MPs demand decisive action for the Baltic Sea marine environment
"The Baltic Sea Action Summit (BSAS) is a very promising step towards the mobilisation of concrete commitments for a better ecological situation and sustainable development for the Baltic Sea", says politician Christina Gestrin.
Christina Gestrin, chair of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference BSPC, calls for stronger action against the decline of the Baltic Sea marine environment.
- Photographer
- Johannes Jansson/norden.org
Christina Gestrin, MP (sv), chair of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC), and member of the Nordic Council Presidium, represented the Baltic Sea parliamentarians at the summit in Helsinki on Wednesday.
The BSPC, which brings together parliamentarians from all the countries around the Baltic Sea, will continue to exert political pressure on governments and decision makers for stronger action against the decline of the Baltic marine environment.
"The governments must fulfil their obligations to implement the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan in accordance with the agreed timetable," demands Gestrin.
Gestrin pointed out that the Baltic Sea must be protected from technological and man-made disasters. She says that shipments of petroleum and hazardous goods are steadily increasing and that there is an urgent need to develop preventive measures to avoid accidents.
This year the BSPC has undertaken to give political impetus to highlighting the issue of navigation safety in the Baltic Sea. The BSPC urges the governments of the Baltic countries to reach a joint agreement aimed at creating a reporting system for shipping traffic in the entire Baltic Sea. The Ship Reporting System (SRS) and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) should be made more effective through better co-ordination and harmonisation of the existing systems in the region. These issues will be discussed at the nineteenth Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference to be held in Mariehamn, Åland Islands on 29-31 August this year.
Contact: Jan Widberg, Head of the BSPC Secretariat,
tel: +4524699446, e-mail: jw@norden.org
Further information about BSPC
