WWF - Baltic Sea newsroom

2013 "Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award" - now open for applications

2012-10-23

Today WWF in cooperation with Baltic Farmers Forum for the Environment (BFFE) and farmers' organisations around the Baltic Sea, open the competition for 2013 "Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award." The purpose of the award is to highlight best practices in "Baltic-friendly" farming and to recognize farmers who are advancing innovative measures to reduce runoff from their farms to the Baltic Sea.

WWF is inviting individual farmers, farmers' organisations and other interested parties to apply to the competition. The competition will select a national winner of the Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award from each country around the Baltic Sea. The winners of each national competition will all receive a certificate and a nominal monetary award of 1000 Euros. The aim of the competition will be to produce 9 'winners', or national nominees, who will demonstrate a range of best practices that will be showcased for the entire region.

The nine national winners will also serve as the nominees from which an international jury will select one main regional winner – to be the 2013 Regional Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year. The Regional winner will receive a certificate and a monetary award of 10,000 Euros.

"This competition aims to inspire farmers to choose farming methods that will reduce the nutrient pollution load in the Baltic Sea, says Ottilia Thoreson, manager of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. With this award, we want to show that there are concrete examples of farmers who are taking the extra steps to go beyond the ordinary, and really contribute valuable solutions."

Farmers are encouraged to self-nominate or be nominated by their country's farmers' organisations to enter the competition. Award criteria and application forms can be downloaded from www.panda.org/baltic_farmer, and the deadline for submitting applications is 30 April 2013.

Last year's winner, Polish Marian Rak, was awarded "for his strong commitment to environmental protection and for demonstrating how a successful progressive conventional farm can simultaneously reduce nutrient losses while enhancing biological and landscape diversity." "I have always been interested in nature conservation. When I realized that my agricultural practices were harmful to the environment I decided to work for the benefit of nature, says Marian Rak. Regional Winner of the 2011 Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award. This award is very important to me as it allows me to convince local farmers that my actions are taken for a reason."

WWF is committed to reducing the threat of eutrophication to the Baltic ecosystem and is therefore working to dramatically reduce the inputs of both phosphorus and nitrogen to the sea with a specific focus on promoting the application of environmentally friendly farming practices in the Baltic catchment area.

Facts on the WWF Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award:
The award was founded in 2009 by WWF, together with Baltic Farmers Forum for the Environment (BFFE) and farmers' organisations around the Baltic Sea and sponsored by Swedbank.

The award aims to raise awareness about all the good initiatives being practiced on farms around the Baltic region to achieve sustainable agriculture. It is also intended to promote cooperation around the region in order to further the application and promotion of good environmental practice in the agriculture sector.
Award criteria and application forms can be downloaded from www.panda.org/baltic_farmer or, and the deadline for submitting applications is 30 April 2013.

Previous recipients of the regional award: Katariina Vapola and Jyrki Ankelo, (2009) from Finland; Håkan and Teri Lee Eriksson (2010) from Sweden, Marian Rak (2011) from Poland.

Meet the winners of the 2009, 2010 and 2011 competition and learn of their innovative agriculture practices – compiled in the booklet: Best Practices of Baltic Friendly Agriculture.

For more information, contact:
Ottilia Thoreson, Manager, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel:+46 (0)8-624 74 15
email: ottilia.thoreson@wwf.se

New WWF report identifies possible futures for the Baltic Sea

2012-08-23

The report, "Counter Currents", presents a range of possible futures for the Baltic Sea leading up to the year 2030. The exploration of the future is told in four story lines, provocatively entitled Clear Waters Ahead, Dangerous Currents, Islands in the Stream, and Shipwrecked. In each scenario, WWF presents a different combination of possible developments, and what sort of impacts those combinations of forces might have on the health of the Baltic Sea and the populations and businesses it supports.

The report outlines and explains in detail how decisions that are made today may impact what will happen in 20 years' time. Important conclusions are that the range of possible futures is immense and that with the right decisions now, there is still time to restore the health of the sea.

"Scenarios can help us understand possible futures, which is what this report aims to do", says Pauli Merriman, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme Director. "By describing what is possible tomorrow, we believe we can better prepare ourselves for potential actions and responses today."

"We hope that this report will spark an ongoing dialogue and serve as a catalyst for future collaboration, commitment and action to work in partnership to create the Baltic we wish to have, today, tomorrow and in 20 years", says Håkan Wirtén, WWF Sweden Secretary General and Chairman of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "Ultimately, the best way to predict the future is to invent it."

The report is the result of a process that was launched in 2011 and that has involved a broad spectrum of stakeholders from both the public and private sectors. A two-day workshop held in March 2012 involved some 50 persons representing a wide range of countries, sectors and institutions from all around the Baltic Sea. The process has been led by Kairos Future and was made possible by financial support from Trygg-Hansa/RSA.

"By engaging with and using scenarios, we can understand possible futures, creating in our mind's eye images of what could happen depending on the course the future takes. The future of the Baltic Sea and all of us who are dependent on it concerns us all" says John Tanzer, WWF Global Marine Programme Director "We believe that this report will inform and improve those decisions today that will impact the future for many years to come."

For more information, please contact:
Pauli Merriman, Programme Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme, +46 8 624 74 19 pauli.merriman@wwf.se

Note to editors:

The report
"Counter Currents: Scenarios for the Baltic Sea towards 2030" was launched today at the Baltic Sea Seminar. The seminar is an annual event during the Baltic Sea Festival in Stockholm, this year celebrating its 10th anniversary.

The Baltic Sea Festival
The Baltic Sea Festival is an international classical music festival - which gathers some of the world's foremost conductors, ensembles and exciting soloists every year. The festival started ten years ago on the initiative of the General Manager of Berwaldhallen Michael Tydén and conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen and Valery Gergiev. This year's festival will take place between August 24 – September 1. For further information: www.balticseafestival.com

For more information about Trygg Hansa/RSA, please visit www.wwfrsapartners.com

For more information about Kairos Future AB, please visit www.kairosfuture.com

Untapped potential in Agri-Environment Measures

2012-03-27

A study commissioned by the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme and presented today at a conference in Jurmala, Latvia, shows that while Agri-Environment Measures in the Baltic Sea region already produce some positive results, much more could be gained by clearer targets, more cooperation between countries in the region, and improved follow-up and evaluation.

The WWF study covers the Rural Development Plans (RDPs) of the 8 EU Member States in the Baltic Sea region and notes that countries seldom use agri-environment measures in a targeted way to achieve agreed objectives.

Also, there are no signs of cooperation between countries in setting targets, devising schemes, or evaluating effects on issues such as water quality, nutrient runoff and eutrophication, one of the most acute threats to the Baltic Sea. One conclusion is that even if the support clearly has positive effects, it clearly could be much more efficient.

The study also refers to assessments made by the OECD and the European Court of Auditors that show similar results.

- All these nations bordering to the Baltic Sea have a common interest in saving it. They should cooperate better on the issue, pooling resources, having the same objectives and be transparent toward NGOs and the civil society at large, says Lennart Gladh, Baltic Specialist at WWF.

Baltic Sea Member States and the EU have together allocated around € 8 billion to Agri-Environment Measures for the period of 2007-2013. The measure covers hundreds of environmental schemes, all unique to the country where they are in use.

- Today the system of Agri-Environment Measures is a maze, a thicket of countless sub-measures all over the place, says Lennart Gladh. There is no possibility to get an overview of what is being done and what the results are.

The WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme is an active agent of change in the conservation and sustainable management of the Baltic Sea. It is comprised of WWF and NGO partners in each of the nine coastal Baltic Sea countries.

For more information, contact Lennart Gladh at the conference in Jurmala, +46 702 210 367

WWF's persistent work to ban phosphates in detergents finally paying off

2011-12-14

WWF has been campaigning for the past five years to ban phosphates in laundry and dishwasher detergents. The European Parliament agreed today to eliminate high-content phosphate detergents from the European market. The new restrictions will apply on 30 June 2013 for laundry and on 1st January 2017 for automatic dishwasher detergents.

WWF welcomes this decision but is critical of the excessive deadlines given to companies to prepare. Phosphates boost not only the cleaning performance of detergents but also contribute to algae growth in our waters, consuming large portions of oxygen and causing severe stress to living water organisms like fish, plants and other aquatic life.

