During the last Annual Meeting in the Helsinki Commission, BSSSC was granted observer status in HELCOM. This will make it easier for both organizations to coordinate the efforts for a sustainable future for the marine environment in the Baltic Sea.
 

HELCOM (Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission - Helsinki Commission) is the governing body of the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area, known as the Helsinki Convention. HELCOM was established about four decades ago to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution through intergovernmental cooperation. 

 

We are very pleased to be granted observer status in HELCOM, says BSSSC Chairman Roger Ryberg. He explains that the Baltic Sea is especially vulnerable to pollution due to its shallow depth and its geographically enclosed nature.

 

– Even though there have been made improvements over the last years, among others by the good work of organizations such as HELCOM, there is still a long way to go. This is why sustainable development is one of the BSSSCs main priorities for our Chairmanship. The EU, the UN as well as national governments have created excellent plans and strategies, such as the EUSBSR and the Baltic 2030 (UN Development Goals). However, these changes will not happen only by strategies from the top, but by the cities and we, as regions, taking the roles as doers and implementers.

 

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HELCOM's vision for the future is a healthy Baltic Sea environment with diverse biological components functioning in balance, resulting in a good ecological status and supporting a wide range of sustainable economic and social activities. Mr. Ryberg emphasizes the role of HELCOM and the possibilities it might give both parties.

 

– The BSSSC sees HELCOM as one of the most important actors in working for a sustainable future for the Baltic Sea environment. The observer status will make it easier to coordinate the two organizations' efforts for a green and sustainable environment in the Baltic Sea Region, says Ryberg.

 

The summary from the meeting goes as follows: “6.5. The Meeting considered the applications by Low Impact Fishers of Europe (LIFE) and by Baltic Sea States Sub-Regional Cooperation (BSSSC) for observer status in HELCOM (document 6-1) and granted observer status to Baltic Sea States Sub-Regional Cooperation." 

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Read more about HELCOM on their website.