At a session of the International Marine Environment Protection Committee in London a resolution was adopted, designating the entire Baltic Sea as a particularly sensitive sea area (PSSA). Areas under Russian jurisdiction pursuant to the UN sea law convention of 1982 were excluded from the resolution. The final confirmation to the resolution has to be given by the 24th session of the Assembly of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to be held in November/December 2005. If the Assembly approves the proposed measures to improve maritime safety, the Baltic Sea will have the new status as of 1 July 2006. Designating a sea area as a particularly sensitive sea area means that it is internationally acknowledged that the increasing intensity of vessel traffic may have a harmful effect on the sensitive ecosystem of this area and, consequently, additional measures have to be taken in order to improve maritime safety and protect the marine environment more efficiently. In the Baltic Sea, there are approximately 2000 ships a day, about 200 of which are tankers. In addition to this, 2000 fishing vessels are constantly at sea. One of the most dangerous cargoes is oil which would have an extremely adverse effect on the marine environment of the Baltic Sea in the case of accidental release into the sea. The proposal to designate the Baltic Sea as a particularly sensitive sea area was made already in June 2003 at the joint meeting of the Baltic marine environment protection commission (HELCOM) and the OSPAR commission held in Bremen. Further information: Olev Luhtein Mart Siilivask |