Phosphates from laundry and dishwasher detergents are one of the major causes of eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. It has been estimated that these phosphates may contribute up to 24% of the total inputs of phosphorus to the sea. A ban on phosphorus in detergents has been shown to be the most cost-effective measure to reduce eutrophication, but some governments have up until now been reluctant to introduce a ban.

"We realized at an early stage that governments were in the hands of industry on this issue", says Pauli Merriman, Programme Director of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "So WWF began its campaign by conducting a survey of detergent manufacturers and contacted them directly to find out who was willing to cooperate with us and stop using phosphates voluntarily. Through this approach, WWF was able to secure some early commitments by major manufacturers to commit to phosphate-free detergents, which encouraged other companies to follow suit. And, once WWF had the industry with us, it was much easier to get a legal ban."

While some countries around the Baltic Sea had started to introduce their own national bans, others had no or very limited restrictions on phosphates. "This means one more box we can tick in our work to save the Baltic Sea", says Pauli Merriman. "The ban is very good news for the Baltic Sea and for all of us who love spending time in and on the sea."

Phosphates have traditionally been used as an active agent in laundry and dishwasher detergents, usually in concentrations of 30-40 percent. Phosphates contain phosphorus which is the main contributor to summer algal blooms. Each kilogram of phosphorus that reaches the sea can produce up to 500 kilograms of algae. Phosphates from detergents are estimated to have contributed between 9 and 24 percent (or 3,000-6,000 tonnes per year) of all anthropogenic phosphorus in the Baltic Sea.

Note to Editors:
WWF publication on phosphates in detergents:
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/baltic/publications/?200665/Washing-Dishes-and-Clothes-without-Polluting-Rivers-and-Seas

For more information, please contact:
Pauli Merriman, Programme Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel. +46 8 546 575 19
Email. pauli.merriman@wwf.se

Polish farmer leads the way in protecting the Baltic Sea

2011-10-28

Polish farmer Marian Rak was today presented with the WWF Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award at a ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden. He is awarded for his innovative measures to reduce nutrient losses and enhance biological and landscape biodiversity. The Award was created by WWF and Swedbank to recognize the important work done by farmers who take active steps in the fight against eutrophication.

National competitions have been held in eight countries around the Baltic Sea this year and Marian Rak and his farm was considered the most outstanding among the eight national winners. As the regional winners of the competition, Marian Rak received a 10,000 Euro prize provided by Swedbank, the competition's sponsor, in recognition of his accomplishment.

"I have always been interested in nature conservation. When I realized that my farming was harmful to the environment I decided to work for the benefit of nature," says Marian Rak. "Winning this award is very important to me and will make me go one step further. Finally I feel understood and that the measures I have taken are appreciated."

Marian Rak has developed his farm since 1975 with new and environmentally friendly methods and practices. He plants trees among his fields and constructs ponds and wetlands, both to reduce nutrient run-off and to restore natural habitats to offer sufficient space for wildlife.

Marian Rak's farm is a conventional crop production farm. His main crops are wheat, barley, corn, rapeseed and potatoes, but he also grows an orchard and rears cattle. The measures that are taken on the farm can easily be replicated by other farmers around the Baltic Sea.

"I hope this award will allow me to convince local farmers that my actions are taken for a reason," he says. "For years I have tried to make them do the same. Many of them are reluctant but I guess this award will make them look at me from a different perspective."

The WWF Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award is an annual competition intended to inspire farmers in the entire Baltic Sea region to take an active part in combating eutrophication. It was launched in 2009 by WWF, together with Swedbank, and in cooperation with the Baltic Farmers Forum for the Environment, and farmers' organisations from around the Baltic Sea.

The purpose of the Award is to highlight best practices in "Baltic-friendly" farming and to recognise and promote farmers who are leading in innovative measures to reduce runoff from their farms."We want to engage more in our local environment and realized that the best thing we could do for the Baltic Sea was to support a competition where examples of good farming practices are promoted," says Magnus Hammar, responsible for Forestry and Agriculture at Swedbank.

The Baltic Sea is still one of the most threatened seas in the world. Eutrophication or over-fertilization has been identified as the single most important threat to its health and agricultural runoff is the main cause.
"Farmers have for a long time been seen as the problem," says Pauli Merriman, Director of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "We see them as an important part of the solution and with this award we want to recognize their contribution."

Information for the editor:
The award was presented at a ceremony at the International Baltic Sea Conference "A Greener Agriculture for a Bluer Baltic Sea" held at Sånga-Säby Conference centre in Stockholm, Sweden.

The international jury's motivation for the 2011 Regional Winner of the WWF Baltic Farmer of the Year Award:The international jury presented Marian Rak with the Baltic Sea Famer of the Year award for his strong commitment to environmental protection and for demonstrating how a successful progressive conventional farm can simultaneously reduce nutrient losses while enhancing biological and landscape diversity. Through the implementation of a diverse number of agri-environmental measures, it is the jury's belief that Mr. Rak and his family have gone the extra mile to save the Baltic Sea, and that these measures could easily be replicated and duplicated by other farmers in the Baltic Sea region. Mr. Rak has also proved to be an effective ambassador and advocate for sustainable agricultural practices in Poland and, with the acknowledgement of this award, we hope his influence and example may now extend further across the Baltic Sea region.

For more information, contact:
Pauli Merriman, Director, WWF BAltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel: 08-546 57 519
Email: pauli.merriman@wwf.se

Marie von Zeipel, Senior Press Officer, WWF Sweden
Tel: 08-624 74 03, 070-629 10 77
Email: marie.vonzeipel@wwf.se

Pawel Sredzinski. Press Officer, WWF Poland
Tel: +48-228 498 469, +48 604 631 633
Email: psredzinski@wwf.pl

WWF Ranks Baltic Sea Countries' Results

2011-08-31

WWF, Stockholm, 31 August 2011. WWF today released the Baltic Sea Scorecard 2011, a report that assesses how good the countries around the Baltic Sea are at implementing environmental measures and agreements. The total score for the region was an F, indicating a failure to take the needed actions. Only Sweden and Germany came out slightly better with a C grade. The most problematic areas are the fight against eutrophication and the protection of biodiversity.

The Scorecard, today presented at the annual Baltic Sea Seminar in Stockholm during the Baltic Sea Festival, evaluates the degree to which countries around the Baltic region are honouring their commitments to implement the environmental measures and agreements currently in place which offer the best hope for 'saving' the Baltic Sea. Germany and Sweden were awarded the best score of the nine countries. They both earned 36 points, less than half of the possible total of 79 points.

"This Scorecard is a sobering reminder that words and agreements cannot 'save' the Baltic Sea from its current poor health without the delivery and follow-through of the collective promises made", says Pauli Merriman, Director of WWF Baltic Programme. "Baltic Sea Governments must now demonstrate their leadership and commitments with actions, not just words."

Despite the poor performance highlighted in the report, there are good examples in some areas that demonstrate that progress is possible when countries prioritize action over words. One such example of strong leadership was showcased at the Baltic Sea Seminar when WWF presented Axel Wenblad with its WWF Baltic Sea Leadership Award.

"WWF applauds Axel Wenblad in his role as Special Commissioner for his leadership and contribution to the Swedish inquest on a legislative Marine Spatial Planning Act and Regulation Proposal. The aim of the new act is to achieve a holistic and harmonised system of marine planning and management – something that WWF has promoted for years. Through his efforts, Axel Wenblad has proved a tireless ambassador for advocating the need for transforming the current approach to sea use management – providing concrete advice and guidance on how Marine Spatial Planning can be achieved on a national level. We hope this will ultimately inspire regional action as well, " says Pauli Merriman.

The WWF Baltic Sea Scorecard was earlier produced in 2007, 2008 and 2009. This year's Scorecard measures the nine Baltic Sea countries' environmental performance in five areas: Eutrophication, Hazardous Substances, Biodiversity, Maritime Activities and Integrated Sea Use Management.

