ENGO Views

Views on environmental problems of the North European and Baltic Sea Region based on questionnaires to the ENGO network

According to Finnish, Estonian and Russian environmental NGOs,
the key environmental problem in the Baltic Sea Region is the poor
state of the Baltic Sea, caused especially by eutrophication and environmental hazards such as chemicals and oil-transport. All countries around the Baltic Sea suffer from this problem. Other environmental problems that were mentioned are the loss of biodiversity, loss of old forests and sensitiveness of the Northern European nature in general. Among others, climate change has a significant influence on these problems.

Risks of nuclear waste and use of unsustainable energy sources (fossil fuels, nuclear energy) are also central environmental problems in this region, according to the NGOs. Unsustainable urban planning and  increase of traffic cause environmental and health problems especially in the big cities. In addition, unsustainable consumption and production habits are a problem in all countries around the Baltic Sea.

The lack of possibilities and incentives for citizens to influence the society in some countries is problematic. The right to protect and influence one's own environment should be democratic. Versatile ways of influencing in the society is the basis for demoratic solving of environmental problems. Therefore, the NGOs underline the importance of environmental awareness raising, environmental education and access to information . The basis for wider understanding of different problems in different societies in the neighbouring areas is contacts and exchange of experiences between grass-root level organisations. In the cooperation it is important to acknowledge the differences and similarities between the levels of awareness in different countries.

How should NGO cooperation be developed in the region of the Northern Dimension?  

The NGOs are in general aware of the EU Northern Dimension Policy but its' political content has remained unknown especially among the Russian and Estonian environmental organisations. The NGOs underline that developing strong networks and exchange of experiences between grass-root-level organisations could bring new content to the Northern Dimension Policy. NGOs are often high-level experts in their area, thus it would be of benefit to take their views into account more strongly in the developing of the ND Policy. Northern Dimension should be a clear framework also for the NGOs to cooperate.

The best way to encourage cooperation between the NGOs of the Northern Dimension is to make them more aware and provide better funding opportunities and possibilities to create contacts and networks. The financing mechanisms should be clear and managable for NGOs that usually do not have big administration for handling the bureaucracy that is currently connected with many financial instruments.