HELCOM RECOMMENDATION 7/11
adopted 12 February 1986, having regard to Article 13, Paragraph b) of the Helsinki Convention
RECOMMENDATION CONCERNING AIRBORNE SURVEILLANCE/REMOTE SENSING ACTIVITIES IN THE BALTIC SEA AREA
THE COMMISSION,
RECALLING Regulation 3 of Annex VI of the Helsinki Convention according to which the Contracting Parties shall develop and apply, individually or in co-operation, surveillance activities covering the Baltic Sea Area, in order to spot and monitor oil and other harmful substances released into the sea,
BEING CONVINCED that airborne surveillance with remote sensing capabilities provides a greatly enhanced capability for improving the response to major oil releases of the shipping casualty type,
ALSO BEING CONVINCED that airborne surveillance with remote sensing capabilities provides a potential improvement in the ability to collect evidence for prosecution purposes in cases of illegal operational discharges from ships,
FURTHER BEING CONVINCED that regular airborne surveillance has a deterrent effect on potential offenders of the Convention's discharge regulations,
CONSCIOUS that airborne surveillance equipment which can function efficiently even at night and in bad weather should be developed or improved,
NOTING that regular airborne surveillance with remote sensing capabilities is taking place in certain parts of the Baltic Sea Area,
RECOMMENDS:
a) that the Governments of the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention should apply airborne surveillance with remote sensing capabilities in the Baltic Sea Area,
b) that the Governments of the Contracting Parties which do not apply such surveillance activities, as a matter of priority, consider the possibilities to allocate funds for such a purpose,
c) that the Governments of the Contracting Parties continue their efforts to develop or improve airborne surveillance systems which can function with greater
efficiency at night and in thick weather when visibility is poor.
RECOMMENDS ALSO that the Governments of the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention, bilaterally or multilaterally, undertake to co-ordinate such surveillance activities which take place outside territorial waters, as appropriate.