On 29 September, Commissioner Sinkevičius hosted the second edition of the ‘Our Baltic’ Conference to address pressing environmental challenges in the Baltic Sea. The high-level conference gathers ministers and high-level officials in charge of fisheries, agriculture, and environment from eight EU Baltic countries (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden).
Given the severe ecosystem problems of the Baltic Sea, the conference aims to help strengthening and complementing short to medium-term actions that member states can take to improve the Baltic Sea’s ecosystem health,as well asthe state of fish stocks.
Commissioner Sinkevičius and the ministers committed today to safeguarding the delicate marine ecosystem of the Baltic Sea, with a special focus on the removal of submerged munitions that lie in its seabed since World Wars I and II.
In the afternoon, the ministers are expected to agree on joint commitments to safely clean and manage submerged munitions in the Baltic Sea, making it more sustainable for the generations to come. The Commission is joining these important efforts by providing concrete budgetary support through an open call for proposals of €2 million aiming to identify key geographical areas and to conduct appropriate risk assessments.
More information in this press release.