At the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting in Copenhagen yesterday, the signatures from the Baltic public in support of swift actions to improve the health of the Baltic Sea were handed over to the Russian delegation.
After the drawn-out negotiations at the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting had ended, Mr Nuritdin Inamov, Director at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and Head of the Russian Delegation to HELCOM, received a box with over 25,000 public signatures for Race for the Baltic (RFTB) from representatives of FISH, Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) and Oceana.
Gunnar Norén, Executive Secretary of CCB, explained the involvement of Russian NGOs – Friends of the Baltic and Green World – in the Race for the Baltic campaign and the activities that took place in Russia in July this year. Mr Inamov said he was happy to hear this and that this widespread involvement was important for solving the problems related to the Baltic Sea.
He also told us about the recent St. Petersburg initiative, which was launched in connection with the Baltic Sea Forum in St. Petersburg on 5–6 April 2013. The initiative is directly linked to the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and has created a platform bringing government, companies and civil society organisations together. Mr Inamov explained that they very much welcomed the involvement of NGOs, who had an important role to play in that work.
The idea behind the St. Petersburg initiative is to create an international network to unite governmental, business and financing organizations for Baltic Sea cooperation. It is chaired by Felix Karmazinov, the Director General of SUE Vodokanal St. Petersburg and Ilkka Herlin, Chairman of the Baltic Sea Action Group (or Foundation for a Living Baltic Sea as it is also called).
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