Author: Eeva Nyyssönen

The new, openly available Harmonised Regional Seas Assessment Tool (HARSAT) has been presented this week to the HELCOM working group (WG) Source to Sea*, as it is an essential part in HELCOM indicator evaluations for hazardous substances.  

The release of the open source tool is another strong indication of the long-standing cooperation of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) and the OSPAR Commission (OSPAR). The HARSAT tool greatly improves the efficiency of marine environment monitoring across adjacent sea areas, that facilitates applying resources available within the three organisations in a cost-effective and efficient manner, benefiting all parties. Moreover, the tool supports providing policymakers and users with a centralized platform for accessing critical and consistent information to support informed decision-making.

HARSAT is a statistical package that is publicly available on GitHub. A user community is being established to support the future maintenance, development and application of the tool – with potential for continuing the cooperation of the neighbouring sea regions in the necessary follow-up work.

AMAP, HELCOM and OSPAR are responsible for monitoring and assessing the state of the marine environment in adjoining, and partly overlapping, sea areas of the Arctic Ocean, Baltic Sea, and North-east Atlantic, respectively. All three organizations have a long history of expert-level collaboration, to streamline the work on monitoring the marine environment, not least in regard to harmonizing methods and protocols for monitoring and data analysis, and promoting common data management systems including using a shared, thematic data centre at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES).

The HARSAT tool is the latest collaborative effort between the Baltic, North-east Atlantic and Arctic Regional Seas Conventions, supported by ICES as well as consultants and members of the relevant expert groups, to upgrade the existing tools used for statistical analysis of data on contaminants in marine samples.

The developed tool facilitates local, national and regional evaluations of hazardous substances in the marine environment, including from different monitoring material (water, sediment and biota samples). These evaluations form the backbone of environmental health or status assessments across these three regions and these assessments in turn are catalysts for reviewing the monitoring carried out and the setting of measures to improve environmental status. The harmonised core of this tool allows strong comparability across all three regions.

*full name: HELCOM Working Group on Source to Sea Management of Nutrients and Hazardous Substances and Sustainable Agricultural Practices (WG Source to sea)

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Background

The HARSAT work was financially supported by resources from AMAP, HELCOM and OSPAR, including resources from external projects, such as the Nordic Council of Ministers HARSAT project and the NEFCO Baltic Sea Action Plan Fund co-financed PreEMPT project, as well as supported by a close working cooperation with the Baltic Data Flows Project that was co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union.

For further information, please contact the [AMAP|HELCOM|OSPAR] Secretariat.

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About HELCOM

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission or HELCOM, is an intergovernmental organization of the Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Union. HELCOM has worked since 1974 to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region.

HELCOM is the governing body of the “Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area,” more usually known as the Helsinki Convention.

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Contact

Johanna Laurila

Communications Advisor
johanna.laurila@helcom.fi
+358 40 647 3996

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Convention and HELCOM, Latvia, currently holding the Chairmanship of HELCOM, hosted a celebration on 25 April 2024 in Riga.

The online stream of the event is now available at the event webpages, along with the keynote speeches, videos, photos, and congratulatory remarks and greetings from the event.

The guests of the 50^th anniversary event, including representatives of the HELCOM Contracting Parties, observers and other friends of HELCOM past and present, enjoyed a special programme reflecting on the achievements of the first 50 years of HELCOM while looking forward to future challenges.

The event was preceded by the 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment in the morning of the same day.

We are delighted to announce that a photo gallery as well as the opening film, Motion, are now published from the 50th anniversary event of HELCOM which was held in Riga, Latvia on 25 April 2024. Latvia, currently holding the Chairmanship of HELCOM, hosted the celebration on the occasion of 50 years since the signing of the Helsinki Convention, preceded by a Ministerial Meeting of the Contracting Parties in the morning of the same day.

The guests, including representatives of the HELCOM Contracting Parties, observers and other friends of HELCOM past and present, enjoyed a special programme reflecting on the achievements of the first 50 years of HELCOM while looking forward to future challenges. The list of keynote speakers can be found here. The recording of the online streaming will shortly be made available.

Event webpage

Photo gallery

MOTION – 50th anniversary film

Yesterday, the ministers and high-level representatives of the Baltic Sea coastal states and the EU gathered in Riga, Latvia, for the 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment. They reaffirmed their strong commitment to continued joint efforts to reach a healthy Baltic marine environment. A Ministerial Declaration, as well as a statement on the geopolitical situation, are the outputs of the meeting, convened under the auspices of the current Latvian Chairmanship of HELCOM.

