Acronym BRISK
Category
Fisheries
Title Sub-regional risk of spill of oil and hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea Programme Interreg IV
Instrument (FP6)
Contact Type (FP7)
Strand (Interreg)
Strand A
Theme (FP7)
Activity Area (FP6)
Regional Area (Interreg)
Action (COST)
Baltic Sea Region
Specific Programme (FP7)
NA
Funding source European Coordinator Peter Søberg Poulsen Coordinator email pol.con.den@sok.dk; peter.poulsen@dlgmail.dk
Coordinator institution
ADMDANFLT
- Admiral Danish Fleet (Denmark)
Institutions involved
HELCOM - Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission - Helsinki Commission (Finland) ,
CCME - Central Command for Maritime Emergencies (Germany) ,
NA - Finland’s environmental administration (Finland) ,
SYKE - Finnish Environment Institute (Finland) ,
KU CORPI - Klaipeda University; Coastal Research and Planning Institute (Lithuania) ,
MIG - Maritime Institute in Gdansk (Poland) ,
NA - Maritime Office in Gdynia (Poland) ,
PBGB - Police and Border Guard Board (Estonia) ,
VARAM SES - State Environmental Services (Latvia) ,
NA - Swedish Coast Guard (Sweden) ,
Start year 2009 End year 2012 Funding (€) € 3,310,541 Website https://keep.eu/projects/15651/Sub-regional-risk-of-spill--EN/ Summary The first overall risk assessment, based on one common methodology to cover pollution caused by shipping accidents throughout the Baltic Sea, was carried out. The result has been used to identify the areas with highest risk for spills and environmental damage. The risk analysis that identified highest risk of spills was based on current shipping traffic information, as well as forecasts of future trends. It described the sources, frequency, types, quantities and locations of marine pollution. The result of the analysis was a pollution impact map of the entire Baltic Sea. The identification of hot spots for risk of oil spill showed that large spills of 300 to 5,000 tonnes are expected once every four years for the whole of the Baltic Sea. And exceptional spills of 5,000 tonnes and above are estimated to occur once every 26 years, mainly along the main oil shipping route, with hot spots at route junctions in the Baltic Proper, the Kattegat and the narrow Great Belt. The analysis of environmental sensitivity included spatial data on internationally protected areas, feeding areas used by migratory birds, spawning areas used by fish, aquaculture facilities, locations of archipelagos and shallow waters, as well as major settlements, popular bathing beaches and rocky shores etc. The analysis revealed the existence of three types of areas with high sensitivity to oil: coastal waters, archipelagos, and shallow waters. The environmental sensitivity map was used to compare areas of sensitivity with areas of oil impact. This way, the prevention and response methods could be optimized in order to minimize the damage to the environment. The risk analysis also included the effects of oil spill response capacity. Furthermore, the project has added value to the situation regarding bi-lateral and multi-lateral agreements and has contributed to the acceleration of agreements between the Baltic countries. The BRISK project implements the provisions of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP), a major programme for the recovery of the marine environment adopted by all Baltic Sea countries and the European Union in 2007. The BRISK project also contributes to the realization of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region as one of the flagship actions. The results of the BRISK project will be of high importance to the international bodies related to the Baltic Sea (e.g. HELCOM, EU), to international funding institutions, as well as to the national authorities that are responsible for emergency response and environmental protection.
Keywords
Risk assessment;
Pollution;
Sustainability;
Toxic substances;
Impacts;
Marine Region
24
Sound, Belt Sea or Transition Area (27.IIIb,c)
22
Southern Central Baltic-West (27.IIId.25)
17
Bothnian Sea (27.IIId.30)
23
Baltic West of Bornholm (27.IIId.24)
27
Bothnian Bay (27.IIId.31)
21
Southern Central Baltic-East (27.IIId.26)
16
East of Gotland or Gulf of Riga (27.IIId.28)
18
West of Gotland (27.IIId.27)
19
Gulf of Finland (27.IIId.32)
14
Skagerrak, Kattegat (27.IIIa)
20
Archipelago Sea (27.IIId. 29)
11
Marine Region Map
