BALTIC SEAENVIRONMENT PROCEEDINGS No. 59 - Helcom

At the beginning under the Technological Committee two permanent subsidi-
ary bodies have been set up; the Working Groups on Reduction of Dis-
charges and Emissions from Point Sources (TC POINT), and on Reduction
of Inputs from Diffuse Sources (TC DIFF). The Commission established
during its meeting in February 1993 an ad hoc Expert Group on Pollution
Load to the Baltic Sea (TC POLO).
Tasks of TC
The most important tasks of the Technological Committee are focused into
the advising role especially in respect of recommended measures relating to
reduction of hazardous substances mainly from land-based sources and of
elaboration of pollution load assessments or compilations as we use to say.
The detailed text concerning the terms of reference for the Technological
Committee is attached.
Working methods and approaches
The first measures to reduce discharges of hazardous substances i.e. the
HELCOM recommendations on elimination and limitation of DDT and PCB
adopted by the 3rd meeting of the Commission in 1982, are good examples
on the substance-wise approach. This approach was mainly used during
1980’s with the Lead Countries for every single substance (cadmium,
mercury, lead, organotins, oil) recognized to be harmful, dangerous or
hazardous to the marine ecosystem. The Lead Countries drew up regularly
progress report on national activities in implementation of those recommen-
dations .
In addition to the before-mentioned substance-wise approach in reduction of
pollution, the branch-wise approach has been used more and more in early
1990’s. The Lead Countries for special sectors of point and non-point
pollution have used two kind of procedures in the preparation of draft the
recommendations. National information concerning the number of plants,
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