Germany and Sweden earned the best grades in this year's scorecard with 36 points out of 79 possible. Germany showed progress in its work to reduce emissions of nutrients and did fairly well in the other areas, too. Sweden demonstrated progressive work especially in maritime activities and integrated sea use management and had higher than average scores in all areas except in the protection of biodiversity, where Sweden's scores were among the lowest.

Finland ranked third with 29 points, mostly because of its good performance in the reduction of hazardous substances and its progressive work in the area of maritime activities. Denmark scored 28 and Estonia 26 points. Lithuania and Poland were just below with 25 points each. The Scorecard shows that both Latvia and Russia will need to speed up their work to protect and restore the ecosystems of the Baltic Sea.

For more information, please contact:
Pauli Merriman, Programme Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Email. Pauli.merriman@wwf.se or Tel. +46 767 886 185

Note to editors:

The report
"WWF Baltic Sea Scorecard 2011" was presented today at the Baltic Sea Seminar. The seminar is an annual event during the Baltic Sea Festival in Stockholm. The full report can be downloaded from http://www.panda.org/baltic.

The Baltic Sea Festival
The intention of the ninth Baltic Sea Festival is to bring together people of the Baltic Sea region with an interest in classical music, environment, and the concept of leadership. The Festival takes place between the 27th of August and the 4th of September in Stockholm. More information on the Festival can be found at: http://www.balticseaseminar.com.

The Baltic Sea Leadership Award
WWF believes that what we need is true leadership in the Baltic Sea, leadership that goes beyond words to deliver real results and examples for others to follow. In 2007, WWF instituted an award, the WWF Baltic Sea Leadership Award. WWF bestows this award when the organisation is inspired and moved by specific acts of true leadership – providing the rest of us with great examples to celebrate and demonstrate as examples for others. This year the Award was presented to Axel Wenblad, former Director General of the Swedish Board of Fisheries and Special Commissioner for the Swedish inquest on a legislative Marine Spatial Planning Act, for his leadership and contribution to the Swedish Marine Spatial Planning Act and Regulation Proposal.

Unprecedented Alliance calls on Poland to lead ambitious reform of Europe's Fisheries Policy

2011-07-29

Gdynia – Baltic businesses and conservationists gathered at a seminar today calling on Poland to lead progress on an ambitious reform of Europe's Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Following the release of the CFP reform proposal by the European Commission on July 13, the meeting stressed the opportunity before the Polish Presidency of the European Union to move Europe away from annual quota negotiations and set European fisheries on a stable track towards rapid recovery.

At the international seminar held under the patronage of the Polish Presidency of the European Union, representatives of industry, governments from Baltic countries, the European Commission and Parliament, the Baltic Sea Regional Advisory Council, as well as scientists, fishermen and NGOs discussed the opportunity for the Baltic Sea to serve as a model for Europe's future fisheries management.

The meeting showcased the positive outcomes of fisheries management in the Baltic region including the Baltic Cod management plan, which has systematically followed scientific advice since entering into force in 2007. Also in 2007, all Baltic EU member states jointly committed themselves to combatting illegal fishing, working towards a culture of compliance and improving control and enforcement. These two examples were highlighted as critical steps leading to the recovery of Baltic Cod. They demonstrate the need of setting clear and binding targets through long-term management plans and the importance of including such plans in the reformed CFP.

Baltic representatives of the 'WWF / Industry Alliance for CFP reform' [1] emphasised the need for the CFP reform to make ecosystem based long-term management plans mandatory for all EU fisheries by 2015, introduce effective regionalisation, maximise the value from catch to consumer and ensure that the CFP principles apply to all fisheries in EU waters and beyond.

WWF and its industry allies believe that this is a once in a decade opportunity to set right what the CFP has failed to deliver to date – sustainable fisheries. With 3 out of 4 assessed fish stocks in Europe overfished, a fleet which continues to be 2 to 3 times too large to be sustainable, and a 30% fall in landings at EU ports between 1998 and 2008, an ambitious CFP reform is needed to ensure fish stocks recover and Europe's fisheries return to prosperity. Without fish there is no future for fishermen, fishing communities or fishing industries.

During the meeting Leszek Dybiec, Adviser to the Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said:

"The Polish presidency strongly supports dialogue between all interested parties on the CFP reform as a vital contribution to the discussion on the package that has just been initiated in July. We are devoted to advance discussions on reform as far as possilbe in the 2nd half of 2011 so as to faciliate the entry into force of the needed renewed CFP by 2013.

WWF's Fisheries Policy Officer, Ewa Milewska said:

"In the trinity of social, economic and environmental sustainability, the environment must take centre stage when reforming the CFP. Without healthy seas to support abundant fish populations there will be no fishing or fishing industry. Only a fundamental reform will guarantee Europe's consumers a rich variety of responsibly and locally caught fish in the future".

Alex Olsen, Espersen, representing AIPCE-CEP said:

"Sustainable fish stocks are crucial for us as processors and traders. Without fish no trade nor production. Therefore, we do have an urgent need for long term management plans for all fish stocks and a more decentralised management systems as tools to bring all European fish stocks to MSY [2] levels before 2015".

Jean Bos, representing Euro-Toques Poland said:

"Euro-Toques' chefs are looking for high quality, sustainably caught, fresh local fish: this is why an ambitious reform of the CFP in terms of long-term fisheries management and effective regionalization is essential to ensure the sustainability of stocks".

Per Baummann, representing EuroCoop and Eurocommerce said:

"It is not possible to negotiate with Nature. Consumers expect that all goods they find in supermarkets are safeguarded by the companies providing them and that the sourcing of these goods should not threaten our common future".

- ends -

For further information:

WWF Poland – Ewa Milewska, Fisheries Officer WWF Poland, +48 504 172 058
WWF European Policy Office – Anouk Delafortrie, Campaign & Communications Manager, European Marine & Fisheries Policy, +32 2 761 0425 / 743 8800 | mob: +32 476 735 602

Editor's notes:

[1] The WWF / Industry Alliance for CFP reform are:

WWF – one of the world's largest and most respected independent conservation organisations, with almost 5 million supporters and a global network active in over 100 countries (wwf.eu/fisheries).
AIPCE-CEP - the EU Fish Processors and Traders Association representing 130.000 employees, 4.000 enterprises and a production value of around €20 billion (aipce-cep.org).
EuroCommerce – representing the retail, wholesale and international trade sectors in Europe, with members in 31 countries (www.eurocommerce.be).
Euro Coop - the European Community of Consumer Co-operatives, with 3200 local and regional co-operatives in 17 European countries representing more than 29 million consumers across Europe (eurocoop.coop).
Euro-Toques International - the European Community of Cooks, a pan-European organisation established in 1986 and representing over 2,000 chefs and cooks, with national branches in 17 European countries (euro-toques.org).

[2] Maximum Sustainable Yield or MSY: the largest yield (or catch) that can be taken from a fish species in order to guarantee its survival.

Baltic Sea Waste Ban Delayed - Urgent Upgrades of Baltic Sea Ports Needed

2011-07-19

WWF is disappointed with the decision taken on Friday by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to delay the ban on the discharge of sewage from ferries and passenger ships in the Baltic Sea – something WWF has been working to secure for many years. Additionally, this ban will prove difficult to come into effect as many Baltic Ports are ill-equipped to receive this ship waste. As a result, the Baltic Sea continues to be a dumping ground for ship waste discharges.

Already last year, the IMO took a provisional decision to ban the discharge of sewage from ferries and passenger ships in the Baltic Sea from 2013 for all new ships and from 2018 for all ships, when sufficient port reception facilities are available. This decision was taken due to environmental concerns as ship-waste discharges include excess nutrients which add to the problem of eutrophication. Unfortunately, the final IMO decision revised the date for new ships to 2016. Furthermore, the new requirements will only go into effect once sufficient port reception facilities are made available. Today only a fraction of the ports around the Baltic Sea can meet the demands of the cruise industry to receive their ship waste discharges.

"Safeguarding the health of the Baltic Sea is a shared responsibility for both the Cruise Industry and for cities and countries via their port authorities. It is therefore disappointing that final IMO decision further delayed the timeline for the ban to come into effect. The Cruise Industry, Baltic Sea countries and their port authorities must show greater responsibility and leadership by making the necessary upgrades to passenger ships as well as port waste management facilities to avoid ships dumping directly out at sea," says Mattias Rust, Conservation Officer, Baltic Sea, WWF Sweden.

