Baltic Sea condition is gradually improving, scientist says

The Baltic Sea’s condition is gradually improving despite persistent and emerging problems, Professor Urmas Lips of Tallinn University of Technology’s Institute of Marine Systems told ERR’s Terevisioon programme on Baltic Sea Day.

“Usually, more is said about the problems. I have studied the sea for more than 30 years and I think things are steadily getting better,” Lips said. He added that this year’s Baltic Sea Day invited people to focus more on the reasons for joy and to enjoy the sea.

Human activity remains behind many of the Baltic Sea’s problems, Lips said. Waste has not been eliminated, while protecting the marine environment is necessary so that people can continue to use it, fish, sail and swim in the future.

Conditions have improved partly because cooperation between countries under the convention on protecting the Baltic Sea environment has produced results. The nutrient load from agriculture has been reduced, and many hazardous substances have been banned.

However, changes in the atmosphere and climate have pushed conditions in a worse direction again. Oxygen levels near the seabed have fallen, and very warm weather brings blooms of blue green algae in summer. Estonia has largely avoided major blooms this summer, Lips said, while the southern parts of the Baltic Sea have experienced extensive blooms.

The Institute of Marine Systems has worked with Tallink for years to carry out continuous measurements on routes between Tallinn and Helsinki and between Tallinn and Stockholm. It also uses autonomous devices in the sea to measure oxygen and chlorophyll. Lips said the number of instruments capable of collecting data has increased continuously over the past decade, while remote sensing has also become more widely available.