinki Convention, in which the Contracting Parties, inter alia, undertake to promote studies, undertake, support or contribute to programmes aimed at developing ways and means for the assessment of the nature and extent of pollution, pathways, exposures, risks and remedies in the Baltic Sea Area,
NOTING the need for knowledge of the state of the coastal areas, presented by the Commission in the Guidelines for the Baltic Monitoring Programme (BMP),
EXPRESSING ITS CONCERN for the low frequency of the submission of national coastal assessments to the Commission,
DESIRING to achieve an appropriate assessment of the state of all coastal areas of the Baltic Sea and on changes in the environment, including those possibly due to the implementation of HELCOM Recommendations by the Contracting Parties to decrease harmful discharges to the marine environment,
DESIRING ALSO to increase the quality and quantity as well as frequency of the submissions of the contributions by the Contracting Parties to the assessment of the state of the coastal areas,
RECOMMENDS to the Governments of the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention that:
a) compiled results of coastal monitoring should be reported in a generalized form every fifth year, in order to be available for the preparation of the periodic assessments of the state of the Baltic Sea;
b) the first reports should be available as finalized for the use of the Commission in 1993;
c) in order to facilitate the comparability of the reports their contents should preferably be arranged according to the proposal contained in the Annex to this Recommendation.
ANNEX to HELCOM Recommendation 10/2
Contents of the coastal assessments:
1. introductory remarks:
- general description of the national monitoring programme for coastal waters,
- general review of national monitoring activities carried out during the
preceding five years,
- introductory review of other available information,
2. information on results of monitoring in coastal waters and related studies
- hydrographic and basic hydrochemical determinands
- harmful substances in sea water and sediments
- harmful substances in selected species
- biological determinands,
3. potential items for the periodic and/or specific assessments, and other related proposals,
4. conclusions.