South Baltic Oil Spill Response Systems

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The main challenge of the project idea is the increased transport of crude oil through the Baltic. The Russian harbour Primosrk opened in the early 2000s which leads to an increase of almost 200 mill. t to about 400 mill. t of transported oil in the Baltic per year. The SB region is one of the most difficult passages in the world with narrow shipping lanes, heavy traffic and tackling sea state conditions. Additionally, the small spatial extension induces the need to act very fast when it comes to a shipborne oil spill. The existing technologies to tackle oil spills, on the other hand, can often not be executed due to unfavourable weather conditions or because it takes too long to get the material in place. To address these problems two technologies will be adapted and tested in the SB region: In the project Biobind (www.biobind.de) an airborne deployment of biogenic oil binders was developed, offering the needed advantages, however, a strong logistical chain and proven cross-border cooperations in the SB region are needed to integrate such a system into existing multilateral contracts and to keep the European level in mind (EMSA duties). The oil binders developed in this project can also be usedship based with basically the same technology. These green technologies lead to a reduction of the effects of water pollution discharges. Also, the idea of a first aid oil spill response kit focuses on joint cross-border studies, strategies and action plans to mitigate water pollution in the South Baltic area through the application of an innovative green technology. In addition, in the project common cross-border standards regarding waste (pollution) and water management will be elaborated and tested in cooperation with a variety of SB stakeholders. As a result of the adaptation and testing of the oil binder technology increased use of these green technologies for fighting the pollution discharges in the Baltic sea is expected.

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