Bodewig BSF Statement

BSF Statement – 1. Draft - 21th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC)Baltic Sea Forum is a partner in the three INTERREG projects. We support the project Clean Baltic Sea Shipping which gearing the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan. BSF has an observer status in regard to Helsinki Commission HELCOM as well as in parliamentarians of the Baltic Sea. The goals of the project CLEANSHIP are best described by the Helsinki Commission or Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM).BSF is also projectpartner of the INTERREG Projekt INNOSHIP. BSR InnoShip supports the Baltic Sea countries and the key maritime stakeholders to jointly- decrease and prevent adverse atmospheric emissions of shipping and port operations- mitigate the different needs and interests of the Baltic maritime sector- coordinate efforts to make the Baltic Sea a model area for clean and competitive shipping in EuropeProject activities bring added value to the joint management of the Baltic Sea resources. Policy- and decision-makers are provided with knowledge and best practices to develop and jointly implement both national and transnational policies, strategies and concrete measures to implement the international lowemission requirements for the Baltic Sea. The cooperation aims at encouraging voluntary measures and economic incentives for lowemission solutions in local, national and the Baltic Sea level. Baltic ships, ports and cities will be offered with concrete tools for developing feasibility, investment and competitiveness planning for adopting innovative technology and low-emission solutions.BSR InnoShipBSR InnoShip addresses the common challenge of the Baltic Sea countries and the key maritime stakeholders to cooperate in minimizing ship-based air pollution, while aiming at optimizing competitiveness of the maritime industry. The project promotes new and innovative transnational approaches to mitigate the different needs and interests of the maritime sector and to ensure a level playing field for more sustainable and economically viable management of the Baltic Sea resources. The project provides needed knowledge and best practices for policy and decision makers in the development and joint implementation of national and transnational policies, strategies and concrete measures to implement the international low emission requirements. Practical models and tools are elaborated to estimate economic implications of the required emission reductions and encouraging voluntary measures and economic incentives for low emission solutions in local, national and the Baltic Sea level.The project partnership consists of 19 partners and 24 associated partners representing Pan Baltic, national and local organizations in all the countries in the Baltic Sea region including Russia. In order to ensure achievement of the project goals the partners will collaborate with the key Baltic maritime stakeholders including HELCOM and national maritime authorities in elaborating recommendations for joint actions to reduce and prevent atmospheric emissions of the shipping and ensure competitiveness of the Baltic maritime industry.ACLAnd third BSF are involved as partner in Amber Coast Logistic, which have a focus on the transport streams in the Amber Coast region with its natural hinterland, the Baltic States, Northwest Russia, Belarus and the Northern Ukraine have increased substantially in the past years. The uppermost goal of Amber Coast Logistics is to support the development of multimodal logistics centres in the southern and eastern Baltic Sea region and thereby improve the accessibility of remote areas.BSF Strategy of Clean Baltic Sea SippingThe European Climate and Environment Strategy have high ambitions. Our Governments and Parliaments have decided that The Energy Effectiveness shall be improved with 20%, the renewable energy with 50% and the releases of green house gases be reduced with some 40 % before 2020. Our long term aim is also before 2050 to reach a balanced situation where the net releases of green house gases to the atmosphere are almost a hundred percent balanced, down to a zero level.A tuff goal is that as a functional part of this programme all transports shall latest 2030 become totally non dependant of fossil fuels. The HELCOM nations around the Baltic have good possibilities to reach this goal. Many of these countries have access to much energy with very low releases, and also good access to renewable energy resources and energy types, and modern techniques which are part of our societies and our enterprises.The project partners of CLEANSHIP have found it necessary to make all efforts we can to counterbalance the fatal consequences of the continued burning of fossil fuels in all sorts of transport on land, in the air and on water.UN:s Climate Panel, IPCC, published in their report 2007 what they judged would be the frightening result if no measurements were made to effectively decrease the speed of the global warming .Even more frightening is that we today, five years later, still receive reports that the releases of greenhouse gases carry on to escalate. 