The meeting of Heads of Delegations of the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM) and the North Sea Environment Protection Commission (OSPAR) which ended in Berlin today decided to submit a proposal to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to declare the whole Baltic Sea a highly sensitive marine area. The status of the highly sensitive marine area would inter alia enable to set restrictions to the movement of single-bottom tankers which have caused risk to Estonian coastal seas on several occasions during last winter. According to Mr. Rene Reisner, Specialist of the Water Department of the Ministry of the Environment, who represented Estonia at the Berlin meeting, this proposal was primarily caused by the current state of the Baltic Sea. "The load of marine transport in the east-west direction intensifies gradually, causing increasing threat to the species and habitats of the Baltic Sea and to the general state of the sea," said Mr. Reisner. Based on the applications submitted by the coastal states, the Baltic Sea can only be declared a highly sensitive marine area by the IMO. According to Mr. Reisner, the meeting also approved recommendations for reduction of agricultural pollution and formed new expert groups for improving the safety of sea transport, for the development of a common system of ice classes, and for the coordination of use of icebreaker services. The Heads of Delegations also approved the new recommendations concerning the establishment and identification of the Baltic marine protected areas. Those recommendations include an overview of different regulations that deal with the establishment of protected areas, including the main requirements of the EU directives and requirements of a number of international conventions. The objective of the recommendations is establishment of a common approach to the implementation of different requirements dealing with the establishment of marine protected areas. The main purpose of the meeting was preparation for the meeting of Environmental Ministers of the Baltic Sea and North Sea states that will be held in June, 2003. For additional information please contact: |
