ROUND TABLE RESOLUTION

 Sustainable Agriculture and Ruralia

Within the framework of the VIII International Environmental Forum “Baltic Sea Day”

CO-CHAIRMEN: Vladislav Minin, Academy of Management and Agribusiness of Non-Chernozem Zone

                               of Russian Federation

                               Valery Belyakov, Academy of Management and Agribusiness of Non-Chernozem Zone

                              of Russian Federation

                              Ari Kultenen, Pro-Agria South-Karelia, Finland

Participants: 30

Last years the governments as well as businessmen and public of the Baltic Sea countries pay increasing attention to the preservation both the Baltic Sea and its natural environment. In the year 2004 the Summit of the Baltic Sea States made a decision to classify the Baltic Sea region as the Eco-region for Sustainable Development. New Baltic Sea Action will be prepared in 2007 within the framework of the Helsinki Commission for the protection of the Baltic Sea environment.

Rural areas and especially agricultural activities are considerable sources of pollution of natural waters and the Baltic Sea. Uncontrollable development of agriculture can really worsen environmental conditions, both in places of agricultural activities and in the entire ecosystem of the Baltic Sea. It is obvious that the Action Plan should include well-developed section "Environmentally Friendly Agriculture" and the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention should actively promote real transition to such management.

 The participants of the Round table "Sustainable Agriculture and Ruralia" highly estimated the presentations of the Russian-Finnish project on the development and distribution of the Code of Good Agricultural Practice in the Leningrad region and the Baltic Sea Programme for the Leningrad region "Agriculture, Environment and Sustainable Ecosystems" and their effects for the protection of natural environment in the region.

The participants of the Round table  "Sustainable Agriculture and Ruralia" came to a conclusion that, to fulfil the commitments of Russia under the Helsinki Convention to decrease agriculture environmental load, it is necessary to ask the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, the Governments of Saint- Petersburg, the Republic of Karelia, the Leningrad, Kaliningrad, Pskov and Novgorod regions to provide assistance in the following actual works:

1.      To finish the development of the Code of Good Agricultural Practice for the Leningrad region, to adapt it with regard to the conditions of other areas of Northwest Federal region of the Russian Federation, to organize prompt distribution and to provide observance.

2.       To develop and to realize the Regional programme of rational preparation and use of manure and poultry dung (within the framework of the Programme "Soil Fertility").

3.      To provide the development and inclusion in the regional plans a component of curricula of agricultural educational institutions of various levels ecosystem health rate for sustainable development.

4.      To establish conditions for using only approved, best and environmentally friendly technologies at reconstruction, construction of new agricultural objects, and also shops on completion and processing of agricultural production, and their operation. In Federal and regional budgets it is necessary to provide subsidizing and granting of other privileges for agricultural producers carrying out similar works.

5.      To consider opportunities of creation of conditions for development of renewed energy sources in the region, especially for rural and marginal counties.

6.      To assist for wider development of "ecological" marks of agricultural production.

7.      To pay special attention to the inventory and the subsequent destruction of old pesticides.

The participants of the Round table  "Sustainable Agriculture and Ruralia" representing different countries of the Baltic Sea region concluded that it is necessary to carry out the following actions on the regional level with participation of the Council of Ministers of Northern countries, HELCOM and the appropriate official bodies of all of the Baltic Sea countries:

1.      To prepare and to implement International project for creation the network of field experiments and monitoring plots for studying transformation of nutrients and dangerous substances in agricultural ecosystems, covering all countries of Baltic sea region. It is necessary to provide an exchange of the data and easy access to them.

2.      To prepare and carry out the International project on monitoring the circulation of pathogens among wild flying and sinantropic birds in the Baltic Sea region.

3.       It is necessary to continue the development of ecologically safe fertilizers, means of protection of plants and application technologies. 

4.      In the Baltic Sea region it is necessary to foster cooperation and an exchange of students, teachers and scientists of agricultural universities and scientific research institutes. The important form of such exchange can be international youth schools and summer courses. 

The round table participants address politicians, members of parliaments and the state country leaders of the Baltic region to pay attention to formation of a national policy (politics)in view of the decision of ecological and social questions of an agriculture and rural territories. These political initiatives should result in the formation of the special programmes that are financed.

The round table participants consider it necessary to include the section "Sustainable Agriculture and Ruralia" in the Programme of 9-th Environmental Forum and to invite representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture of the Baltic Sea countries.

After discussion and some changes the Resolution was accepted unanimously.