The Baltic Sea region is an attractive and fast growing destination for tourists representing roughly three million cruise passengers visiting the region each year. With the cruise season now in full swing for the summer only a fraction of the Baltic ports are equipped to receive the large amounts of ship waste generated by these passenger ships in a satisfactory manner. WWF calls upon the Cruise Industry and the communities hosting them to take their joint responsibility to avoid dumping of sewage directly in the sea.

"By continuing a business-as-usual attitude the Cruise Industry as well as the cities hosting them, are profiting while at the same time contributing to a problem which negatively affects the very environment which is attracting these visitors to the Baltic Sea," says Mattias Rust, Conservation Officer, Baltic Sea, WWF Sweden.

The Baltic port authorities and coastal municipalities are making a good profit from the cruise ships docking at their national ports. The European Cruise Council (ECC) estimates that each average passenger spends just over 100 EURO in every port they visit , generating large revenues to the coastal port communities. By failing to provide adequate port reception facilities communities are contributing to the problem of eutrophication in the Baltic Sea.

'Considering the enormous financial win Baltic Ports receive from ever-increasing passenger ship traffic, they have a duty and responsibility to invest in the needed upgrades to their port reception facilities to receive ship waste so that the IMO ban can come into effect. Without this, the Baltic Sea will continue to be a dumping ground for excess nutrients, bacteria, viruses and other pathogens.' says Mattias Rust, Conservation Officer, Baltic Sea, WWF Sweden.

Note to editors:
•Eutrophication, or nutrient pollution, has been identified as the single biggest threat to the health of the Baltic Sea. The most visible symptom of the excessive inputs of nutrients is the algal blooms that plague large areas of the Baltic Sea during summers causing both biological and economic damage to marine environment and coastal areas. Eutrophication is caused by an overload of nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, into the ecosystem.

•On Friday, July 15, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) formally adopted their preliminary decision taken in October, 2010 to make the dumping of waste water illegal in the Baltic Sea. They changed the date of this however, to apply from 2016 (instead of 2013) for all new ships and from 2018 for all ships, when sufficient port reception facilities are available.

•The Cooperation Platform on Port Reception Facilities for Sewage in the Baltic Sea is a special working group designated to develop criteria for "adequate port reception facilities" and in charge of building " a common understanding on technical and operational aspects of sewage delivery to meet the needs of ports and shipping industry and in dialogue with municipalities and based on it to develop, if possible, a joint guidance or present the views of the involved stakeholders" (HELCOM MARITIME 10/2010).

•The cruise industry is a rapidly growing industry. In the last ten years, the numbers of cruise passengers in the Baltic Sea region has tripled and now amounts to over 3 million. In total, the Baltic Sea receives more than 350 cruise ship visits with over 2,100 port calls each year and the numbers are rapidly growing. The waste-water produced in these vessels is estimated to contain 365 tons of nitrogen and 119 tons of phosphorus . Most of this sewage is today discharged into the Baltic Sea, adding to the eutrophication of the sea.

•In 2009 the European Cruise Council, a cruise-liner organization in Europe, announced its commitment to cease the discharge of waste water in the Baltic Sea if "adequate port reception facilities which operate under a 'no special fee' will be made available. In 2009 ECC members stated that they considered port reception facilities to be adequate where a port can receive all waste water effluent via direct line/shoreside pipe connection at its cruise berth which can then be effectively treated at the municipal waste water treatment plant. Unfortunately, as of 2009, there were only three out of more than 20 cruise ships ports around the Baltic Sea, Helsinki, Stockholm and Visby, that met the ECC's conditions

Contacts:
Mattias Rust, Conservation Officer, Baltic Sea, WWF Sweden: Tel. +46 702 126 314; Email. Mattias.rust@wwf.se

Poland has a chance to clean up the Baltic Sea

2011-07-14

During its EU presidency, Poland should develop an agricultural policy that helps the Baltic Sea.

While the final shape of the EU's future budget and Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will not be decided in the next six months, we – the chief executives of WWF and partner organisations around the Baltic Sea – believe that, during its presidency of the EU's Council of Ministers, Poland has a significant opportunity to develop a better agricultural policy and one that helps the Baltic Sea (special report on the Polish presidency, 23-29 June).

At the height of summer, when people expect to enjoy the pleasures of living close to the sea, the surface waters of the Baltic Sea are covered by algal blooms. On the sea floor, vast dead zones will cover an even larger area than last year. Holiday-makers may not be aware of it, but more than half of the nutrients that cause this devastation are produced by agriculture in the region.

As citizens and taxpayers in countries around the Baltic Sea, each of us is paying a substantial amount to support the agricultural sector. Each taxpayer around the Baltic Sea contributes on average €191 per year to European farm subsidies.

The current European agricultural policy, with direct payments that are primarily distributed according to farm size, promotes a highly intensive and industrialised agriculture sector. The result is increased pollution, loss of biodiversity and each year an aggravated eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. Only a small portion is currently invested in programmes with clear environmental objectives. The proposal that has now been presented by the European Commission would not increase this proportion. The proposed 'greening' of the direct payments is necessary but will not compensate for a reduced rural development fund.

We believe that taxpayers would be willing to support farmers, if they saw that subsidies led to the production of shared benefits, such as a clean environment, beautiful and thriving rural landscapes, and a living Baltic Sea. If we use this enormous amount of money to reach agreed environmental, social and economic objectives, instead of leaving it locked into a system of environmentally harmful subsidies, we could both save the Baltic Sea and make better use of taxpayers' money.

A modern and effective agricultural policy should be built on three basic principles:
Public payments for public goods: Most goods and services that are produced by farmers can be fully paid for by the market. But there are some public benefits that will not be paid for that way, and must therefore be paid for collectively. These benefits include environmental functions such as sustainable water management, the preservation of biodiversity and the maintenance of valued cultural and historic landscapes; as well as some non-environmental benefits, such as public access and enjoyment, rural employment and the socio-economic viability of rural areas.

Payments linked to clear objectives and targets: No subsidies should be provided without a clear definition of what that specific subsidy is intended to provide. There should always be a thorough evaluation of how effectively each subsidy is delivering sustainability objectives.

Fair and transparent distribution of funding: The existing division between agriculture in old and new member states must be abandoned. The distribution of funds should be a question of where benefits are being provided to European society, rather than based on historical entitlements. Farmers who contribute public goods should receive the same relative amount of compensation, only adjusted for differences in purchasing power, regardless of which part of Europe they operate in.

We hope that Poland is willing to work for an agricultural policy that supports farming in the region but also reflects citizens' and tax-payers' legitimate right to get 'value for money' in the form of production of public goods.

The Polish presidency of the Council of Ministers is an opportunity to develop an agricultural policy with public legitimacy. The people of the Baltic Sea region want a clean sea without excess nutrients and algae blooms. Poland has a chance to take a big step in that direction.

Jüri-Ott Salm
CEO, Estonian Fund for Nature
Nerijus Zableckis
CEO, Lithuanian Fund for Nature
Janis Rozitis
CEO, Pasaules Dabas Fonds
Gitte Seeberg
CEO, WWF Denmark
Liisa Rohweder
CEO, WWF Finland
Eberhard Brandes
CEO, WWF Germany
Magdalena Dul-Komosinska
CEO, WWF Poland
Hakan Wirten
CEO, WWF Sweden

First vote of the EU Parliament to restrict phosphates in dishwashing detergents

2011-06-16

Brussels/Belgium – On 15 June the European Parliament's Environment Committee voted with significant majority (51 out of 60), that the restrictions on the use of phosphates in laundry detergents proposed by the EU Commission should be extended to dishwashing detergents as of 2015. WWF welcomes this decision, and calls on the EU Parliament to back the Committee's position in its plenary vote in September.

Sergey Moroz, Freshwater Policy Officer at WWF European Policy Office said:

"Detergents with high concentrations of phosphates, whilst making our dishes shiny, contribute to a massive growth of algae in our rivers, lakes and seas, that cause the rapid dying out of all living water organisms like fish, and other water life. This has transformed vast areas of the Baltic and Black Seas into dead zones."