“Acknowledging the 50th anniversary of the 1974 Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area and the vital role of the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM), we have underscored our commitment to addressing the pressing environmental challenges facing the Baltic Sea. Despite the progress made since the adoption of the first Baltic Sea Action Plan in 2007, the current state of the marine environment remains unsatisfactory due to human activities. However, notwithstanding the highly challenging geopolitical situation, the work to protect our fragile common sea continues with even stronger vigor,” said Inga Bērziņa, Minister for Environmental Protection and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia.

The Riga Ministerial Declaration recognizes the interconnectedness of environmental health and economic prosperity and the importance of stressing the economic benefits of preserving the Baltic Sea ecosystem. As shown by the latest Holistic Assessment of the Baltic Sea (HOLAS 3), achieving good environmental status by the year 2040 can yield economic benefits of 5.6 million euro per year for people around the Baltic Sea.

The ministerial debate focused on better targeting and prioritizing efforts to implement the 2021 Baltic Sea Action Plan, based on the new insights gained from HOLAS 3 and on continuing to successfully implement the HELCOM goals against the background of the challenging geopolitical situation in the Baltic Sea region.

“This high-level meeting took place at a crucial time, as we take stock of the achievements of HELCOM in its 50-year history while also determining how to integrate the findings from HOLAS 3 in shaping and defining HELCOM policies and priorities going forward,” says Rüdiger Strempel, Executive Secretary of HELCOM, adding: “It also sends a strong signal of continued cooperation of the EU and those HELCOM Contracting Parties that are also Member States of the EU in the framework of HELCOM and underscores the organization’s key role in addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution in our region and beyond.”

The 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment was attended by the ministers and high-level representatives of the Ministries of the Environment, respectively of Climate, of Infrastructure and of Maritime Affairs of eight Baltic Sea coastal states and the European Union.

Key documents:

Ministerial Declaration of the 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment

HELCOM Statement on the geopolitical situation

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About HELCOM

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission or HELCOM, is an intergovernmental organization of the Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Union. HELCOM has worked since 1974 to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region.

HELCOM is the governing body of the “Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area,” more usually known as the Helsinki Convention.

The Helsinki Commission’s member states are the contracting parties to the Helsinki Convention: Denmark, Estonia, the European Union, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and Sweden. Due to the current geopolitical situation, the EU and the Contracting Parties to HELCOM that are also member states of the EU (H9) have, however imposed a “strategic pause” in HELCOM operations. This pause entails the postponement of the meetings of all official HELCOM bodies, with meetings being carried out as so-called informal consultation sessions involving H 9 participants only and Russian involvement restricted to correspondence procedures.  

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About Ministerial Meetings

Every three years, HELCOM arranges a Ministerial Meeting, gathering ministers responsible for environmental or maritime affairs from the Baltic Sea countries and the EU Commissioner for the Environment. These Meetings serve as crucial forums for engaging in shared discussions and reaching agreements at a high political level. They further reinforce HELCOM’s objectives in protecting the Baltic marine environment.

Ministerial meetings result in the adoption of political declarations, through which Contracting Parties commit to taking further actions to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea and agree on the future agenda for HELCOM. The declarations complement the Helsinki Convention and HELCOM Recommendations.

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About HELCOM Holistic Assessments

HELCOM carries out holistic assessments every six years. They focus on how the Baltic Sea ecosystem is doing and, importantly, on following up on how well the agreements – namely, the measures set in the 2021 HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) – are functioning. The holistic assessments cover ‘moments’ in time over the dynamic life history of the Baltic Sea.

The third HELCOM holistic assessment (HOLAS 3) focuses on the years 2016-2021 and includes results at various levels of detail, including monitoring data, indicator reports and thematic assessments.

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Contact

Johanna Laurila
Communications Advisor, HELCOM
johanna.laurila@helcom.fi
+358 40 647 3996

Communication division
Ministry of Environmental Protection and
Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia 
+371 20 200 305
prese@varam.gov.lv
www.varam.gov.lv

Joint press release by HELCOM and the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia

​On 25 April 2024, ministers and high-level representatives of Baltic Sea coastal states and the European Union will gather in Riga, Latvia at a joint meeting within the Latvian Chairmanship of HELCOM, for the 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment. They will discuss the way forward in protecting the Baltic Sea marine environment.

