Regional cooperation around inland seas plays an important role in environmental protection as it can involve all countries from the catchment area. Two regional organizations, HELCOM in the Baltic Sea and BSC in the Black Sea regions serve as intermediary for joint efforts and have the same tasks in protection of their respective seas. While HELCOM operates in a region recognized as a role model of regional cooperation, the BSC suffers from poorer intergovernmental relations. The task set was to analyze and compare the two commissions with each other so that similar and dissimilar features could be found and suggestions for possible alterations could be made. In order to conduct the analysis a framework was used to compare historical and cultural background, legal and normative rules, structural forms and relations with stakeholders. The research shows that there is little fundamental difference in the structure and mechanisms of functioning between the two organizations, but much more between the context. The findings in this paper can help to understand the conditions of both commissions’ functioning and which steps are needed in order to improve the effectiveness of the BSC work.

The Baltic Sea is a sensitive and unique ecosystem that has been strongly affected by human activity in the area. It is an important cultural and natural resource that contributes with several economic benefits. Among the many documents aiming to protect the Baltic Sea, this thesis concerns two of the action plans; An Agenda for the Baltic Sea Region – Baltic 21 and HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan, which are two of the most recognised documents aiming at protecting the Baltic Sea area. The two documents was analysed using three different types of text analysis. As the main goal in all environmental protection is to urge preventive action in protecting the environment, the two documents will be analysed with the aim of investigating whether preventive action is advocated in the protection of the Baltic Sea, even though the region is threatened and have many problems from an environmental point of view. The two documents differ structurally as their approaches differ. The HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) has an ecosystem approach, whiles the Baltic 21 has sustainable development as its primarily approach. The results of the study further show that preventive action is advocated in both documents. However, the BSAP presents a cleared preventive approach and suggests more preventive action than Baltic 21. Baltic 21 lack a clear connection to the Baltic Sea and instead focus in the whole Baltic Sea area. There are few clearly preventive action presented in the protection of the actual Baltic Sea in Baltic 21. Instead the Baltic 21 shows a vague argumentation and few actions aiming at preventing environmental harm to the Baltic Sea.

<p>The Baltic Sea is a sensitive and unique ecosystem that has been strongly affected by human activity in the area. It is an important cultural and natural resource that contributes with several economic benefits. Among the many documents aiming to protect the Baltic Sea, this thesis concerns two of the action plans; An Agenda for the Baltic Sea Region – Baltic 21 and HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan, which are two of the most recognised documents aiming at protecting the Baltic Sea area. The two documents was analysed using three different types of text analysis.</p><p>As the main goal in all environmental protection is to urge preventive action in protecting the environment, the two documents will be analysed with the aim of investigating whether preventive action is advocated in the protection of the Baltic Sea, even though the region is threatened and have many problems from an environmental point of view.</p><p>The two documents differ structurally as their approaches differ. The HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) has an ecosystem approach, whiles the Baltic 21 has sustainable development as its primarily approach. The results of the study further show that preventive action is advocated in both documents. However, the BSAP presents a cleared preventive approach and suggests more preventive action than Baltic 21. Baltic 21 lack a clear connection to the Baltic Sea and instead focus in the whole Baltic Sea area. There are few clearly preventive action presented in the protection of the actual Baltic Sea in Baltic 21. Instead the Baltic 21 shows a vague argumentation and few actions aiming at preventing environmental harm to the Baltic Sea.</p>

