"Baltic Sea needs action and not just talk"

10 February 2010 The leaders of the Baltic States met in Helsinki with the joint intention of saving the Baltic Sea marine environment. The summit attracted a large and high-level group of participants, heads of States and presidents of Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania, Denmark, Estonia, Russia, Poland and the EU Regional Policiy Commissioner, Johannes Hahn.

Numerous NGOs and businesses also took part in the summit and made commitments to protect the Baltic Sea. This was the first time such a summit focusing on concrete commitments and bringing together the private and public sectors has been arranged in Finland.

The action summit has been organized by Baltic Sea Action Group, BSAG, which has been founded by President of the Republic Tarja Halonen and Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen. The goal of the operations was to unite the resources of actors within the public, private and the third sectors, in order to improve the conditions of the Baltic Sea."This was an important step forward in protecting the Baltic Sea. Our common sea needs action and not just talk", noted the Prime Minister, Matti Vanhanen.

The Baltic Sea is one of the world’s most polluted seas. The Baltic States have joined forces in formulating an action plan for reviving the Baltic Sea. The aim is that this Baltic Sea Action Plan, which was published in 2007 by the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission HELCOM, will now be implemented in practice. The Baltic Sea is threatened by eutrophication, marine traffic, hazardous substances and climate change.

This news was published by goodnewsfinland on February 9, 2010.

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In September 2007 a workshop was arranged where a prestigious group of Baltic Sea experts gathered to reflect the actions and specific target areas that would constitute as most important and efficient in the preservation of the Baltic Sea. The workshop was arranged by Johanna Ikävalko who is responsible of the scientific background work at Baltic Sea Action Plan Group (BSAG). This workshop was a foundation for a vast fast-lane network of experts which enables BSAG to consult, rapidly if needed, several Baltic Sea experts.

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