Emphasizing the current state of the Baltic Sea, the discussions will focus on leveraging the results of the latest HELCOM holistic assessment of the Baltic Sea (HOLAS 3) to further strengthen the scientific basis for determining key priorities and shaping the trajectory of future work.

“This ministerial meeting is the culmination of Latvia’s two-year chairmanship of HELCOM. It has been an eventful and challenging period shaped by the current geopolitical landscape,” says Inga Bērziņa, Minister for Environmental Protection and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia. “However, even in this tense period, we have been able to achieve the objectives of the Latvian Presidency, which are aimed at improving the state of the Baltic Sea environment,” she continues. Latvia currently holds the rotating Chairmanship of HELCOM and is the proud host of the 2024 Ministerial Meeting on the Baltic Sea Marine Environment, as well as HELCOM’s 50^th anniversary event, which will also take place in Riga on 25 April 2024.

“Our primary goals during this Chairmanship have been to reinforce HELCOM’s position as an effective and well-functioning regional organization for regional cooperation even in unforeseen or force majeure situations, to implement the 2021 Baltic Sea Action Plan and to strengthen the role of regional cooperation in international ocean governance. I am gratified to note that we have met these objectives, with HELCOM continuing to fulfill its role as the key player in regional environmental cooperation and notable progress in the ongoing implementation of the Action Plan,” says Evija Šmite, the HELCOM Chair.

This spring’s Ministerial Meeting will chart the course for HELCOM work over the next three years. “The main findings of HOLAS 3, summarized in the State of the Baltic Sea 2023 report, will impact the implementation of the 2021 Baltic Sea Action Plan. They will inform the decisions of Contracting Parties in implementing the Plan and help shape the policies of our organization as we progress towards the Plan’s target year of 2030, says Rüdiger Strempel, HELCOM Executive Secretary.

The Meeting is expected to adopt a  Ministerial Declaration reflecting the priorities and ambitions of HELCOM in working towards a healthier marine environment for the Baltic Sea, in line with the longstanding tradition of regional cooperation upheld by the organization.

The celebratory session of the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Convention can be watched live if you register in advance. Apply by April 23 at this link.

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About HELCOM

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission or HELCOM, is an intergovernmental organization of the Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Union. HELCOM has worked since 1974 to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region.

HELCOM is the governing body of the “Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area,” more usually known as the Helsinki Convention.

The Helsinki Commission’s member states are the contracting parties to the Helsinki Convention: Denmark, Estonia, the European Union, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Sweden and Russia. Due to the current geopolitical situation, the EU and the Contracting Parties to HELCOM that are also member states of the EU (H9) have, however imposed a “strategic pause” in HELCOM operations. This pause entails the postponement of the meetings of all official HELCOM bodies, with meetings being carried out as so-called informal consultation sessions involving H 9 participants only and Russian involvement restricted to correspondence procedures.

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About Ministerial Meetings

Every three years, HELCOM arranges a Ministerial Meeting, gathering ministers responsible for environmental or maritime affairs from the Baltic Sea countries and the EU Commissioner for the Environment. These Meetings serve as crucial forums for engaging in shared discussions and reaching agreements at a high political level. They further reinforce HELCOM’s objectives in protecting the Baltic marine environment.

Ministerial meetings result in the adoption of political declarations, through which Contracting Parties commit to taking further actions to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea and agree on the future agenda for HELCOM. The declarations complement the Helsinki Convention and HELCOM Recommendations.

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About HELCOM Holistic Assessments

HELCOM carries out holistic assessments every six years. They focus on how the Baltic Sea ecosystem is doing and, importantly, on following up on how well the agreements – namely, the measures set in the 2021 HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) – are functioning. The holistic assessments cover ‘moments’ in time over the dynamic life history of the Baltic Sea.

The third HELCOM holistic assessment (HOLAS 3) focuses on the years 2016-2021 and includes results at various levels of detail, including monitoring data, indicator reports and thematic assessments.

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Contact

Johanna Laurila
Communications Advisor, HELCOM
johanna.laurila@helcom.fi
+358 40 647 3996

Communication division
Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia  
+371 20 200 305
prese@varam.gov.lv
www.varam.gov.lv

(Save the Baltic Sea campaign press release)
A team of environmental activists will begin their hike around the Baltic Sea, with a series of educational events, discussions and workshops organized in 8 countries, aiming to accelerate action in tackling critical Baltic Sea pollution issues.

