Baltic-wide Maritime Spatial Planning Speeds Up 

13 September 2012, Helsinki, Finland – The ground breaking work on Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) in the Baltic Sea region is followed up and pushed further in an intensive 2-day meeting starting today in Helsinki. The MSP Working Group by Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) and Vision and Strategies around the Baltic Sea (VASAB) is expected to evaluate the use of the joint broad scale MSP principles, adopted to give guidance for more coherent MSP systems in the Baltic.

The HELCOM Ministers agreed in 2010 to test, apply and evaluate the use of these joint principles when developing national Maritime Spatial Planning initiatives, as well as when using them regionally. The Group, established nearly two years ago, works to advance ecosystem based MSP processes in the Baltic Sea, especially in transboudary context.

 “I’d like to stress the importance of the continued good cooperation between VASAB and HELCOM in this increasingly vital field of planning of the common sea. Even stronger evidence on improved coordination of the MSP related actions and projects in the region can realistically be expected by the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting in October 2013, and the 2014 VASAB Ministerial Conference”, says Monika Stankiewicz, Executive Secretary of HELCOM.

The Meeting will also discuss the practical application of the ecosystem approach in spatial planning at sea and spatial data requirements and experiences.

Another topic on the agenda is the on-going revision of the Action Plan of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. HELCOM and VASAB are leaders for SPATIAL, Horizontal Action on developing a common approach for cross-border cooperation within Maritime Spatial Planning. The Group functions as macro-regional forum for implementing this Horizontal Action.  

The Meeting will be chaired by the Group’s Co-chairs Ms Anita Mäkinen from the Finnish Transport Safety Agency, and Mr. Andrzej Cieslak from the Maritime Office in Gdynia, Poland.

* * *

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.

Vision and Strategies around the Baltic (VASAB) is an intergovernmental forum for co-operation of eleven ministers responsible for spatial planning and development. The countries involved are Belarus, Norway and the nine Baltic Sea countries. VASAB was established in 1992 and a permanent secretariat was formed in 1994. VASAB is steered by a Committee on Spatial Development of the Baltic Sea Region (CSD/BSR) composed of representatives of respective ministries and regional authorities.

* * *

For more information, please contact:

Ms. Monika Stankiewicz

Executive Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)40 840 2471

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 645

Skype: helcom17

E-mail: monika.stankiewicz@helcom.fi

Ms. Johanna Laurila

Information Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0) 40 523 8988

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 645

Skype: helcom70

E-mail: johanna.laurila@helcom.fi