Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area

 

Article 1

Convention Area

This Convention shall apply to the Baltic Sea Area. For the purposes of
this Convention the “Baltic Sea Area”shall be the Baltic Sea and the entrance
to the Baltic Sea bounded by the parallel of the Skaw in the Skagerrak at
57[degrees] 44.43’N. It includes the internal waters, i.e. for the purposes of this
Convention, waters on the landward side of the baselines from which the
breadth of the territorial sea is measured up to the landward limit according
to the designation by the Contracting Parties.

A Contracting Party shall, at the time of the deposit of the instrument
of ratification, approval or accession, inform the Depositary of the
designation of its internal waters for the purposes of this Convention.

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Convention:

1. “Pollution”means introduction by man, directly or indirectly, of
substances or energy into the sea, including estuaries, which are liable to
create hazards to human health, to harm living resources and marine
ecosystems, to cause hindrance to legitimate uses of the sea including
fishing, to impair the quality for use of sea water, and to lead to a
reduction of amenities;

2. “Pollution from land-based sources”means pollution of the sea by point
or diffuse inputs from all sources on land reaching the sea waterborne,
airborne or directly from the coast. it includes pollution from any
deliberate disposal under the seabed with access from land by tunnel, pipeline
or other means;

3. “Ship”means a vessel of any type whatsoever operating in the marine
environment and includes hydrofoil boats, air-cushion vehicles, submersibles,
floating craft and fixed or floating platforms;

4. (a) “Dumping”means:

(i) any deliberate disposal at sea or into the
seabed of wastes or other matter from ships,
other man-made structures at sea or aircraft

(ii) any deliberate disposal at sea of ships, other
man-made structures at sea or aircraft;

(b) “Dumping”does not include:

(i) the disposal at sea of wastes or other matter
incidental to, or derived from the normal
operations of ships, other man-made structures
at sea or aircraft and their equipment, other
than wastes or other matter transported by or
to ships, other man-made structures at sea or
aircraft, operating for the purpose of disposal
of such matter or derived from the treatment of
such wastes or other matter on such ships,
structures or aircraft;

(ii) placement of matter for a purpose other than
the more disposal thereof, provided that such
placement in not contrary to the aims of the
present Convention;

5. “Incineration”means the deliberate combustion of wastes or other matter
at sea for the purpose of their thermal destruction. Activities incidental to
the normal operation of ships or other man-made structures are excluded from
the scope of this definition;

6. “Oil”means petroleum in any form including crude oil, fuel oil, sludge,
oil refuse and refined products;

7. “Harmful substance”means any substance which, if introduced into the
sea, in liable to cause pollution;

8. “Hazardous substance”means any harmful substance which due to its
intrinsic properties is persistent, toxic or liable to bio-accumulate;

9. “Pollution incident”means an occurrence or series of occurrences having
the same origin, which results or may result in a discharge of oil or other
harmful substances and which poses or may pose a threat to the marine
environment of the Baltic Sea or to the coastline or related interests of one
or more Contracting Parties, and which requires emergency actions or other
immediate response;

10. “Regional economic integration organization”means any organization
constituted by sovereign States, to which their member States have transferred
competence in respect of matters governed by this Convention, including the
competence to enter into international agreements in respect of these matters;

11. The “Commission”means the Baltic Marine Environment Protection
Commission referred to in article 19.

Article 3

Fundamental principles and obligations

1. The Contracting Parties shall individually or jointly take all
appropriate legislative, administrative or other relevant measures to prevent
and eliminate pollution in order to promote the ecological restoration of the
Baltic Sea Area and the preservation of its ecological balance.

2. The Contracting Parties shall apply the precautionary principle, i.e.,
to take preventive measures when there is reason to assume that substances or
energy introduced, directly or indirectly, into the marine environment may
create hazards to human health, harm living resources and marine ecosystems,
damage amenities or interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea even when
there is no conclusive evidence of a causal relationship between inputs and
their alleged effects.

3. In order to prevent and eliminate pollution of the Baltic Sea Area the
Contracting Parties shall promote the use of Best Environmental Practice and
Beat Available Technology. If the reduction of inputs, resulting from the use
of Best Environmental Practice and Best Available Technology, as described in
Annex II, does not lead to environmentally acceptable results, additional
measures shall be applied.

4. The Contracting Parties shall apply the polluter-pays principle.

5. The Contracting Parties shall ensure that measurements and calculations
of emissions from point sources to water and air and of inputs from diffuse
sources to water and air are carried out in a scientifically appropriate
manner in order to assess the state of the marine environment of the Baltic
Sea Area and ascertain the implementation of this Convention.

6. The Contracting Parties shall use their best endeavours to ensure that
the implementation of this Convention does not cause transboundary pollution
in areas outside the Baltic Sea Area. Furthermore, the relevant measures
shall not lead either to unacceptable environmental strains on air quality and
the atmosphere or on waters, soil and groundwater, to unacceptably harmful or
increasing waste disposal, or to increased risks to human health.

Article 4

Application

1. This Convention shall apply to the protection of the marine environment
of the Baltic Sea Area which comprises the water-body and the seabed including
their living resources and other forms of marine life.

2. Without prejudice to its sovereignty each Contracting Party shall
implement the provisions of this Convention within its territorial sea and its
internal waters through its national authorities.

3. This Convention shall not apply to any warship, naval auxiliary,
military aircraft or other ship and aircraft owned or operated by a State and
used, for the time being, only on government non-commercial service.

However, each Contracting Party shall ensure, by the adoption of
appropriate measures not impairing the operations or operational capabilities
of such ships and aircraft owned or operated by it, that such ships and
aircraft act in a manner consistent, so far an is reasonable and practicable,
with this Convention.

Article 5

Harmful substances

The Contracting Parties undertake to prevent and eliminate pollution of
the marine environment of the Baltic Sea Area caused by harmful substances
from all sources, according to the provisions of this Convention and, to this
end, to implement the procedures and measures of Annex I.

Article 6

Principles and obligations concerning
Pollution from land-based sources

1. The Contracting Parties undertake to prevent and eliminate pollution of
the Baltic Sea Area from land-based sources by using, inter alia, Best
Environmental Practice for all sources and Best Available Technology for point
sources. The relevant measures to this end shall be taken by each Contracting
Party in the catchment area of the Baltic Sea without prejudice to its
sovereignty.

2. The Contracting Parties shall implement the procedures and measures set
out in Annex III. To this end they shall, inter alia, as appropriate,
cooperate in the development and adoption of specific programmes, guidelines,
standards or regulations concerning emissions and inputs to water and air,
environmental quality, and products containing harmful substances and material
and the use thereof.

3. Harmful substances from point sources shall not, except in negligible
quantities, be introduced directly or indirectly into the marine environment
of the Baltic Sea Area, without a prior special permit, which may be
periodically reviewed, issued by the appropriate national authority in
accordance with the principles contained in Annex III, Regulation 3. The
Contracting Parties shall ensure that authorized emissions to water and air
are monitored and controlled.

4. If the input from a watercourse flowing through the territories of two
or more Contracting Parties or forming a boundary between them is liable to
cause pollution of the marine environment of the Baltic Sea Area, the
Contracting Parties concerned shall jointly and, if possible, in cooperation
with a third State interested or concerned, take appropriate measures in order
to prevent and eliminate such pollution.

 

Author: international

Mentioned in these Entries

Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area 2, Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area 3, Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area 4, Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area 5, International Conventions from 1991.