WWF Criticizes Baltic Sea Countries for 'Mere Words'
The global conservation organization World Wildlife Fund (WWF) scored the Baltic Sea countries' implementation of the agreements concerning the protection of the Baltic Sea with an F, which is the lowest score on a four-point scale and indicates failure.
The report entitled "Baltic Sea Scorecard 2011" was presented at WWF's annual Baltic Sea Seminar held on August 31 in the Finnish Embassy in Stockholm in the presence of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden who is also the president of the Council of WWF Sweden. According to WWF, the region received the lowest scores for its performance in reducing pollution and protecting biodiversity.
"The results are a sad reminder of the fact that mere words and agreements are not enough to save the Baltic Sea, which is in bad condition. Joint agreements must be honored," said the head of WWF Finland's Marine Programme Sampsa Vilhunen.
Out of the nine coastal Baltic Sea countries, Germany and Sweden earned the best grades. Both received a score of 36 points, which is less than a half of the 79 possible. Finland came third with 29 points.
Denmark scored 28 and Estonia 26 points, followed by Lithuania and Poland with 25 points each. The lowest grades received by Latvia and Russia show that these countries have to speed up their work to protect and restore the ecosystem of the Baltic Sea.
Previously, the WWF Baltic Ecoregion Programme's Baltic Sea Scorecards have been published in 2007, 2008, and 2009. This year, the report measured the Baltic Sea countries' environmental performance in five areas - eutrophication, hazardous substances, biodiversity, maritime activities, and integrated sea use management.
Sigrid Maasen