Baltic LINes project kicks off, improves cross-border maritime spatial planningIncreasing the access, compatibility and dissemination of high-quality data on linear infrastructure, particularly on shipping and offshore energy, are key areas falling under HELCOM’s responsibility in a new project, Baltic LINes. The project officially started this week in Berlin, Germany, with Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) of Germany as the lead partner.The kick-off meeting on Baltic LINes was held in Berlin, Germany. Through Baltic LINes, HELCOM will work together with Aalborg University, and with input from the Finnish Environment Institute and Netherlands University of Applied Sciences, to create an infrastructure for regional data exchange. The project will establish a community to foster links between national and regional GIS data sources. The activities will be carried out in phases until final completion in early 2019. The overall aim of the project is to develop the most appropriate framework conditions for industrial and other activities at or by the sea—for example, maritime transportation, offshore energy exploitation and linear infrastructures—for the next 10 to 15 years. * * *Note for editors:Since 2010, HELCOM and Vision and Strategies around the Baltic Sea () have jointly led a Maritime Spatial Planning Working which works to ensure regional coherence of activities related to maritime spatial planning. The group is also in charge of Horizontal Action Spatial Planning within the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. The Baltic LINes project—officially named Coherent Linear Infrastructures in Baltic Maritime Spatial Plans—will support the work of the expert data established under the HELCOM-VASAB MSP group. Baltic LINes involves the following project partners:Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), Germany – lead partnerBaltic Marine Environment Protection Commission – HELCOMState Regional Development Agency (VASAB Secretariat), LatviaMinistry of Energy, Infrastructure and State Development, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, GermanySwedish Agency for Marine and Water Management, SwedenMaritime Office in Gdynia, PolandMaritime Institute in Gdansk, PolandPolish Offshore Wind Energy Society, PolandCoastal Research and Planning Institute, LithuaniaMinistry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, LatviaUniversity of Tartu, EstoniaUniversity of Aalborg, DenmarkFinnish Environment Institute, FinlandFinnish Transport Agency, FinlandNHTV University of Applied Sciences, The Netherlands * * * is an intergovernmental organization made up of the nine Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Union. Founded in 1974, its primary aims as a governing body are to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution, as well as to ensure safe maritime navigation. The official name of HELCOM is the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission; it is the governing body of the Helsinki Convention.* * * For more information, please contact:Hermanni BackerProfessional Secretary for Maritime, Response and Fish groupsHELCOMTel: +358 46 8509199Skype: helcom02E-mail: hermanni.backer(at)helcom.fi Johanna LaurilaInformation SecretaryHELCOMTel: +358 40 523 8988Skype: helcom70E-mail: johanna.laurila(at)helcom.fi
Baltic LINes project kicks off with the aim of improving cross-border maritime spatial planning, with specific concern on linear infrastructure such as shipping and offshore energy.