Arbetet behandlade vilka konsekvenser inom driften (ekonomiska kostnader och teknologi) som rederier kommer att drabbas av när IMO:s barlastkonvention träder i kraft då barlastvattnet måste renas innan inträde i Östersjön. Arbetets syfte var att få fram vilka konsekvenser det blir för rederier när IMO:s barlastkonvention träder i kraft. Resultatet skulle jämföra skillnaden mellan lag och rekommendation då Helsingforskonventionens rekommendationer baseras på IMO:s barlastkonventions krav. En kvalitativ metod valdes för att komma fram till resultatet, i form av en öppen intervjustudie, där fyra olika företag har intervjuats. Syftet med intervjuerna var att se ifall de följde Helsingforskonventionens rekommendationer och vilka konsekvenser det skulle innebära och skulle komma att krävas då Barlastkonventionen träder i kraft. Resultatet visade att kostnaderna kommer att bli omfattande vid installation samt att det kommer att krävas teknologiska åtgärder. Vidare visade undersökningen att inköpskostnaden endast utgör en liten del av fartygets investering och att barlastreningsanläggningar är tämligen underhållsfria. / The task discussed the consequences within the ship’s operation (economical costs and technology) companies will be affected with when IMO’s Ballast Water Convention enters into force and ballast water has to be treated before entrance to the Baltic Sea. The purpose with the task was to find out which consequences companies will be forced with when IMO’s Ballast Water Convention enters into force. The result compares the difference between law and recommendation because HELCOM’s recommendations are based on IMO’s Ballast Water Convention’s laws. A qualitative method has been used, such as an open interview form, where four different companies were interviewed. The purpose with the interviews was to see if the companies followed HELCOM’s recommendations and which consequences it would lead to and would be necessary when the Ballast Water Convention enters into force. The results showed that the costs would be extensive when installation takes place and it will require technical arrangements. The task also shows that the purchase cost only makes a small part of the vessel’s investment and ballast water treatment systems are almost totally maintenance-free.

No description available.

<p> </p><p>The aim and scope of this study is to describe the coordination of joint efforts concerning chemicals and hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea region, between the Swedish Chemicals Agency (KemI) and the land-based pollution group of the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM LAND). Based on the description of the coordination, the second aim is to discuss the consequences for the Swedish Chemicals Agency in its policy shaping work towards a nontoxic environment. A qualitative and descriptive case study method is used for this purpose. Theories of coordination and achievement-inducing criteria for environmental goals are applied to the case. Components and related processes of coordination are applied to the descriptive part of the study, whilst the achievement-inducing criteria are applied in the discussion. The description of the coordination unveils a strong coordination regarding goal selection, goal decomposition and mapping activities to actors. It also confirms an interdependency between the two organisations, based on the fact that they have different institutional leverage, and thus addresses different types of actors. The result of the study shows that the coordination consequences do not lead to an independent Swedish chemicals policy. Due to limited data, the certainty of the conclusions based on the theoretical and empirical evidence found in this study can be discussed, and must therefore be subject to more empirical research.</p><p> </p>

På grund av den nuvarande situationen i miljöpolitiken i östersjön är väldigt negativ så undersöker jag i denna uppsats vilket fokus de olika nationerna har på sin miljöpolicy. Detta utförs igenom att sex olika perspektiv på miljösäkerhet appliceras på policydokument från tre olika organisationer inom två dimensioner, en dimension för säkerhetsobjekt och endimension för riskfaktor. Dessa organisationer är NATO, HELCOM och Sverige. Undersökningen har kommit fram till att NATO och Sverige lägger fokus på att människan är det objektet som ska skyddas från miljöproblem och att HELCOM har fokus på att skydda miljön från människan. Slutsatserna som dras från detta är att från de olika perspektiven av miljösäkerhet så utgår alla de olika organisationerna från att vikten är att skydda sig själva och varandra från att hamna i en situation av resursbrist. Detta användes av de olika militära organisationerna som en ursäkt för att skapa policy som fokuserade på att försöka försvara människorna mot andra människor som kunde ta deras resurser och av HELCOM som ett sätt att skapa policy som skapade en mer hållbar östersjö som kommer ha en god livskraft i framtiden. Detta var också något som Sverige höll fram på civil nivå, men inte lika hårt på den tidigare nämnda militära nivån.