"Phosphate-free detergents already exist and are widely used in many Member States. They are effective and less polluting. A Pan-European restriction on phosphates in both laundry and dishwashing detergents would not only benefit the environment, but it will create a level-playing field for manufacturers and reduce waste water treatment costs in the order of 10 to 693 million euros per year".

WWF welcomes the MSC certification of the Danish Baltic Cod Fishery

2011-04-11

On Tuesday 5 April it was announced that the Danish Fishermens' Producers' Organization has succeeded in securing MSC certification for the Danish Eastern Baltic Cod fishery. This will be the first EU Cod fishery to be MSC certified and the first Baltic fishery to be MSC certified.

'This is a win-win-win – first of all for the Cod, secondly for the fishing industry, and last but not least, for the consumer. In the last ten years we have seen the Cod fishery in the Baltic Sea on the verge of collapse as a victim of poor management, overcapacity and illegal fishing. WWF and others have been working for years, together with fisherman and policy makers, to address the needed changes which have laid the groundwork for this dramatic achievement – the first EU Cod fishery to be MSC certified. WWF congratulates the Danish Fishermens' Producers' Association on this achievement.' Says, Ewa Milewska, Fisheries Consultant with WWF Poland.

The Baltic Cod management plan entered into force in 2007 and, for the first time, Ministers around the Baltic followed the ICES advice regarding the allowable annual catch for Baltic Cod. In parallel, also in 2007, all the Baltic EU member states jointly committed themselves to combatting illegal fishing, working towards a culture of compliance and improving control and enforcement.

'As WWF has advocated for years, the traceability of fish from boat to plate, under the MSC certification process, provides assurance for fishermen and consumers that the fish on the market is legal and sustainable. WWF hopes that this is the first stock of many in the Baltic to receive MSC certification.' Says Ottilia Thoreson, Programme Manager, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme.

Note to editors:
The MSC's fishery certification program and seafood ecolabel recognise and reward sustainable fishing. MSC is a global organisation working with fisheries, seafood companies, scientists, conservation groups and the public to promote the best environmental choice in seafood.

Press release from MSC on the Baltic Cod fishery:
http://www.msc.org/newsroom/news/stocks-are-up-first-baltic-cod-fishery-achieves-msc-certification

For more information, please contact:
Ewa Milewska, Fisheries Consultant with WWF Poland: Tel. +48 504 172 058 Email. e.milewska@gcom.pl
Ottilia Thoreson, Programme Manager, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme: Tel. +46 732 745 867 Email. ottilia.thoreson@wwf.se

Ministers Failing to Prioritize the Baltic Sea

2011-03-08

When Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) holds its annual meeting today, it will include a 'high-level' segment, to address the challenges and progress towards achieving the targets of the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP). This 'high-level' segment unfortunately will not include Ministers, sends a distressing signal that countries are not giving the BSAP the priority that it needs.

'While we have heard Environmental Ministers around the Baltic Sea talk about the importance of the BSAP, their actions speak louder. Given the lack of significant progress in implementing the needed actions in the BSAP it is clear that strong leadership is needed. We therefore urge Ministers to give the BSAP the high-level focus it needs', says Håkan Wirtén, CEO of WWF Sweden and Chair of the WWF Baltic Sea Ecoregion Programme.

Today's meeting provides an opportunity for countries to report on the progress and challenges in the implementation of the BSAP, which was launched four years ago with much fanfare as 'an ambitious programme to restore the good ecological status of the Baltic marine environment by 2021'.

'While it is encouraging to see that some important areas of progress are being achieved such as in building and upgrading waste water treatment plants and in the ongoing designation of the Baltic Sea as a Special Area for sewage under the MARPOL Convention, after nearly four years since the signing of the BSAP, overall progress is much too slow and concrete actions are still too few to reach the ambitious goals of the BSAP', says Håkan Wirtén.

WWF and CCB will make a joint statement at the meeting urging countries to go beyond their rhetoric by delivering the actions needed to deliver real progress.

'HELCOM has outlined where actions are needed and financial institutions have made funding available. Now, all that is missing is the political will of countries to take the initiative and implement the concrete actions necessary to reduce nutrient input from agriculture, to control the spread of hazardous substances, to reduce the impacts from fisheries and to protect biodiversity. Words are no longer sufficient - WWF urges Baltic Sea Governments to
act, and act fast, to protect the Baltic Sea Marine Environment,' says Pauli Merriman, Director of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme.

For more information please contact:

Håkan Wirtén, CEO, WWF Sweden
Email. hakan.wirten@wwf.se or Tel. +46 8 624 74 02

Pauli Merriman, Programme Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Email. Pauli.merriman@wwf.se or Tel. +46 767 886 185

Link to WWF and CCB Joint Statement: www.panda.org/baltic

Notes to the editors:

HELCOM, the intergovernmental organisation of all the nine Baltic Sea countries and the EU, working for the protection of the Baltic marine environment. HELCOM launched the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) 2007 to radically reduce pollution to the Baltic Sea and restore its good ecological status by 2021.

WWF participated as an official observer to the annual meeting and 'high-level' segment today, and in a statement made on behalf of the environmental NGOS, stated its concern on the lack of strong leadership and actions which are needed to achieve its objectives.

WWF and Coalition Clean Baltic Joint Statement on the HELCOM is available on www.panda.org/baltic For detail on the background , goals and objectives of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan please visit: http://www.helcom.fi/BSAP/en_GB/intro/

2011 "Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award" now open for applications

2011-02-28

Today WWF and Swedbank, together with the Baltic Farmers Forum for the Environment (BFFE) and farmers' organisations around the Baltic Sea, open the competition for this year's "Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award". The purpose of the award is to highlight best practices in "Baltic-friendly" farming and to recognize farmers who are leading in innovative measures to reduce runoff from their farms. There will be a monetary prize awarded to the regional winner of 10,000 Euros. The winners of each national competition will receive a certificate, a paid trip to the conference, and a nominal monetary prize of 1,000 Euros.

For the third year running, WWF is inviting individual farmers, farmers' organisations and other interested parties to apply to the annual competition. Farmers are encouraged to self-nominate or be nominated by their country's farmers' organisations to enter the competition. Award criteria and application forms can be downloaded from www.panda.org/baltic, and the deadline for submitting applications is 30 September 2011.

The competition will select one main regional winner from a pool of nine national nominees, representing each Baltic Sea country. A conference will be held at the end of the competition inviting the nine winning nominee farmers from each country to discuss ways in which to advance the application of environmentally friendly farming around the region.

"When we look at farming and the Baltic Sea, the focus is often on the problem of eutrophication", says Pauli Merriman, Director of WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. With this award, we want to show that there are concrete examples of farmers who are taking the extra steps to go beyond the ordinary, and really contribute valuable solutions."

"The competition in previous years has been a huge success and drawn attention to the important issue of eutrophication and the good examples of things that can be done. Farmers have an important role to play and they also represent a very important part of our customers. Swedbank is committed to the principle of corporate responsibility and creating a more sustainable Baltic Sea region" says Magnus Hammar at Swedbank.

The winners of each national contest and the winner of the regional award will be announced in the autumn of this year. WWF will publish the winning contributions, highlighting the best practices provided by these farmers as well as the importance of sustainable agriculture to reduce the threat of eutrophication to the Baltic Sea.

Last year's winners, Swedish couple Håkan and Teri Lee Eriksson, were awarded "for their dedicated commitment to showing how a modern farm can apply environmental measures to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses. It was the jury's belief that the Erikssons have really gone the extra mile to save the Baltic Sea, and that the measures they have taken can be replicated by many other similar farms in the Baltic Sea region."

WWF is committed to reducing the threat of eutrophication to the Baltic ecosystem and is therefore working to dramatically reduce the inputs of both phosphorus and nitrogen to the sea with a specific focus on promoting the application of environmentally friendly farming practices in the Baltic catchment area.

