Interview with Valdur Lahtvee, CCB Chairman,
taken by Alexander Fedorov

Q: What was the year 2005 for Coalition Clean Baltic?

A: The last year was basically the year of continuation, stability, and looking for new areas. Important for CCB activities was launch of the new area of EU joint policy making - the EU Maritime Strategy - and also new areas to have cooperation with - the Byelorussia and Ukraine. Last year CCB got again the recognition from the international environmental society in the form of the Baltic Sea Prize that our distinguished Board Member Maria Staniszewska received.

Q.: What are the main environmental problems facing the Baltic Sea presently?

A.: Regretfully, eutrophication and growing oil transportation are still the main issues of our concern. Of course, after the Baltic Sea was declared a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA), and that was an important achievement of environmental organisations, one may expect improvement of the environmental situation of BSA. However, we do not see yet the fruits of that achievement, because the governments are somewhat lazy to implement the measures made available by this new situation.

Signals of the growing risks from oil transportation are there as well. In the Gulf of Finland we know about the recent accident with "Runner 4" that sunk in the very severe ice conditions which means that oil cannot been combated, and there is a severe threat that oil will reach the coast when ice melts.

Also, the oil pollution, that reached the West-North of the Estonian coast, where presumably result of illegal dumping of engine-room oils into the Baltic has killed of some 30 to 40 thousands of seafowl. So, the message from those recent cases is clear - countries around the Baltic Sea have to take further measures in order to protect the Baltic Sea marine environment from growing oil risks.

Q.: What were the main accomplishments that CCB reached in 2005?

A.: On the international level we achieved not much. Still the year can be characterised as the year of environmental awareness raising and education where CCB carried out tens of international and national seminars focusing on priority issues of the BSA. We expect this higher awareness among different stakeholders will yield better policies for protection of the Baltic marine environment in all BS countries and strengthen cooperation for the sake of the Baltic.

Q.: What are the main challenges CCB is facing in 2006?

A.: One of the promising initiatives launched by HELCOM and Sweden is the new Baltic Sea Action Plan. I think this should be the main focus for the coming year for CCB to reach that really tangible measures are to be included in this Plan, in order to turn down negative trends in the Baltic.

Q.: What would you like to wish CCB member organisations for the year 2006?

A.: The main message to my good colleagues would be that we should not give up. In spite of that we have not reached major successes, and still the very same problems are up, we should not give up, and we should just work harder on the international level, national level, and local level, in order to achieve the critical mass of knowledge of the importance of the Baltic Sea and the need for the protective measures. Part of this work is to address politicians at different levels, but also general public and to stress that each individual can make a change for the sustainable use of resources of the Baltic Sea.