A programme to improve vessel traffic safety on the Baltic Sea will be drafted under the leadership of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.
The programme will define the main goals and measures that Finland will implement nationally and promote in international forums.
The maritime safety programme will examine measures for preventing and reducing vessel accidents, for ensuring the saving of human lives, and for limiting and preventing dangerous or hazardous substances from getting into the water as a result of a vessel accident.
The programme will be prepared in cooperation with Finnish ministries, agencies, authorities, stakeholders and interest groups, and it shall be completed by the end of the year.
Vessel traffic on the Baltic Sea is expected to continue its rapid growth. For example, annual oil transport flows in the Gulf of Finland are estimated to nearly double by 2015. In addition, passenger traffic volumes between Tallinn and Helsinki alone amount to around six million passengers a year.
Further information:
Ms Sirkka-Heleena Nyman, Senior Adviser, tel. +358 9 160 28009, +358 400 659 324