For more information, please contact:

Pauli Merriman, Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel. +46 8 624 74 19

Magnus Hammar, Responsible for segment Forestry and Agriculture, Swedbank
Tel. +46 8 58 59 35 74

Swedish couple wins the WWF Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award 2010

2010-11-14

Håkan and Teri Lee Eriksson from Sweden today received the WWF Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award. This annual competition aims to inspire farmers in the entire Baltic Sea region to take an active part in combating eutrophication. It was launched by WWF, together with Swedbank, and in cooperation with the Baltic Farmers Forum for the Environment, and farmers' organisations from around the Baltic Sea.

The Swedish couple, chosen by an international jury, was among the winners of national contests in seven Baltic Sea countries. As the regional winners of the competition, they received a 10 000 euro prize provided by Swedbank in recognition of their accomplishment.

"We are thrilled and honoured to have won this year's Baltic Sea Farmer Award. The award is an inspiration for everyone who works on the farm. We are convinced that there are many pro-environmental improvements that can easily be incorporated in conventional farming practices," says Håkan and Teri Lee Eriksson of the Wiggeby farm. "As the winners of this award we hope that others will be inspired to think in a broader perspective resulting in even greater involvement in improving conditions for the environment within the field of agriculture,"

The Baltic Sea is still one of the most threatened seas in the world. Eutrophication or over-fertilization has been identified as the single most important threat to its health and agricultural runoff is the main cause.

"A major solution to this problem is to promote more sustainable farming and land management practices", says Mats Abrahamsson, Director of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "With this award, we want to inspire EU and its Member States that sustainable farming is possible and advantageous for farmers. It should be at the heart of the future Common Agriculture Policy,".

The purpose of the Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award is to highlight best practices in "Baltic-friendly" farming and to recognise and promote farmers who are leading in innovative measures to reduce runoff from their farms.

The award ceremony, hosted by WWF, took place at the International Baltic Sea Conference "A greener agriculture for a bluer Baltic Sea" in Helsinki, Finland.

The jury awarded the couple for "their dedicated commitment to showing how a modern farm can apply environmental measures to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses. By using modern and innovative techniques that are being systematically documented, nutrient losses have been significantly reduced. It is the jury's belief that the Erikssons have really gone the extra mile to save the Baltic Sea, and that the measures they have taken can be replicated by many other similar farms in the Baltic Sea region."

At the Wiggeby farm, the Erikssons practice conventional crop farming and by applying modern and traditional techniques they have improved the environmental measures to reduce agricultural runoff. The farm was an early user of an N sensor for spreading fertilisers and manure in order to adjust the dosage to yearly conditions, needs and the changing status of different parts of the field.

Cultivation of grassland in a crop rotation system and the creation of a pond for phosphorous sedimentation have also helped to reduce the risks of nutrient leakage from the farm. The Wiggeby farm has documented every measure applied at the farm since the 1990s and has accumulated a large database which serves as an effective tool for analysis and monitoring.

"The Baltic Sea is one of our most prioritised environmental projects. It is positive that the Baltic Sea Farmer of the Year Award is so widely appreciated. I hope we can continue working with this competition to create a more sustainable Baltic Sea region" says Claes Fagerström, Group Sponsorship Manager at Swedbank.

For more information please contact:
Mats Abrahamsson, Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel. +46 705 821 499

Lennart Gladh, Eutrophication Expert, WWF Sweden
Tel. +46 702 21 0367

WWF Reaction to the Commission's proposal to ban phosphates in laundry detergents

2010-11-04

Brussels/Belgium – Today the European Commission issued a proposal to ban the use of phosphates in detergents but limited its scope to laundry detergents only, meaning that dishwashing products will not be affected by the ban at this stage. WWF criticises this decision, since phosphates boost not only the cleaning performance of laundry and dishwasher detergents but also algae growth in our rivers, lakes and seas, threatening aquatic and plant life.

WWF calls on the EU parliament and Member States to support a ban for phosphate-detergents for ALL uses in both laundry and dishwasher detergents.

Sergey Moroz, Freshwater Policy Officer at WWF European Policy Office said:

"Detergents with high concentrations of phosphates may make our glasses and dishes shiny and clean, but once they reach our rivers, lakes and seas they produce a massive growth of algae that consume large portions of available oxygen, causing the rapid dying out of all living water organisms like fish, plants and other water life. Polluting substances like phosphates are transforming vast areas of the Baltic and Black Seas into dead zones."

"Alternatives to phosphates which are effective at cleaning and pollute less already exist, such as zeolite. It is disappointing that the EU is still reluctant to get rid of phosphates in dishwasher detergents that several USA states and also some EU countries like Sweden have already banned. Sweden has also called on Baltic countries to ban all phosphate-based detergents in order to save their sea from massive algae blooms. It's high time the EU starts addressing the problem of phosphates in detergents as well as in other areas like waste water treatment and fertilisers used in agriculture that are also affecting our environment."

For further information:
Stefania Campogianni, Press Officer, WWF European Policy Office
Tel: +32 2 743 88 15
Mobile: +32 499 539 736
E-mail: scampogianni@wwfepo.org

Sergey Moroz, Freshwater Policy Officer, WWF European Policy Office
Tel: +32 2 740 09 23
E-mail: smoroz@wwfepo.org

Notes for the editor:
- According to a study published by the European Commission in 2007, detergents used every year in the 25 EU Member State contains approximately 110,000 tonnes of phosphorus. One kilogram of phosphorus that reaches the river and the sea can produce up to 500 kg of algae.

- Sweden banned the use of phosphorous in laundry detergents in 2008 and in April 2010 extended the ban also to dishwasher detergents (entering into force in January 2011).

- Italy, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, and the Netherlands have already adopted a legislation to reduce or ban phosphates in laundry detergents.

- Austria, Ireland, Denmark, and Finland rely on voluntary commitments by detergents formulators to phase-out phosphate-based detergents.

Ship sewage banned in Baltic Sea

2010-10-01

Ship sewage will no longer be allowed to foul the Baltic Sea.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) on Friday agreed to ban the discharge of sewage from passenger ships and ferries in the Baltic Sea.

The decision comes after a three year WWF campaign to stop the dumping of waste water in the Baltic Sea.

WWF has since 2007 worked hard to convince governments and the shipping industry to ban the discharge of waste water straight into the Baltic Sea. The organization had already succeeded in receiving voluntary commitments from many passenger ferry lines and cruise companies that traffic the Baltic Sea.

Friday's decision will make the dumping of waste water illegal starting in 2013 for all new ships, and from 2018 for all ships, when sufficient port reception facilities are available. A special IMO working group will develop criteria for "adequate port reception facilities".

"This is an important milestone for the Baltic Sea", says Mattias Rust, WWF's representative at the IMO meeting. "The responsibility now lies heavy on the Baltic Sea countries and their ports to provide the necessary port facilities."

Last week, the worlds shipping nations met at the IMO in London to discuss environmental issues. In a joint submission from all the Baltic Sea states, the IMO was asked to "ban discharge of sewage from passenger ships and ferries in the Baltic Sea unless it has been sufficiently treated to remove nutrients or delivered to port reception facilities". The resolution was finally passed today.

In total, the Baltic Sea receives more than 350 cruise ship visits with over 2,100 port calls each year and the numbers are rapidly growing. The waste-water produced in these vessels is estimated to contain 113 tons of nitrogen and 38 tons of phosphorus, Most of this sewage is today discharged into the Baltic Sea, adding to the eutrophication of the sea. In addition to excess nutrients, the waste water also contains bacteria, viruses and other pathogens, as well as heavy metals.

Eutrophication is considered the main environmental problem of the Baltic Sea, causing both biological and economic damage to marine environment and coastal areas. It is caused by an overload of nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, into the ecosystem. Eutrophication causes many problems, including unusually strong and frequent summertime algae blooms, including blooms of toxic cyanobacteria.

IMO bans ships' sewage in the Baltic Sea!

2010-10-01

At a last minute session, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) today agreed to ban the discharge of sewage from passenger ships and ferries in the Baltic Sea. The decision comes after a three years WWF campaign to stop the dumping of waste water in the Baltic Sea.

WWF has since 2007 worked hard to convince governments and the shipping industry to ban the discharge of waste water straight into the Baltic Sea. The organization had already succeeded in receiving voluntary commitments from many passenger ferry lines and cruise companies that traffic the Baltic Sea.

