National and regional story (Lithuania) - Cooperation of the Baltic Sea States and the EC for a healthy Baltic Sea

Countries around the Baltic Sea have worked together to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea since the 1970s under the umbrella of the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area (or the Helsinki Convention). The nine coastal countries and the EC work together in the framework of the Helsinki Commission (or HELCOM for short) to implement the Helsinki Convention.

The Baltic Sea is a semi-enclosed sea with a catchment area covering 14 European countries (Figure 1). The sea is characterised by a strong salinity gradient from marine salinity in Kattegat to near freshwater salinity in the northern and eastern bays. The brackish-water environment maintains a unique ecosystem, albeit with a low biodiversity. In the Baltic Sea, marine and freshwater species live in the same habitats and have, in many cases, genetically adapted to the special physical and chemical conditions of the environment. The ecological interactions of the relatively few species make the food web particularly vulnerable to external pressures.

Figure 1: Map of the Baltic Sea region; the light green area represents the catchment area of the Baltic Sea

A long history of pollution from the surrounding catchment area and the continuously increasing human interest in marine areas (offshore installations, traffic, energy, mineral and other resource extraction) has created severe anthropogenic pressures on the Baltic Sea environment. Although levels of some hazardous substances have declined and several measures have been undertaken to manage nutrient pollution, the status of the environment is poor and new threats, such as contamination and harmful effects caused by pharmaceuticals, have been detected. In general, the current view of the synergistic impacts of all human pressures is not sufficient and, therefore, new approaches to managing human impacts on the Baltic Sea are being studied.

In November 2007, ministers for the environment and high-level representatives of the HELCOM parties adopted an ambitious action plan, the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (HELCOM BSAP), to radically reduce pollution to the Baltic Sea and reverse its degradation by 2021. The holistic plan contains concrete and meaningful actions to solve the major problems affecting the Baltic Sea, including measures to:

— curb eutrophication,

— prevent pollution involving hazardous substances,

— halt habitat destruction and the decline of biodiversity, and

— improve maritime safety and accident response capacity.

The HELCOM BSAP is the first-ever attempt by a regional sea convention to incorporate an ecosystem-based approach into the protection of the marine environment by including specific milestones and final compliance dates and a system of measurable parameters that make it possible to evaluate the efficiency of the adopted measures and the progress towards reaching the desired state of the Baltic Sea — a sea with diverse biological components functioning in balance and supporting a wide range of sustainable human economic and social activities.

With the Baltic Sea Action Plan, the Baltic Sea countries have adopted the necessary components for a full management cycle for eutrophication (Figure 2). Central to this management strategy are ecological objectives that describe a Baltic Sea unaffected by eutrophication, such as clear water, no excessive algal blooms and a natural distribution of plants and animals. In order to put into operation the eutrophication objectives, Baltic Sea scientists have developed specific eutrophication indicators that include quantitative subregional targets, which are based on reference values and acceptable deviations from these reference values. With the help of harmonised regional monitoring, the Baltic Sea countries are able to produce indicator-based assessments, which allow evaluation of the progress towards the agreed objectives and whether existing measures are effective enough. These assessments also supply the latest available information to support policymaking, including recommendations on whether further protective measures are needed. The integrated thematic assessment of eutrophication was published in 2009. It indicated that the eutrophication status of all but 13 areas out of 189 was not acceptable even though the external loads of nutrients to the Baltic Sea have shown a decreasing trend since the beginning of the 1990s.

Based on the eutrophication targets and using models that incorporate data on pollution loads, hydrology, chemistry and biological parameters, it has been possible to define maximum allowable nutrient inputs to each sub-basin (Table 1). Based on a comparison of maximum allowable inputs to nutrient load levels, provisional country-wise reduction targets for nitrogen and phosphorus were defined, according to inputs from the 1997–2003 period (Table 2). The contribution of each country to the necessary reductions is dependent on catchment area, population density and intensity of human activities in the catchment area. These figures were adopted by the Baltic Sea countries and the EC and will be revised in 2013 as new knowledge is gained. A framework of cost-effective actions and measures to reduce nutrient inputs to the Baltic Sea through, for example, better wastewater treatment around the region, banning phosphorus in detergents and implementing measures to reduce nutrient losses from agriculture was also agreed.

As the HELCOM BSAP follows adaptive management principles, the objectives and targets of the plan will be periodically reviewed and revised using a harmonised approach and the most updated information. At present, the Baltic Sea countries and the EC are working toward further developing eutrophication and biodiversity indicators and refining the environmental targets based on the latest available data and information. The work on biodiversity indicators will be largely based on the integrated thematic assessment on biodiversity and nature conservation published in 2009. Also, work is currently ongoing to develop indicators and targets for hazardous substances and the countries around the Baltic Sea are drafting a thematic assessment of hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea as well as collecting information on the sources and inputs of hazardous substances. The aim is to ultimately arrive at a similar management cycle for hazardous substances impacting the status of the Baltic marine environment. To the extent possible, the same approach will be followed when elaborating a thematic assessment on maritime activities.

Within HELCOM, the Baltic Sea countries and the EC are also elaborating a holistic assessment, which will contain information on the overall health status of the marine environment of the Baltic Sea, using an indicator-based assessment tool as well as information on the socioeconomic drivers and anthropogenic pressures impacting the status. The overall effect of the pressures will be presented by a so-called Baltic Sea Pressure Index.

The innovative and comprehensive Baltic Sea Action Plan has received wide recognition at European and global levels. The EC has acknowledged that the plan will be instrumental to the implementation of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the importance of HELCOM work has also been recognised in relation to the EU Maritime Policy and the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, which incorporates several components of the action plan. Importantly, the HELCOM Member States, being also EU Member States, have recognised that the work carried out under the HELCOM BSAP will facilitate their implementation of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive.