HELCOM achieves a major decrease in illegal oil discharges in the Baltic

Helsinki, 4 May (HELCOM Information Service) - The number of deliberate, illegal oil discharges from ships observed by national surveillance aircraft and satellites over the Baltic Sea area in 2010 decreased by more than 37% compared to 2006. Since 1999 the number of observed spills has declined by almost 70%.

According to the latest national annual reports provided by the Member States to HELCOM, 149 illicit oil spills were detected during a total of 4,279 hours of surveillance flights during 2010. This compares to 178 discharges during a total of 5,046 air patrol hours in 2009, and 210 discharges observed during 4,603 air patrol hours in 2008. A decade ago in 1999 a total of 488 discharges were detected during 4,883 air patrol hours.

“This is a big success, showing the results of HELCOM’s work,” says Anne Christine Brusendorff, HELCOM’s Executive Secretary. “The number and size of detected oil spillages in the Baltic Sea has been constantly decreasing, even though the density of shipping has rapidly grown and the aerial surveillance activity in the countries has been substantially improved.”

This positive trend is attributed to the complex set of measures known as the Baltic Strategy to prevent illegal discharges of oil and waste into the sea, which the HELCOM countries have been implementing since the 1990s.

The best way to evaluate the number of illegal oil discharges is to reflect it as Pollution per Flight Hour (PF) Index, which compares the total number of observed oil spills to the total number of flight hours. Decreasing PF Index over the years indicates less oil spills or/and increased surveillance activity. The PF Index for the whole Baltic Sea in 2010 was the same as in 2009 (0.035), which is the lowest recorded so far.

Deliberate oil discharges from ships have been regularly observed during surveillance flights over the Baltic Sea since 1988. One of the peak years was 1989, when 763 spills were detected during 3,491 flight hours. Most of the illegal oil discharges detected during 2010 were along major shipping routes.

“Of the total 149 oil discharges detected in 2010, 136 (91%) were smaller than 1 m3, and of these oil spills as much as 97 were even smaller than 0.1 m3 or 100 liters,” says Monika Stankiewicz, HELCOM’s Maritime and Response Professional Secretary. “Two oil spills were over 10 m3 in size and the total estimated volume of oil spills observed in 2010 amounted to 49 m3.”

In a vast majority of cases of detected illegal discharges polluters remain unknown. In 2010, out of the total number of confirmed illegal discharges (149), as little as in 9 cases (6%) the polluters were identified, which is one more than in 2009 in which 178 oil spills were observed.

Regular aerial surveillance flights have contributed significantly to the decrease in discharges, as ships are increasingly aware that their illicit polluting activities can be detected. The HELCOM aerial surveillance fleet today consists of more than 25 airplanes and helicopters, many of which are equipped with remote sensing equipment such as side-looking airborne radar (SLAR), infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV) cameras, photo and video equipment.

HELCOM also uses satellite surveillance to detect illegal polluters. Satellite images are provided by the CleanSeaNet (CSN) satellite service of the European Maritime Safety Agency. In 2010, 647 satellite images were delivered to the Baltic Sea countries, indicating 186 possible oil slicks. Satellite images can indicate “candidates” for oil spills at sea, which can then be verified on location by a vessel or aircraft. Up to 44% (82) of the satellite detected slicks have been verified by the Baltic Sea countries, and in 12 cases the spill has been confirmed to be mineral oil.

Both aerial and satellite surveillance have contributed to the enforcement of the Baltic Strategy. The main objectives of the Strategy, which was operationalized by the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting in 1998, are to ensure ships' compliance with global and regional discharge regulations, and to eliminate illegal discharges into the sea of all wastes from all ships, and thus prevent pollution. Another objective is to ensure that ship-generated wastes are delivered to suitable port reception facilities where they can be treated in environmentally friendly ways.

Follow-up:

Annual 2010 HELCOM report on illegal discharges observed during aerial surveillance

http://www.helcom.fi/stc/files/shipping/spills2010.pdf  

Background:

Co-operation on aerial surveillance within the Baltic Sea area has been established within the framework of HELCOM, which requires the Member States to take measures to conduct regular surveillance outside their coastlines and to develop and apply, individually or in co-operation, surveillance activities covering the Baltic Sea area.

The purpose of aerial surveillance is to detect spills of oil and other harmful substances which can threaten the marine environment of the Baltic Sea area. If possible, an identity of a polluter should be established and a spill sampled from both the sea surface and on board the suspected offender.

Data on illegal discharges observed during national aerial surveillance activities of the coastal states in the Baltic Sea area are compiled by HELCOM on annual basis.

Note to Editors:

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission, or HELCOM, is an intergovernmental organisation 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.

For more information, please contact:

Ms. Monika Stankiewicz

Professional Secretary

HELCOM

Tel:  +358 (0)40 840 2471

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 645

E-mail: monika.stankiewicz@helcom.fi

Mr. Nikolay Vlasov

Information Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)46 850 9196

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 639

E-mail: nikolay.vlasov@helcom.fi