Baltic Marine Environment
Protection Commission

 

Baltic Marine Environment
Protection Commission

    Marine litter stakeholder conference

    Report-of-the-Stakeholder-ConferenceDownload
    HELCOM-Stakeholder-Conference-on-Marine-Litter-9-3-2016Download

    HELCOM invited a wide array of stakeholders to announce – or reiterate – their commitment for combating marine litter in the Baltic Sea in a Stakeholder Conference, held on 9 March 2016 back-to-back with HELCOM 37-2016.

    HELCOM Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter ​was recently adopted. Key focus of the Conference is to strengthen and broaden the ownership in pushing into action the thirty agreed regional tasks of the Plan.

    PROGRAMME 9 MARCH 2016​

    9.00 – 10.00                        
    Registration and breakfast. Exhibition activities

    10.00 – 12.00                             
    INTRODUCTION TO THE LITTER PROBLEM
     AND SOLUTIONS IN THE BALTIC SEA

    10.00 – 10.15                                
    Welcoming words and setting the scene

    Urmas Lips (HELCOM Vice-Chair)

    Monika Stankiewicz (HELCOM Executive Secretary)

    Heike Imhoff (Moderator of the Conference; German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety)​

    10.15 – 11.15                                
    Round trip to the four main themes 

    This part guides the audience through the main thematic areas of marine litter in the Baltic Sea, with specialists handpicked as info points. The selection of themes is based on the public vote of most important topics to be covered. ​

    1)      Micro particles
    Peter Kershaw (Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection – GESAMP/International Maritime Organization)

    2)      Waste delivery in ports and marinas 
    Hermanni Backer     (HELCOM Secretariat)

    3)      Waste management on land 
    Mikhail Durkin (Coalition Clean Baltic – CCB) & Peeter Eek (Ministry of the Environment of Estonia)

    4)      Waste related to fishing and aquaculture
    Mark Bernard Merkx (Waste Free Oceans – WFO)

    11.15 – 12.15                                The league of experts

    With the fresh ideas in mind from the morning round trip, the panel expands further on the complex issue of marine litter, with particular focus on the four main themes. From their different angles of expertise, the participants share their own summarized views on the best future-orientated actions against litter. The audience and moderator alike will assist in distilling the thoughts to support dedicated cross-sectoral combat against litter.

    –        Anna Bobo Remijn (European Commission Directorate-General Mobility and Transport – DG MOVE)​

    –        Peter Kershaw (Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection – GESAMP/International Maritime Organization)

    –        Saijariina Toivikko (European Federation of National Associations of Water and Wastewater Services – EurEau)

    –        Stefanie Werner (Federal Environment Agency – UBA, Germany)

    ​12.15 – 13.45                      
    Lunch. Exhibition activities

    13.45 – 16.00                        
    THE BALTIC SEA REGION STEPS IN TO 
    ​TACKLE THE LITTER CHALLENGE

    13:45-14:30                                         
    Lifting up the litter challenge to higher levels

    The participants representing different sectors and backgrounds will elaborate on how to raise the marine litter issue higher in national, regional and European agendas. The speakers are invited to announce how individual organizations and initiatives can better join the combat against litter. What are the bottlenecks? How to seize the best incentives? The speakers and the audience are encouraged to explore the issue and comment each other.

    –        Erja Tikka (Baltic Sea Ambassador, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland)

    –        Matjaz Malgaj (European Commission Directorate-General Environment – DG ENV)

    –        Sally Clink (Baltic Sea Advisory Council – BSAC)

    –        Kaisa Kononen (BONUS – Baltic Organisations’ Network for Funding Science EEIG)

    Anja Nysten (Nordic Environment Finance Corporation – NEFCO)

    14.30 – 15.00                      
    Coffee break. Exhibition activities

    15.00 – 16.00                                     

    Convincing others to follow 

    Since there already are many promising initiatives on marine litter, one can proudly present some of the success stories and best practices. Further engagement can be encouraged by selected examples from municipalities, projects and the private sector:

    Note that some titles are tentative

    –        Igor A. Grigorjev (tbc, St. Petersburg Environmental Committee): Local actions of land-based marine litter prevention: The Case of the City of St. Petersburg

    –        John Hanus (JPI Oceans): European microplastics research cooperation as a basis for global action

    –        Marta Kalinowska (WWF Poland): Reducing the impact of marine litter on the Baltic Sea environment from Derelict Fishing Gear – in cooperation with fishermen

    –        Vesa Kärhä (PlasticsEurope/Finnish Plastics Industries Federation): Nordic plastics action in reducing marine litter – What has been done, what is going on and what more could be done?

    –        Esa Nikunen (City of Helsinki): Local solutions to a global problem  – urban runoff of marine litter challenging coastal cities​​

    16.00 – 16.30                      
    WRAPPING UP THE CONFERENCE ​