Today's decision will make the dumping of waste water illegal from 2013 for all new ships and from 2018 for all ships, when sufficient port reception facilities are available. A special working group will develop criteria for "adequate port reception facilities".

"This is an important milestone for the Baltic Sea", says Mattias Rust, WWF's representative at the IMO meeting. "The responsibility now lies heavy on the Baltic Sea countries and their ports to provide the necessary port facilities."

This week, the worlds shipping nations met at the IMO in London to discuss environmental issues. In a joint submission from all the Baltic Sea states, the IMO was asked to "ban discharge of sewage from passenger ships and ferries in the Baltic Sea unless it has been sufficiently treated to remove nutrients or delivered to port reception facilities". The resolution was finally passed today.

In total, the Baltic Sea receives more than 350 cruise ship visits with over 2,100 port calls each year and the numbers are rapidly growing. The waste-water produced in these vessels is estimated to contain 113 tons of nitrogen and 38 tons of phosphorus, Most of this sewage is today discharged into the Baltic Sea, adding to the eutrophication of the sea. In addition to excess nutrients, the waste water also contains bacteria, viruses and other pathogens, as well as heavy metals.

Eutrophication is considered the main environmental problem of the Baltic Sea, causing both biological and economic damage to marine environment and coastal areas. It is caused by an overload of nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, into the ecosystem. Eutrophication causes many problems, including unusually strong and frequent summertime algae blooms, including blooms of toxic cyanobacteria.

For more information, please contact:
Matthias Rust, WWF's representative to the IMO meeting, +46 702 126 314

Cruise ships still dump their sewage in the Baltic Sea

2010-09-22

Despite promises to use port facilities to offload waste water, more than half of the cruise ships in the Baltic Sea still dump their toilet water straight out in the sea, WWF reveals today. WWF demands a ban on waste water dumping as the issue will be discussed at an international meeting next week.

In May 2009, ECC, an organization representing the major cruise companies operating in Europe, committed to stop dumping their waste water in the Baltic Sea "when certain conditions were met". These conditions included "adequate port reception facilities which operate under a 'no special fee' agreement". Today, at least two major ports around the Baltic Sea, Stockholm and Helsinki, meet these conditions. WWF can today reveal that not even in Stockholm do most cruise ships use these port facilities.

As the cruise season ended last week, Stockholm had in all 240 ship visits in 2010. Of these 240, only 115 used existing port facilities and even some of these 115 only offloaded small amounts, suggesting that most of the sewage, even from these, has been dumped at sea. At the same time, the ports of St Petersburn, Tallin, Riga, Klaipeda, Gdansk, Rostock and Copenhagen still lack port facilities that meet the demand of the cruise industry.

"The problem is that there are no laws regulating this", says Mattias Rust of WWF. "Anything like this would have been absolutely unthinkable on land, but just because it is out of sight for most of us, we still let it happen".

A proposal to ban the discharge of passenger ships was identified as a priority action in the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP), agreed by all Baltic Sea countries in 2007. Next week, the worlds shipping nations meet at the IMO* in London to discuss environmental issues. In a joint submission from all the Baltic Sea states, the IMO will be asked to "ban discharge of sewage from passenger ships and ferries in the Baltic Sea unless it has been sufficiently treated to remove nutrients or delivered to port reception facilities".

The cruise industry is a rapidly growing industry. In the last ten years, the numbers of cruise passengers in the Baltic Sea region has tripled and now amounts to over 3 million. In Stockholm only, 415,000 cruise passengers spent on average 130 euro each, providing the city with an income of 54 million euro.

In total, the Baltic Sea receives more than 350 cruise ship visits with over 2,100 port calls each year. The waste-water produced in these vessels is estimated to contain 113 tons of nitrogen and 38 tons of phosphorus, substances that add to eutrophication of the sea. Most of this sewage is still discharged into the Baltic Sea. In addition to excess nutrients, the waste water also contains bacteria, viruses and other pathogens, as well as heavy metals.

"The cruise companies as well as the cities that receive the ships are making millions on this industry", says Mattias Rust. "They both share the responsibility to solve the waste water problem."

* Facts about IMO and MARPOL

The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the United Nations International Maritime Organization (IMO) holds its 61st meeting in London 27 September to 1 October.
The IMO sets international maritime vessel safety and marine pollution standards under the MARPOL 73/78 convention. The revised annex IV of MARPOL 73/78 concerning rules on sewage treatment for ships entered into force on 1 August 2005. The Annex IV is one of the four voluntary annexes of the MARPOL convention's six annexes. The annex sets out how sewage should be treated or held aboard ships and how the discharge into the sea may be allowed. It also requires the parties to the convention to provide adequate sewage reception facilities. The annex only applies to ships engaged in international voyages, of 400 gross tonnages and above and ships of less than 400 tonnages that are certified to carry more than 15 persons. The Member States are responsible for the vessel's compliance with MARPOL, when flagged under their respective nationalities.

The revised Annex IV requires ships to be equipped with either a sewage treatment plant, a sewage comminuting ("reducing to minute particles") and disinfecting system, or a sewage holding tank. Discharge of sewage is allowed when the ship is discharging comminuted and disinfected sewage, using an approved system, at a distance of more than three nautical miles from the nearest coast line, or sewage which is not disinfected at a distance of more than twelve nautical miles from the nearest land. Ships shall, when discharging sewage that has been stored in holding tanks or originating from spaces containing living animals, always do so at a moderate rate when the ship is en route and proceeding in not less than four knots. Furthermore, the effluent shall not produce visible floating solids nor cause discoloration of the surrounding water.

The discharge of sewage is always permitted if is for the purpose of securing the safety of the ship and those on board, saving life at sea or if the discharge is a result of damage to the ship or its equipment and if all reasonable precautions have been taken before and after to prevent or minimize the discharge.

The revised Annex IV requires the government of each party to the convention to ensure the provision of reception facilities for sewage at ports and terminals, adequate to meet the needs of the ships using them and without causing delay to the ships.

As mentioned above, Annex IV is only binding to the countries signing on to this specific annex, but all the countries around the Baltic Sea are parties both to the MARPOL 73/78 convention and to Annex IV.

In addition, the IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has adopted recommendations and guidelines related to the MARPOL 73/78 and the revised Annex IV. These include standards for the rate of discharge of untreated sewage from ships and for onboard treatment facilities.

A Special Area is today defined as "a sea area where for recognised technical reasons in relation to its oceanographical and ecological conditions and to the particular character of its traffic, the adoption of special mandatory methods for the prevention of sea pollution by oil, noxious liquid substances or garbage, as applicable, is required." Under the Convention, these Special Areas are provided with a higher level of protection than other areas of the sea.

The Baltic Sea countries are now proposing to amend MARPOL Annex IV to include the possibility to establish "special areas" for the prevention of pollution from sewage of passenger ships and to designate the Baltic Sea as such a Special Area.

Uncontrolled growth threatens the Baltic Sea

2010-08-24

The competition for space and resources in the Baltic Sea is rapidly growing. Many sectors are expected to grow with several hundred percent until the year 2030. A WWF report that was presented today, "Future trends in the Baltic Sea", shows for the first time ever a projection of trends and plans of all the sectors using the Baltic Sea over the next 20 years.

One of the most striking examples of this projected growth is shown by the shipping sector. The Baltic Sea is already one of the most densely trafficked sea regions in the world. Over the next 20 years, shipping is expected to double in terms of the number of ships.

The wind energy sector is also expecting enormous growth, increasing today's capacity by more than 6,000%. Other human uses of the sea expecting growth include tourism and recreation, port capacity, electric cables and pipelines, as well as physical exploitation of the coastline and sea bottom.

"The situation we have today is the result of many years of bad planning and lack of leadership," says Ottilia Thoreson, Manager of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "If we continue in this way, it will lead to even more competition and conflicts between sectors, resulting in even more pressure on the marine resources the Baltic Sea provides us with."

Today, none of the open basins in the Baltic Sea have a "good ecosystem health status" according to a recent study by Helcom, the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission. Only ten out of 24 ecosystem services are operating properly.