80% of all energy used comes from fossil sources, and the countries are carrying on constructing infrastructures which are still resulting in a continued climate change, many years ahead.At the same time the reduction of fossil fuel percentage in the transport sector has almost been standing still. 1970, 98% of the transport fuels were fossil. Today 95 % are still fossil. After more than 40 years the proportion of fossil fuels has only become reduced with some 3 %.Transports are therefore a very large part of the climate change question. To solve the problem of reducing the green house gases from transports is therefore one of our largest society challenges today, an entire challenge which until today remains unsolved.The CLEANSHIP partners are since the project start collecting all possible information we can get about cost effectiveness and technical development of fuel and green gas release reduction solutions which can be used by transport vehicles and ships, both on a short and a long time basis.Vision of the futureBut the best comes for last! I would like to inform you that Baltic Sea Forum offered an award for innovation CleanShipping. Our forum would provide a greater incentive to new, innovated ideas and projects for the shipbuilding industry, the Mechanical Engineering and Shipbuilding, maritime business and supporting wealth of ideas of Shipbuilding University.One of the aims of the InnoShip project has been to develop an award specifically designed for the port and shipping sector in the Baltic Sea. This award shall contribute to the three challenges that have been expressed in the macro-regional strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.These challenges refer to- saving the sea,- connecting the region and- increasing prosperityAWARDThe Award for Clean Baltic Shipping and Sustainable Port Operations will be granted by the BSR InnoShip project together with attached Pan-Baltic organisations including BPO during the project. The requirements for a Baltic Sea wide award will be developed and campaign for the new award will be arranged and evaluated. The staff of vessels is regularly trained so that their competence will meet and keep up with the requirements of the award.BSF will organize the awarding process after the project life-time. For this task, BSF has a network with the maritime business and policy, and also a European infrastructure in Brussels to organize this award in the future.The award will contribute to the promotion of the whole Baltic Sea Region as a green region – whereby the award shall focus obviously on the maritime side. However, this award approach tackles not only the aim towards a “green region” but also supports the aim for a better connection since a fruitful cooperation among the maritime regions is an essential precondition for a maritime-focused BSR award. Furthermore, a more sustainable maritime transport systems will contribute to an increasing prosperity in the BSR by providing incentives for environmental-friendlier technologies and procedures which shall lead to ecological and economical benefits.Therefore, a road map will be agreed on as a next step to ensure that all relevant requirements for a Baltic Sea award and all stakeholders will be considered accordingly. Based on this road map, the application, evaluation and awarding phases - including definition of the aim and target groups, the composition of the jury, public relation work etc. - will then be further defined in the coming months in order to present a beneficial, efficient and well accepted BSR award.Achievements of BSR InnoShip so far- The BSR InnoShip project has promoted the Baltic-wide efforts to make the Baltic Sea a model region for clean shipping through arranging partner meetings, workshops and stakeholder seminars. The project also had a joint stand with CleanShip project at the EU SBSR Annual Summit 2011 and 2012.- The project has launched a rapid dissemination serial for clean shipping as a fast-tracked component of a best practice manual that will channel good practices and investment guidance information for decision makers. Stakeholder surveys with segmented stakeholder needs have been prepared and are being implemented by stakeholder segments.- BSR InnoShip partners collaborate in the development and adoption of innovative low emission technical solutions. The information will be used to iteratively create a web-based investment decision support tool as part of the best practice manual.- The first patents have been granted for BSR InnoShip work.- The knowledge base for cost-efficiency analysis has been strengthened by measurements of actual engine emissions equipped with modern emission reduction equipment.- The BSR InnoShip solutions have been promoted through the project events as well as through the political processes of e.g. HELCOM. On a European scale, BSR InnoShip solutions have been promoted to the European Space Agency and European Maritime Safety Agency, and have resulted in concrete joint actions between BSR InnoShip partners and these European agencies.