HELCOM RECOMMENDATION 26/3

supersedes HELCOM Recommendation 18/1

Adopted 2 March 2005 having regard to Article 20, Paragraph 1 b) of the Helsinki Convention

MONITORING OF RADIOACTIVE SUBSTANCES

THE COMMISSION,

RECALLING Article 5 and Article 6 of the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, 1992 (Helsinki Convention), in which the Contracting Parties undertake to prevent and eliminate pollution of the Baltic Sea Area caused by harmful substances from all sources and from land-based sources,

RECALLING ALSO Article 16 of the Helsinki Convention on reporting and exchange of information, Article 17 on information to the public and Article 24 on scientific and technological co-operation in which the Contracting Parties undertake directly, or when appropriate, through competent regional or other international organizations and other basis of the information and data acquired pursuant to Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 24, to cooperate in developing intercomparable observation methods, in performing baseline studies and in establishing complementary or joint programmes for monitoring,

NOTING the concern for the effects of radioactive substances on the environment, due to accidental or other releases,

NOTING FURTHER the decision by the Commission that the monitoring of radioactive substances be started in 1985 as a continuation of the previous work coordinated by IAEA,

DESIRING to protect the Baltic Sea against harmful effects to be possibly caused by radioactive substances,

BEING MINDFUL of the need of reliable data on the radionuclides in the different compartments of the environment,

RECOMMENDS to the Governments of the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention that:

a)      each Baltic Sea State should have environmental stations on the sea or on the coast, and the Commission will be informed about the positions of the stations;

b)      the list contained in the Guidelines for Monitoring of Radioactive Substances should be used as the basis for the environmental monitoring programme in all Baltic Sea States, bearing in mind that the list consists of minimum requirements, and that the voluntary measurements are also highly recommended as essential complementary information;

c)      Guidelines for Monitoring of Radioactive Substances should be followed as detailed as possible including the guidelines for reporting of data;

d)      the discharge data should be reported to the Commission according to the Guidelines;

e)      the Guidelines to meet the topical requirements should be regularly evaluated and updated by experts,

RECOMMENDS ALSO that the Baltic Sea States would report their data to the Commission once every year by 1 September.