BSPC Conference JA City Hall Speech25 08 19

The 28th Baltic Sea Parliamentary ConferenceOslo, Norway, 25 – 27 August 2019Clean Oceans & the Future of Working LifeChallenges and VisionsSunday, 25 AugustReception hosted by the Mayor of OsloMr Jorodd Asphjell,President of the BSPC 2018-2019Check against delivery. Only the speech as given has any validity.Mayor,Members of Parliament,Ladies and Gentlemen,Dear all,I would like to start by thanking the City of Oslo and the Mayor for so kindly hosting this reception. This is a perfect chance for us to come together, get to know each other, and to informally share views before the 28th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference officially opens tomorrow.One of the main topics of the conference is clean oceans. The City of Oslo has done a lot to become greener in recent years. Oslo has taken good care of its natural areas, for example by cleaning up the Oslo Fjord and restoring the city’s waterways. This were among the many reasons why Oslo won the European Green Capital Award for 2019.Improving the public transport system by putting on more and better services and cutting the effect on the climate is an important part of Oslo’s work to become a green city. The number of buses and cars running on electricity or biogas is rising.Our trip earlier this afternoon taught us more about Oslo European Green Capital. How the city ferries will become greener in the future. This is one step towards making the Oslo Fjord even cleaner, Oslo even better in doing what is good for the environment- and the people who live here.I hope this will inspire us when we will talk about how we treat the Baltic Sea. Here we have a joint challenge with industrial waste and fertilizer from farming having made the sea more polluted. Warmer waters have led to a rapid rise in algae. We must work together to improve the health of the Baltic Sea.This and other issues, I look forward to be discussing during the conference tomorrow and Tuesday.Tonight I want you all to enjoy the Mayors kind hospitality and this evening together, and I thank you for your attention.