On the eve (on 30th of June) of the start of the Czech Republic’s second presidency of the European Union, the Charter of the European Mission “Restoring our oceans and waters by 2030” was presented in Lisbon.
Mr Martin Pohl, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Lisbon, spoke on behalf of the Czech Republic. He thanked the European Union for this initiative. Mr Pohl said that the Czech Republic is witnessing the consequences of water pollution and also the governance fragmentation. Mr Pohl said that the Czech Republic can not act alone, it supports cooperation in this area and the Mission Charter.
The aim of this event was to launch the Mission Charter as a tool for mobilising alignment of policies and priorities to support, cooperate and engage in the activities of the Mission.
Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, European Commission, Jose’ Maria Costa, Secretary of State of the Sea – Economy and Sea Ministry, Portugal, Mattias Rust, Head of section, Ministry of Infrastructure, Sweden and many other representatives of the EU parliament, regional governments and philantrops presented the need for the common effort in revitalisation of the oceans and waters in the EU, the need for cooperation and also achievements.
In the closing remarks, John Bell, Deputy Head of the Mission “Restoring our Oceans and Waters by 2030” said that we know enough and that there is a need to act, he highlighted the need for science to encourage politics to do the transformation. He said that the Mission is an opportunity and the Mission Charter is an invitation.
Countries located in the BIOEAST macro region the production lines have been built based on fresh water for many centuries, having a substantial input to their development and growth, therefore the current crisis (safety, climate, energy, food) create a pressure on sustainable management of fresh water. The BIOEAST Initiative of Central and Easter European countries defines fresh water as an important thematic area for the BIOEAST Countries, the Thematic Working Group Fresh Water Based Bioeconomy was set up in 2020 and connects policy representatives, academia and NGOs. The Thematic Working Group Fresh Water Based Bioeconomy was initiated by the Ministry of Agriculture Czech Republic and it is coordinated by the BIOEAST HUB CR. The Mission “Restoring our oceans and waters by 2030” with a particular focus on the Danube Lighthouse is an excellent opportunity to tackle the common problems together.