"As long as the use of the sea is managed sector by sector and country by country, it will be impossible to take the hard decisions that are necessary", says Ottilia Thoreson. "We believe that this is one of the reasons why it has been so difficult to save the Baltic Sea".

There is also a large economic benefit to improved sea use planning. A report that was recently released by the European Commission concludes that better maritime planning in European waters could generate as much as 1.3 billion euro in 2020 and up to 1.8 billion in 2030.

In the "Future Trends" report, WWF concludes that the only way to avoid chaos in the Baltic Sea, is a more integrated approach to sea use management and suggests some concrete steps that should be taken (see below).

For more information, please contact:
Ottilia Thoreson, Programme Manager, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel: +46 (0)8- 624 74 15
Email: ottilia.thoreson@wwf.se

Note to editors:

The Baltic Sea Festival
The intention of the eighth Baltic Sea Festival is to bring together people of the Baltic Sea region with an interest in classical music, environment, and the concept of leadership. The Festival takes place between the 23th of August and the 2nd of September in Stockholm. More information on the Festival can be found at: http://www.sr.se/berwaldhallen.

The Baltic Sea Leadership Award
WWF believes that what we need is true leadership in the Baltic Sea, leadership that goes beyond words to deliver real results and examples for other to follow. In 2007, WWF instituted an award, the WWF Baltic Sea Leadership Award. WWF bestows this award when the organisation is inspired and moved by specific acts of true leadership – providing the rest of us with great examples to celebrate and demonstrate as examples for others. This year the Award was presented to Poul Degnbol, Head of the Advisory Programme at ICES (the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) and former Scientific Advisor at the European Commission, with the following motivation:

"WWF applauds Poul Degnbol for taking the initiative during his five years within the European Commission to champion the need for, and benefits of, sustainability and integrating the ecosystem based approach to fisheries management within the Common Fisheries Policy which has made a real difference for the Baltic Sea. WWF also recognizes his leadership to advocate for enhanced stakeholder engagement and a more transparent regional decision-making approach to fisheries management based on scientific advice."

WWF's recommendations for the way forward
WWF believes that we have to move towards a more integrated approach to sea use management. As the next steps, WWF recommends:

•That the highest level of government take the lead in developing an integrated sea use management. As long as the process continues to be conducted sector by sector, ministry by ministry, true integration can never happen.

•That heads of governments take part in defining common integrated and ecosystem based goals for the management of the Baltic Sea. This includes setting realistic goals for all sectors that together fits within the capacity boundaries of the ecosystem.

•That governments take action to clearly define the ecosystem capacity boundaries. These can be based on HELCOM's BSAP and the Initial Holistic Assessment of the ecosystem health of the Baltic Sea, as well as the EU definition of Good Environmental Status.

•That governments take part in creating national, regional and international governance structures that can ensure that maritime policies and decisions are integrated and synergistic. This includes:

- That the Baltic Sea states work to create a regional platform to facilitate and ensure cooperation and integration of sea use planning and management between national bodies.

- That every Baltic Sea state appoint one national body to have the overarching responsibility and mandate to coordinate and balance between different interests, policies and jurisdictional arrangements for the entire sea, its resources and the activities occurring in the sea.

- That every Baltic Sea state adopt legislation that ensures that ISUM processes are organised across sectoral, administrative and national levels, cover all sea areas, and include all stakeholders at all relevant stages.

Baltic Sea states behind schedule on environment protection

2010-05-18

WWF, Moscow 19 May 2010: Implementation of the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) is lagging far behind the agreed timetable in many important areas. Protection of the Baltic Sea marine environment is still lacking concrete decisive actions. These are two main conclusion of a report produced for WWF before the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting in Moscow 20 May.

The BSAP was signed by environment ministers in Krakow in 2007 and the purpose of the Ministerial Meeting in Moscow is to follow up on this plan. As the WWF report now reveals, the plan has lost momentum and lacks progress in many important areas:

Eutrophication is seen as the biggest threat to the Baltic Sea environment, with run-off from agriculture being the single biggest source of pollutants. Still, many countries lag behind on measures to reduce farm run-off. One example is the establishment of a list of hot spots concerning animal farms for extensive rearing of cattle, poultry and pigs that should have been done one year ago. In most countries this action is delayed and only Finland reports to have reviewed them. Measures aimed at substitution of phosphates in laundry detergents is another example of a very simple but important commitment, which has not yet been met by all countries. Today, only Sweden and Germany have banned phosphorus in laundry detergents and Sweden also in dishwasher detergents.

With regards to hazardous substances there is still a lack of solid baseline data about levels and sources of priority substances.

On maritime safety, implementation of actions to reduce risks from ships' ballast water in the Baltic Sea, as well as baseline surveys of prevailing environmental conditions in major ports are late. Also, much more is needed in terms of upgrading of the port facilities to receive sewage and ship generated wastes.

Among measures to protect biodiversity, management plans for nature protection areas as well as several fish species have reportedly not been developed. Even if more than 10 percent of the Baltic Sea area is now protected, these areas do not live up to the agreed requirements on being representative and providing enough protection for threatened species.

The WWF report also highlights the late arrival of data and in many cases the complete lack of adequate information. According to the report, the information available is not of high enough quality to allow stakeholders to assess whether implementation is making progress as agreed.

"We believe that the ministers had good ambitions when they signed the BSAP in 2007" says Mats Abrahamsson, Director of the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme. "What happened is that they were not able to convince their governments when they got back home. In many cases the ambitions have been compromised by other interests.

"The only thing that can save the Baltic Sea is an expression of leadership from the highest level of government" says Mats Abrahamsson. "We don't need more commitments – we need action!"

For more information, please contact the following who will be available for questions before and at the Helcom Ministerial Meeting press conference, Thursday 20 May at 13.15, Hotel Baltschug Kempinski Moscow:

Mats Abrahamsson, Director, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel: +46 705 821 499
Email: mats.abrahamsson@wwf.se

Ottilia Thoreson, Programme Manager, WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme
Tel: +46 732 745 867
Email: ottilia.thoreson@wwf.se

Dr. Sampsa Vilhunen, Head of Marine Programme, WWF Finland
Tel. +358 40 550 3854
Email. sampsa.vilhunen@wwf.fi

Anne Brax, Communications Director, WWF Finland
Tel. + 358 503 671 888
Email: anne.brax@wwf.fi

Note to editors:

HELCOM, the intergovernmental organisation of all the nine Baltic Sea countries and the EU, working for the protection of the Baltic marine environment, will hold the Meeting of the Ministers of the Environment of its Member States on 20 May 2010 in Moscow. The Ministers will discuss the current state of the Baltic marine environment and the implementation of a strategic Baltic Sea Action Plan to radically reduce pollution to the sea and restore its good ecological status by 2021. The HELCOM Member States are to present their National Implementation Programmes to achieve the objectives of the Baltic Sea Action Plan.

The Helcom Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) was adopted in Krakow, Poland in November 2007 by Ministers of the Environment and Senior Government Officials from the Helcom Member States and the European Community. Its original intention was to "drastically reduce pollution to the Baltic Sea and restore its good ecological status by 2021".

The report "Analysis of the status of implementation of the Baltic Sea Action Plan" was prepared for WWF by Gaia Consulting OY. The full report can be downloaded from the link on the right hand side on this page. NB! The report was completed on 14 May and several countries have made last minute submissions or changes to earlier submissions. For the latest information on the National Implementation Plans, please contact the names listed in the press release above.

The WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme is an influential force in the efforts to conserve and restore the Baltic Sea. The programme combines scientific knowledge and expertise with creative innovation and political determination to save the unique life and beauty of the Baltic Sea. A team of highly experienced international experts works to forge unprecedented regional partnerships to save the Baltic Sea.

The WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme seeks cooperation with all relevant parts of society and engages individuals, NGOs, corporations and governments – the people and organisations who, together, can make a difference. The program represents the largest membership network in the region.

The following organizations are lead partners within the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme: WWF Finland, WWF Germany, WWF Poland, WWF Sweden, Baltic Fund for Nature (Russia), Estonian Fund for Nature, Lithuanian Fund for Nature and Pasaules Dabas Fonds (Latvia).