One of the top priorities of the Finnish government is to improve the cooperation within the Baltic Sea region, particularly around the issue of marine conservation. Finland is guided by the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, the first EU region programme which it helped establish. As part of its contribution, Finland will host the Baltic Sea Action Summit in February 2010.
The Baltic Sea, a unique and ecologically terribly vulnerable marine area, is one of the most polluted waters in the world. The gravest threat facing the Baltic is the ongoing eutrophication - caused by excessive amounts of nutrients dumped into the water.
The alarming state of the Baltic has negative effects, both direct and indirect, on the ways the sea is utilized. However its current condition can be turned around through the cooperation among the Baltic Sea states and the collaboration of various public and private partners.
The European Commission's strategy and action plan for the Baltic region was published on 10 June 2009. This, the European Union's first ever inter-EU region strategy, seeks to intensify the current EU initiatives in the Baltic area, to clarify the division of work between the EU and local levels and to make the Baltic agenda more engaged in different political sectors inside the EU system.
The strategy has already led to new levels of Baltic Sea cooperation, especially in terms of the division of labour within the member states and among the local regions. Furthermore it has allowed the relevant policy actors to better acknowledge the special circumstances of the region.
To achieve these goals, for example in the area of sea conservation and security, the entire region, including the Russian Federation, is required to take simultaneous joint-actions. Even though the EU decides on its strategic implementation, economic and trade developments and investments in transportation have to be viewed from the perspective of the entire region. It is imperative that the regional co-operation with the non-EU countries be built on a mutual basis that respects the principle of equal partnership. The Baltic Sea Strategy will hopefully send out a positive signal to all the countries involved and will attest to the Union's growing interest towards the region.
In March 2007, the Baltic Sea countries approved of the Baltic Sea Action Plan drafted by the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, also known as the Helsinki Commission. The plan outlines the measures required to save the Baltic Sea and to avoid any further damage to its exposed ecosystem. This year, on 19 May 2009, President Tarja Halonen and Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen together with the Baltic Sea Action Group headed by Mr Ilkka Herlin, presented a new approach to this conservation scheme. The process will culminate at the Baltic Sea Action Summit in Helsinki on 10 February 2010.
By bringing together representatives of both public and private sectors, the Baltic Sea Action Summit seeks to create synergy that could yield positive changes to the state of the Baltic Sea environment. The various BSAS participants are committed to acting upon the agreed measures and the process will be monitored throughout.
Summit invitations have gone out to the heads of states and governments of the Baltic region. Non-governmental organisations, private corporations and all other key players, for example harbours, energy producers and waste management authorities, that have a stake in the future of the cleaner Baltic are also welcome to contribute to the summit. In addition to making their own processes Baltic-friendlier, private businesses are also free to offer their expertise, products and other assets to the projects undertaken by the BSAS.
The BSAS initiative has already been well-received by companies and organisations alike and several large-scale corporations, including many international ones, have committed resources to the Baltic environmental process.
Many international organisations significant to the Baltic conservation are also invited to the summit. These organisations are to provide their help in carrying out various features of the EU's Baltic Sea Strategy.
Updated 9/25/2009