da Cunha speech at 32 BSPC

Speech of Mr Philipp da Cunha, MdLat the 32nd Baltic Sea Parliamentary ConferenceFinal Report of the BSPC Working Group on Climate Change and BiodiversityDate and place: 29 August 2023, German Bundestag, Plenary Hall,Fourth session, 09:00 -10:15,Panel discussion: Strengthening climate resilience and biodiversity.followed by floor contributions and discussion with Ms Ditte Juul Jørgensen (DirectorGeneral for Energy, European Commission), Ms Lis Lindal Jørgensen , PhD,(Institute of Marine Research, Norway) and Prof Dr Daniela Jacob (Director ofClimate Service Center Germany, GERICS).Honourable President,Our most esteemed guests,Dear friends,It is a great honour for me to present the final report of the BSPC Working Group onClimate Change and Biodiversity. This report summarises three years of intensiveinternational inter-parliamentary work on issues. This issues will become the definingchallenge of the 21st century. The well-being of future generations will directly dependon the actions that we take or fail to take now!BSPC Working Groups traditionally deal with matters of common importance andconcern for our Baltic Sea region. Sustainable Tourism, migration and integration,and maritime safety as the beginning of our working groups.I suppose we can all agree that the current working group’s focus on climate changemitigation with biodiversity protection could not have been more timely and pressing.1A fortnight ago, the World Meteorological Organisation has confirmed that July 2023was the hottest month on record. Sea ice was the lowest on record. The global oceansurface temperature was at a record high. But I suppose that we will hear more aboutit from Ms Daniela Jacob Climate from the Service Center Germany.Climate change impacts are already evident in the Baltic Sea region. Accordingto the Climate Change in the Baltic Sea Fact Sheet published by HELCOM and BalticEarth, air temperature increase in the region was larger than the global trend. Watertemperature increase in the Baltic Sea has also been higher than average amongmarginal seas. In addition, ice extent is decreasing and precipitation is rising.A recent study has shown that the Arctic region is warming nearly four times fasterthan the rest of the planet due to the so-called Arctic amplification.I am sure, Ms Lis Lindal Jørgensen from the Institute of Marine Research in Norwaywould explain what this means for marine life better than I ever could.I cannot help and therefore I have to point out that all these changes affect the uniqueand vulnerable ecosystem of the Baltic Sea. They influence the behaviour of speciesand have direct and indirect impacts on human activities and even lives.The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has stressed this year that evidenceof adverse effects of global warming make worldwide climate action more urgentthan ever. Ignoring these obvious challenges and pretending they are not there wouldnot stop wildfires, droughts, storms, floods, and other extreme weather events. Whichare already rising and will be even more frequent in the future. Climate change andbiodiversity loss are global challenges. No single country or region can master theseproblems alone.Therefore international cooperation, information exchange and experience sharingare crucial elements of joint climate action.Cooperation with local stakeholders, open communication and awareness raising areno less important. Because implementation largely depends on local “ownership”.2I am very happy and proud to say that in the past three years, our working group hasbeen active on both of these accounts: fostering experience exchange amongst theBaltic Sea states and looking into local best practices.For me, this is also the time to thank you. I have to thank the former chair CecilieTenfjord-Toftby and I want to thank all members of the working group and theparliaments which hosted working group meetings. And also the stakeholders whoshared their opinions with us. Thank you!In four online and four in-person meetings, we have addressed a wide range oftopics, highlighting the specific challenges and opportunities for climate action in ourregion. The themes we discussed included carbon sequestration, sustainable fisheries,peatland renaturation, sustainable energies, island habitability, and climate change inthe Arctic – just to name a few.We have spoken with various stakeholders from all across the Baltic Sea: officials,international organisations, entrepreneurs, researchers, civil society and – last butcertainly not least – youth representatives. In addition, we have conducted twointergovernmental surveys. One on the current and planned climate and biodiversityprotection legislation in the Baltic Sea states. And one on the impact of the war inUkraine on climate policy goals and their implementation.The final report offers a unique and comprehensive overview of the knowledge,experiences, best practices, as well as existing policies and projects in the region.The working Group’s final recommendations combine and condense this wealth ofknowledge into a set of 25 focussed, far-reaching, but also pragmatic politicalrecommendations. These recommendations were consensually agreed at our finalmeeting in Gdansk in May this year. They were integrated into the resolution which, Ihope, the conference would unanimously adopt later today.Until then, I am looking forward to the insights and discussions from this panel.Thank you for your attention and I give the floor back to the Chair.3