Intergovernmental cooperation on collective action problems and social dilemmas faces significant challenges, as difficulties often stem from conflicts between national self-interests and collective long-term goals, lack of trust, and uncertainty about other states' commitments. Transboundary environmental issues demonstrate a clear example of collective action problems and social dilemmas, in which the Baltic Sea and HELCOM constitute such a case.  The Baltic Sea is one of the most polluted seas in the world, which in turn has placed demands on the surrounding countries to address and rectify these issues through the establishment of an intergovernmental organization, in the shape of HELCOM. HELCOM is therefore the responsible body tasked with tackling this, through policymaking and cooperation within the Baltic Sea region. Despite efforts made in the area, HELCOM has not succeeded in achieving its many goals, making HELCOM an interesting case to study. This thesis aims to research how the key institutions of HELCOM are designed, and how they influence its governance and decision-making processes using the IAD framework, and to investigate how institutional design shapes collective action outcomes. These questions aim to contribute to the study's purpose, which is to analyze institutional choices within intergovernmental collaborations and to examine the relationship between institutional design and collective action. The thesis is conducted using qualitative text analysis, specifically applying qualitative content analysis to answer the study's research questions. The empirical data consists of official HELCOM documents, which form the basis for the results presented in this study.  The study's results show that HELCOM, like other intergovernmental organizations, can be explained and understood through the IAD framework. Based on this investigation, the IAD framework could highlight that HELCOM's key institutions are designed similar, even though their area of competence differentiates. Furthermore, the study's results indicate that the design of different rules within an organization has a significant impact on the outputs of actions characterized by collective action, as it turned out that the results of various measures within HELCOM's institutional arrangements varied between different working groups. Thus, there may be incentives and benefits in designing the institutional arrangements of intergovernmental organizations in different ways, to achieve a more effective approach to combating collective action problems.

Earth observation satellites cover large areas with frequent temporal repetition and provide us with new insight into ocean and coastal processes. Ocean colour measurements from satellite remote sensing are linked to the bio-optics, which refers to the light interactions with living organisms and dissolved and suspended constituents in the aquatic environment. Human pressures have changed the aquatic ecosystems, by, for example, the increased input of nutrient and organic matter leading to eutrophication. This thesis aims to study and develop the link between bio-optical data and the remote sensing method to the monitoring and management of the Baltic Sea. The results are applied to the European Union’s Water Directives, and the Baltic Sea Action Plan from the Helsinki commission. In paper I indicators for eutrophication, chlorophyll-a concentration and Secchi depth were evaluated as a link to remote sensing observations. Chlorophyll-a measurements from an operational satellite service (paper I) were compared to conventional ship-based monitoring in paper II and showed high correlations to the in situ data. The results in paper I, II and IV show that the use of remote sensing can improve both the spatial and temporal monitoring of water quality. The number of observations increased when also using satellite data, thus facilitating the assessment of the ecological and environmental status within the European Union’s water directives. The spatial patterns make it possible to study the changes of e.g. algae blooms and terrestrial input on larger scales. Furthermore, the water quality products from satellites can offer a more holistic and easily accessible view of the information to decision makers and end-users. In paper III variable relationships between in situ bio-optical parameters, such as coloured dissolved organic matter (CDOM), dissolved organic carbon, salinity and Secchi depth, were found in different parts of the Baltic Sea. In paper IV an in situ empirical model to retrieve suspended particulate matter (SPM) from turbidity was developed and applied to remote sensing data. The use of Secchi depth as an indicator for eutrophication linked to the concentrations of chlorophyll-a and SPM and CDOM absorption was investigated in paper V. The variations in Secchi depth were affected differently by the mentioned parameters in the different regions. Therefore, one must also consider those when evaluating changes in Secchi depth and for setting target levels for water bodies. This thesis shows good examples on the benefits of incorporating bio-optical and remote sensing data to a higher extent within monitoring and management of the Baltic Sea. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 4: Manuscript. Paper 5: Manuscript.</p>

Marine scientific research has not lost any of its significance for the world of today and might become even more important for the future as the knowledge in this area will be crucial for management decisions in most areas of human life. Lithuania being the coastal state should be strongly motivated to create favourable conditions for carrying out MSR. The provisions of Part XIII, 1982 UNCLOS, set out specific rights and obligations for coastal and researching States and provide guidelines on how these rights and obligations should be implemented through negotiated access by foreign research vessels into the maritime zones under coastal State sovereign rights and jurisdiction. However, there is no evidence of successful UNCLOS implementation into national law of the Republic of Lithuania. The MSR regime remains nominal for lack of practical implementation. Though the UNCLOS is considered to represent the predominant international MSR regime, there are still provisions requiring a liberal interpretation, which could be enabled both by States enacting appropriate formulations and procedures in their national legislation and by commissions and international organizations developing guidelines and standardized procedures. The study has been structured in three parts which are further outlined in chapters representing the most relevant issues of the topic under discussion. Part 1 explores the historical development of marine science regulation indicating the origin and... [to full text]