March 11, 2024 will mark the date when a team of 13 environmental activists will depart from Klaipėda, Lithuania, to begin their 6,000 kilometer-long journey on foot along the coastline of the Baltic Sea, one of the five most polluted seas in the world. During their 9 month hike, the historic “Save the Baltic Sea” expedition will invite citizens, governments, organizations and businesses to take active measures in order to preserve the sea for future generations.

“The Baltic Sea is in a critical state, which puts the benefits it provides to our region in danger,” says the expedition’s science engagement coordinator Laura Stukonytė. “Unsustainable human activities have put our marine ecosystems under extreme pressure, from excessive nitrogen and phosphorus inflow, to marine litter and hazardous substances reaching the sea from land. At the same time, the Baltic is also being affected by climate change” she adds.

In 2007, the Baltic Sea countries and the European Union (that together form the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, or HELCOM) adopted the Baltic Sea Action Plan – a strategic programme of measures and actions that would lead to a healthy Baltic Sea state by 2030. While some environmental improvements have been seen since the adoption of the plan, HELCOM reports that more than 50% of the agreed-upon joint actions have yet to be implemented.

In support of the Baltic Sea Action Plan, the “Save the Baltic Sea” expedition seeks to accelerate these actions in order to tackle our region’s marine pollution issues. “Each of us living in the Baltic Sea basin contributes to the state of our marine environment, often without even knowing. But it means each of us also has the power to make a change,” says Giedrius Bučas, “Save the Baltic Sea” expedition leader who hiked 1200 kilometers around Lithuania in 2019, collecting litter with a team of volunteers.

Through its unique communication campaign, educational activities and workshops organized with partners in 8 Baltic Sea countries, the current expedition will highlight marine pollution issues, showcase existing innovations and best practices, and inform citizens about actions they can take to reduce their negative impact.

“While our hiker team will dedicate the next 9 months of their lives for this mission, we also welcome everyone to join our events and hike with us in sections of the route, which can be seen on our website at www.savebaltic.eu,” says Bučas.

On March 11, the team of hikers and the expedition’s supporters will officially begin the hike. This first leg will start from Smiltynė – the Northernmost point of the Lithuanian Curonian spit. More information about this and other public events can be found on the expedition’s website and social media channels.

Support the “Save the Baltic Sea” expedition by donating here: https://savebaltic.eu/support/

Contact

info@savebaltic.eu

Save the date! We are happy to invite the entire extended HELCOM family to join online the 50^th anniversary celebrations of the Helsinki Convention and HELCOM. Latvia, currently holding the Chairmanship of HELCOM, will host the celebration event on 25 April 2024 in Riga, starting at 14:00 (CET), with many special guests.

Ministers of the Environment of Latvia and Finland, Inga Bērziņa and Kai Mykkänen, will open the event.

An impressive list of keynote speakers, representing major stakeholder organizations, will also honour the celebrations with their presence. The names of the representatives will be announced soon – stay tuned!

The 50^th anniversary celebrations will be preceded by the Ministerial Meeting of the Contracting Parties in the morning of 25 April 2024, and a side event organized by Coalition Clean Baltic and WWF, Waves of Change – Accelerating action and finance to save the Baltic Sea, will take place in Riga the day before.

The guests invited en site include representatives of the HELCOM Contracting Parties, observers and other friends of HELCOM past and present. The special programme reflects the achievements of the first 50 years of HELCOM while looking forward to future challenges. Please find the preliminary programme on the dedicated web page.

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Save the Baltic Sea is a hiking expedition and an environmental campaign around the Baltic Sea covering eight countries, taking place in 2024. The main organizer is a Lithuanian NGO Už švarią Lietuvą (“For a clean Lithuania”). HELCOM will be one of the official partners in the campaign, along with the EU4Ocean Platform, the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania and a network of scientific institutes and non-governmental organizations from the eight countries.

The purpose of the expedition is to further improve marine conservation culture in the Baltic Sea countries, inform citizens about the state of our marine ecosystems, and bring together local communities and stakeholders to break down barriers in halting marine pollution.

During the expedition, a team of activists will hike almost 6000 kilometers around the Baltic Sea in 9 months. In each of the countries the team will cross, they will gather local communities and stakeholders for ocean literacy activities and living labs – collaborative workshops that will aim to catalyze collective action in mitigating pollution in the Baltic Sea.

