Finland bans cargo ships from releasing wastewater into the Baltic Sea

December 13, 2024, by Naida Hakirevic Prevljak

The Parliament of Finland has approved a bill that prohibits the discharge of wastewater from cargo vessels into the Baltic Sea within the country’s territorial waters.

As informed, the new law, passed in early December 2024, will enter into force in July 2025.

With this move, Finland has become a pioneer in curbing ship emissions while work continues on a ban on ship wastewater discharges covering the entire Baltic Sea.

A report commissioned by Baltic Sea Action Group (BSAG) and published in December by Traficom underlines the need for new legislation, as ship wastewater discharges are more harmful to the Baltic Sea than previously thought. According to the report, few ships discharge their wastewater and food waste into the port, so a large part of this still ends up in the sea.

Specifically, the new ban encompasses the discharge of wastewater as well as sulfur scrubber water and scrubber sludge into the Baltic Sea within the Finnish territorial waters.

“It is very welcome that Finland is now using legislation to curb harmful emissions from ships into the Baltic Sea. The bill is thorough and comprehensive, but as MPs Tiina Elo (Greens) and Timo Furuholm (Lefts) pointed out in the committee hearing, the proposed transitional provisions should be more ambitious,” Ville Wahlberg, BSAG CEO, commented.

BSAG, which is a non-profit foundation that takes effective actions to save the Baltic Sea, said it has worked for years to curb primary emissions, first through voluntary action together with shipping companies, ports, ship brokers and waste management, and later by pushing for an emissions ban in national legislation.

“The voluntary, so-called Ship Waste Action cooperation significantly increased the amount of waste received by the ports involved and showed that there is a willingness to change and that it is also completely possible to implement in practice,” Wahlberg added.

Ship wastewater is also on the national policy agenda in Sweden and Denmark as the countries intend to ban the discharge of sulfur scrubber water into the Baltic Sea in their territorial waters from the summer of 2025.

“To prevent ships from discharging wastewater into the sea anywhere in the Baltic Sea, the focus must next be shifted to international cooperation and influence. HELCOM, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the European Union play an important role,” Ville Wahlberg concluded.

In related news, Transport and Tourism Committee Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted a year ago to update EU rules on preventing pollution from ships in European seas and ensuring perpetrators face fines.

The move would ensure all international standards on preventing illegal discharges from ships, developed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), become part of the EU law and as a result become more easily enforceable.