The Baltic Institute of Finland - Project description

Background

This project is an outcome of the environmental cooperation project between the City of St. Petersburg and the Finnish cities on enhancing air quality management system in St. Petersburg through regional cooperation. The project was launched in November 2004 in the framework of the City Twinning Programme established between the Finnish Ministry of Environment and the Committee for Nature Use, Environmental Protection and Ecological Safety of the City of St. Petersburg. This project is designed on basis of the established cooperation between the Finnish and St. Petersburg environmental authorities and experts as well as results of joint assessment of the air quality management system in St. Petersburg.

Objectives

This two-year project promotes development of comprehensive local environmental protection systems in the framework of interregional city-level collaboration and expert cooperation focusing on air quality monitoring in St. Petersburg and in the involved Finnish cities. Project activities will facilitate and enhance exchange and dissemination of information, experiences and best practices between cities and experts on developing local air quality monitoring system. As part of the project activities, air quality information utilization and distribution to citizens will be promoted involving also relevant cities in the Baltic Sea area.

Immediate objectives

to promote development of comprehensive local environmental protection systems in the framework of interregional city-level collaboration targeting at air quality monitoring in St. Petersburg and in the involved Finnish cities;

to enhance and strengthen exchange and dissemination of information, experiences and best practices between St. Petersburg and Finnish cities in developing local environmental protection systems, especially focusing on practical level joint activities in air quality monitoring and measurements, passive sampling and dispersion modelling;

to enhance capacities of local policy makers, officials and experts in design, management and evaluation of air monitoring and management systems in collaboration with local industry with special focus on improving quality, comparability and traceability of air quality monitoring and measurements results and system in St. Petersburg,

to facilitate effective interregional environmental cooperation through involving also other relevant cities in the air quality collaboration in the Baltic Sea Area to ensure sustainability of the project results and acceleration of joint project initiatives.

Activities

The project is designed in the first phase to involve consultation and practical training meetings between Finnish and Russian experts on developing air quality measurements, passive sampling and dispersion modelling. The focus is on design and implementation of joint inter-comparison measurement exercises and quality assurance procedures during measurement campaigns as well as real case studies with dispersion modelling. Finnish expertise and consulting will be provided for analysing main sources of emissions and possibilities of their reduction and prevention as well as utilization of the data in decision-making. The goal of the project activities is to establish continuous practical level cooperation on the gaseous pollutants and PM measurements, passive sampling and dispersion modelling between experts in Finland and St. Petersburg.

In addition to practical level air quality monitoring activities, the project will facilitate and enhance exchange of experiences and best practises acquired in the involved partner cities on developing local air quality monitoring system with special emphasis on air quality information utilization including data management and distribution to citizens. Training seminars and a study tour to Helsinki will be organized during the second phase of project implementation. Relevant cities in the Baltic Sea area will be invited to introduce their air quality monitoring and management systems. The goal is to identify needs and opportunities for partner cooperation in continuous exchange of information and developing air quality data utilization in decision-making, health risk assessment, information distribution to citizens and procedures in episodes.

Project partners

Key project partners in Finland are the city of Tampere and the city of Helsinki with the strong expert contribution of the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI). The both cities have extensive experiences in applying air quality monitoring network to fulfil measurement requirements according to the national and European legislation. The city of Helsinki provides high-level air quality monitoring and information management system in close collaboration with the Helsinki Area Metropolitan Council, YTV. The Environmental Committee of the St. Petersburg City Administration is the key project partner in design and implementation of the project activities as well as sustaining the project results in St. Petersburg.

Project duration: 2006-2008 (18 months)