The campaign aims are aligned with HELCOM’s Baltic Sea Action Plan, especially HT27: “Increase knowledge exchange and awareness raising to promote public and stakeholder support and interest in understanding the state of the Baltic Sea and threats to its environment as well as promote opportunities for the general public to participate in citizen science” and HL7: “Launch educational and information campaigns by 2025 to raise public awareness regarding responsible handling of hazardous substances in household chemicals and articles to prevent their release into the environment.”

The expedition will set off in March 2024 from Lithuania. More information about the campaign and related activities can be found here: https://savebaltic.eu/

Contact

Johanna Laurila
HELCOM Communication Advisor
johanna.laurila@helcom.fi, +358 40 6473996

Laura Stukonytė
Save The Baltic Sea science engagement coordinator
science@savebaltic.eu

HELCOM has officially unveiled the comprehensive Best Available Technologies (BAT) and Best Environmental Practices (BEP) for sustainable aquaculture in the Baltic Sea region, marking the culmination of extensive and constructive efforts. Helsinki Convention, governed by HELCOM, is the first Regional Seas Convention in Europe that has such specific guidance on aquaculture and can be regarded as a best practice example.

The balance between protection of the highly sensitive and strained Baltic Sea marine environment and the needs of the growing aquaculture sector was challenging to negotiate, but the successful and ambitious BAT/BEP descriptions give thorough and concrete guidance for both marine and freshwater aquaculture.

The pioneering BAT/BEP document is highly detailed, and it covers a wide range of issues, from inputs of nutrients and hazardous substances to marine litter, non-indigenous species and escapees, underwater noise, sustainable feed and feeding practices, as well as permits, monitoring and staff training. For instance, aquaculture can be a source of hazardous substance inputs through veterinary medicinal products, antifouling coatings, and cleaning and disinfection products. Concerning nutrient inputs, the key reason for eutrophication in the Baltic Sea, BAT/BEP descriptions recommend to set discharge limits that take account of the nutrient reduction scheme of HELCOM and the goals of the Baltic Sea Action Plan.

A regular reporting process aims to secure that HELCOM Contracting Parties apply the guidelines in their aquaculture operations.

The new BAT/BEP descriptions help to ensure that the growing aquaculture sector develops sustainably in the Baltic Sea.

BAT/BEP descriptions of sustainable aquaculture in the Baltic Sea region

Contact

Johanna Laurila

Communication Advisor, HELCOM

+358 40 6473996

Today, we unveil the official PROTECT BALTIC website, a significant milestone in the Horizon Europe project. PROTECT BALTIC is a collaborative effort with support from 17 dedicated partner organizations and coordinated by the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM). The project aligns with the European Union’s Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the EU mission to Restore our Ocean and Waters, which underscores the need for united actions to protect and revitalize marine and freshwater ecosystems and preserve their rich biodiversity. 

PROTECT BALTIC is a direct response to the urgent need to expand marine protected areas in the Baltic Sea to 30%, with 10% under strict protection. 

Three decades of concerted efforts have resulted in 14-17% of the Baltic Sea under protection, with minimal strict protection measures in place. The region now faces dual challenges, with the clock ticking to double the current coverage by 2030. However, efforts should not solely be placed on expanding the network, but on improving it.

With this urgency and scope in mind, the project has a crystal-clear mission: to employ strategic planning and ecologically relevant approaches for enhancing and optimizing the existing network of marine protected areas. The ultimate goal of these efforts is to deliver positive biodiversity outcomes.

To ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of forthcoming efforts, PROTECT BALTIC is committed to:

• Developing a robust infrastructure and knowledge base for a data-driven, ecoregion-scale evidence base to inform strategic planning, measures, and long-term management.
• Establishing a regionally agreed protection optimization framework to enhance governance and transboundary cooperation, including mutually agreed protection and restoration objectives.
• Identifying the current baseline of protection efforts across the entire sea basin.
• Pinpointing gaps in protection and restoration efforts by comparing the desired state with the current status.
• Offering concrete, replicable support to empower Baltic Sea member states to strategically fill these gaps, harmonize their actions, and realize the full potential of protection and restoration efforts.

The launch of the website represents a significant step for the project, serving as a dynamic and comprehensive hub for a wide range of resources, information and tools that are integral for the project’s mission. The website will be regularly updated with the latest developments, progress reports, and news related to PROTECT BALTIC so that users have access to real-time information on the project’s progress and achievements.

For detailed information about the project and its progress, visit the newly launched website: https://protectbaltic.eu

Contact

Paul Trouth
Communications Coordinator, PROTECT BALTIC
paul.trouth@helcom.fi 
+358 447106202

This news item was originally posted here.