Midterm report by Asmund Kristoffersen

Baltic Sea Parliamentary ConferenceSecretariatSeptember 2006The 15th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conferenceon 4th September 2006 in ReykjavikSpeaking Notes(Check against delivery)Algal Blooming – a Baltic Sea Distress SignalMidterm Report from theWorking Group on Eutrophication of the Baltic SeaBy Mr. Asmund Kristoffersen, BSPC WG Chairman, MP of Norway, Chairman of The Nordic Council Environment and Natural Resources Committee.Thank You Mr. Chairman/Madam ChairThe Working Group was established in January 2006 based on the decision of the BSPC Standing Committee.The Working group was given the mandate to raise political and public awareness. Further, the Group should pursue to draft a resolution to be adopted by the BSPC with recommendations directed to the CBSS, the HELCOM and to the governments of the Baltic Sea states. Hence, the ambition of the Working Group is to draft directions to mitigate the current situation.The Working Group has had three meetings and has arranged a conference on 14-15 August 2006 at The Aland Islands. The Mandate of the Group runs for another year, meaning that the Working Group is supposed to submit its final report to the BSPC to be discussed at the 16th Conference in August 2007 in Berlin. The Working Group has planned to discuss and draft the report at two up-coming meetings – probably in the winter and spring of 2007.But already for this BSPC Conference, as a preliminary result, the Working Group has drafted a few sentences as an input to the Reykjavik Resolution.The Working Group was established to focus on the eutrophication problem of the Baltic Sea. This challenge is of great concern for all countries and all parties around the Sea. The ecological balance has been disturbed by the over-enrichment by nutrients. This leads to heavy growth of algae, to a reduced transparency of the water, to the depletion of oxygen. Eventually it leads to the death of fish and other organisms. Eutrophication is hence a great problem for the fisheries and for the recreational opportunities at sea and on the coasts. The resulting “soup of algae” is devastating for many leisure activities such as bathing, fishing, sailing, surfing etc. Some algae even tend to be poisonous for humans, for dogs and other animals.Mr. Chairman/Madam ChairThe Working Group has, among other things, studied the prior and ongoing initiatives by HELCOM, CBSS and EU. HELCOM is in process of preparing a Baltic Sea Action Plan. This initiative is fully acknowledged by the Working Group, and The Group would welcome any invitation to contribute to the remaining HELCOM drafting process. The CBSS and the national governments are now in process of implementing the EU Water Framework Directive and the EU Marine Strategy for the Baltic Sea. Also this work will be of great importance for the ecological status of the Baltic Sea.It is now obvious for the Working Group, that also the EU Common Agricultural Policy has a tremendous influence on the agricultural mode of production, and hence on that sector’s input of Nitrogen and Phosphorous to the Baltic Sea. The national and regional implementation of the overall Common Agricultural Policy is of great importance.Thinking of the role of agriculture in eutrophication, we should all welcome the initiative, in the spring of 2007, to bring together both the agriculture and the environment ministers of all the Baltic Sea countries. I hope everybody present today will work politically at home in order to stimulate to a broad high level participation at this joint ministerial meeting.In addition, I think we should express great expectations for this meeting: That agricultural and environmental ministers sincerely work to develop a regional approach to the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy and the Water Frame Work Directive, and by doing so, to strive for a less eutrophicated Baltic Sea.Hopefully, a report on the results from the ministerial meeting can be given at the BSPC Berlin Conference next autumn.Mr. Chairman/Madam ChairRepresentatives of HELCOM, CBSS and the EU have contributed substantially to the Working Group, and the Working Group has taken part in the CBSS - “Gotland Initiative” last month. Also the future initiatives of the Working Group will be coordinated with the plans and policies of the said institutions. The Working Group should welcome all kind of close interaction between the parliamentary level and the government institutions in the work ahead.The Working Group decided to prepare a booklet on the effects, causes and solutions to the eutrophication problem of the Baltic Sea. The booklet was presented and discussed at the Conference in August. The Booklet is also available here at this conference. The purpose of the publication is to outline the situation and also to serve as a platform for raising public and political awareness of the problem. Please, take a copy with you and bring the discussions into political agenda of your own political party and parliament.The current situation with excessive input of Nitrogen and Phosphorous originates from the scale and character of human activities. All inhabitants around the Baltic Sea contribute to the outlet of Nitrogen and Phosphorous. Some should feel more responsible than others, but we are all part of the problem. In our daily life many of our decisions have an impact – directly or indirectly: When we demand energy from polluting sources, when we choose means of transportation that pollutes, when we are not sincerely interested in building modern waste water treatment plants. And, of course also the kind of demand for food influences the mode of agricultural production and in that way influences the amount of nutrients discharged to the Baltic Sea.Phosphorus is practically only waterborne, whilst for Nitrogen, 3⁄4 is waterborne and 1⁄4 is airborne.The airborne deposition is mainly generated by road transport, energy combustion, and shipping. As for the waterborne deposition, in general agriculture, forestry and scattered dwellings contribute 60% of Nitrogen and 50% of Phosphorous. About 10% of the Nitrogen and 25% of the Phosphorous originate form municipalities and industries. The proportion of natural background losses are 30% for Nitrogen and 25 % for Phosphorous.The proportions of input vary in the different areas of the Baltic Sea as well as from country to country. The Working Group will discuss on relevant and cost-effective political and economical tools to reduce the future input of Nitrogen and Phosphorous.The solution will probably need to be tailor made from place to place and situation to situation. Certainly it will need to involve researchers, authorities, NGOs, and the public in general. The policy will need to be developed in dialogue with agriculture, industries, municipalities and other interested parties..Together with the two Vice-Chairmen of the Working Group, Mr. Reinhardt Dankert and Mr. Indulis Emsis it is a pleasure to inform you that – except from Iceland, which country I believe could be excused in this respect - all the parliaments of the BSPC members have nominated their representative to the Working Group on Eutrophication. This illustrates for us, that a BSPC ad hoc group working on a specific policy issue is attracting broad interest from all parliaments. For the Chairmanship, this is a fortune! And a challenge!Ladies and Gentlemen!On behalf of the Working Group I am looking forward to address you again next year. Hopefully, at that time, we will be in a position to specifically point to directions for a future with a clean and transparent Baltic Sea.