HELCOM and VASAB agree on coherent Maritime Spatial Planning in the Baltic Sea area

Helsinki, 17 December (HELCOM Information Service) – HELCOM and VASAB are launching the development of coherent Maritime Spatial Planning in the Baltic Sea area based on the ten Maritime Spatial Planning principles that have just been agreed by the two intergovernmental organizations of the Baltic Sea countries.

The EU Baltic Sea Region Strategy has attributed HELCOM and VASAB a prominent role in promoting Maritime Spatial Planning in the region together with other stakeholders. By forming a joint Working Group on Maritime Spatial Planning, as was decided by the HELCOM Moscow Ministerial Meeting on 20 May 2010 and promoted by the VASAB Ministerial Declaration on 16 October 2009 in Vilnius, and formulating Baltic Sea Broad-scale Maritime Spatial Planning principles, HELCOM and VASAB have founded a firm basis for transboundary cooperation on Maritime Spatial Planning as well as Integrated Coastal Zone Management in the Baltic Sea region. This cooperation will lead to the development of a future coherent overall spatial planning for the Baltic Sea thus making this region a forerunner in Maritime Spatial Planning in Europe.

 “The Baltic Sea is in great need of a developed, well adapted and coherent Maritime Spatial Planning to accomplish long term trade-offs between different and sometimes competing human activities, thereby providing a predictable framework for maritime economic investment and activities, for creating job opportunities and at the same time ensuring compatibility with good environmental status, thus promoting sustainable development of the marine areas and the Baltic Sea Region,” says Anne Christine Brusendorff, HELCOM’s Executive Secretary. “There is an increasing need and competition for marine space in the Baltic Sea which requires an integrated, cross-sectoral approach of managing human activities.”

Maritime Spatial Planning is an instrument for analyzing, coordinating and allocating the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities in marine areas to achieve a balance between economic, environmental, social and any other interests in line with internationally and nationally agreed objectives.

Although substantial work has already been carried out in the Baltic Sea Region as regards Maritime Spatial Planning and Management, still great differences exist between the Baltic Sea Region countries in terms of common understanding of Maritime Spatial Planning and sustainable management of the sea resources.

“The contradictory interests of different stakeholders in the Baltic Sea resources and the subsequent sea use conflicts cannot be solved by each country alone. They require a pan-Baltic approach based on clear vision and principles for planning and management of the sea space. The Maritime Spatial Planning principles just agreed by HELCOM and VASAB are the first step in achieving common understanding in the Baltic Sea Region,” says Talis Linkaits, Head of the VASAB Secretariat.  

The overarching Maritime Spatial Planning principle set by HELCOM and VASAB is the ecosystem approach. It calls for a cross-sectoral and sustainable management of human activities, and aims at achieving a Baltic Sea ecosystem in good status -a healthy, productive and resilient condition so that it can provide the services humans want and need. The entire regional Baltic Sea ecosystem as well as sub-regional systems and all human activities taking place within it will be considered in this context. Maritime Spatial Planning will seek to protect and enhance the marine environment and thus contribute to achieving Good Environmental Status according to the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive and HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan.

Maritime Spatial Planning will be based on the best available and up-to-date comprehensive information of high quality. Marine data and information, however, are in many respects scattered, incomplete and not developed to suit Spatial Planning. Thus initiatives for Maritime Spatial Planning face the initial challenge of finding, collecting, and adapting such information to make it form a relevant base for the planning process. Methods to transform marine data on ecosystems and other environmental issues, as well as information on maritime issues and their effects on the ecosystems, into effective planning measures will need to be developed.

Note to Editors:

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission, or HELCOM, is an intergovernmental organization of all the nine Baltic Sea countries and the EU which works to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution.

HELCOM is the governing body of the "Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area," known as the Helsinki Convention.

Visions and Strategies around the Baltic Sea (VASAB) is an intergovernmental forum for co-operation of ministers responsible for spatial planning and development of Belarus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, the Russian Federation and Sweden.

For more information, please contact:

Mr. Nikolay Vlasov

Information Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)46 8509196

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 639

E-mail: nikolay.vlasov@helcom.fi