This dataset describes fishing intensity for OT SPF mobile bottom contacting gear in 2009 based on VMS/Log book data processed by ICES Working Group on Spatial Fisheries Data (WGSFD). ICES secretariat collected during 2017 relevant VMS and logbook data for 2009-2016 to produce, as a technical service to HELCOM, updated spatial data layers on fishing intensity/pressure. Improved data quality control checks were implemented. Submitted data across the HELCOM area have improved in quality compared to previous data 2009-2013 published in 2015. Standardized methods were used to produce the requested data layers. The code used to create the data products is available here: https://github.com/ices-eg/wg_WGSFD For further technical information on the advice request, see http://www.ices.dk/sites/pub/Publication%20Reports/Advice/2017/Special_requests/helcom.2017.18.pdf HELCOM secretariat did the following processing to the shapefile provided by ICES: - Conversion to ETRS89LAEA coordinate system - Added feature and attribute "Reported" to display unreported areas. Dataset attribute information: c-square: Unique reference of the c-square polygon Year: Year of fishing activity mid_lat: latitude coordinate of the centroid of c-square inWGS84 decimal degrees mid_lon: longitude coordinate of the centroid of c-square inWGS84 decimal degrees SurfaceSAR: Surface area ratio (Swept area, < 2 cm penetration depth of the gear components) Subsurface: Subsurface area ratio (Swept area, subsurface =>2 cm penetration depth of the gear components) totweight: Total Weight (kg) totvalue: Total value (Euros) Kw Fishing Hours: (Kw*h) Fishing hours: (h) Reported: Yes=Reported data. No= No reported data (area that does not contain effort/intensity value due to lack of reported data). Please note that this dataset was updated (v2) in January 2019, see further details below in the lineage section.

The PLAN BOTHNIA project, co-ordinated by the HELCOM Secretariat, tested transboundary Maritime Spatial Planning in the Baltic Sea. The project used the Bothnian Sea area between Sweden and Finland as a case study of Baltic transboundary MSP. The project was a Baltic Sea MSP “preparatory action” funded by EU Commission DG MARE (budget 0,5 M EUR ) under the EU Integrated Maritime Policy, and run 18 months between 2. December 2010 and 1. June 2012. The final report can be downloaded here: https://planbothnia.org/the-pilot-plan/ The data covers the following topics: Maritime traffic Fishing and aquaculture Energy Nature protected areas Defence Scientific research Sand and gravel Tourism and recreation Cultural heritage All spatial data gathered during the project can be downloaded and used freely given that the source is cited. The data was gathered during the time span of the project (December 2010 and 1. June 2012) and it covers: Maritime traffic Fishing and aquaculture Energy Nature protected areas Defence Scientific research Sand and gravel Tourism and recreation Cultural heritage The source of the data were HELCOM and the different regional councils surrounding the Bothnian Sea.

This core indicator evaluates the status of the marine environment based on concentrations of heavy metal cadmium (Cd) in seawater, biota and sediments. Quantitative thresholds are used to evaluate if core indicators status is "Achieve", "Fail" or "Not assessed". Threshold values are based on Environmental quality standards (EQS), defined at EU level for substances included in the priority list under the Water Framework Directive. This dataset displays the result of the indicator in HELCOM Assessment Scale 4 (Division of the Baltic Sea into 17 sub-basins and further division into coastal and off-shore areas and division of the coastal areas by WFD water types or water bodies). Attribute information: "OBJECTID" = Object identification "HELCOM_ID" = Code of the HELCOM scale 4 assessment unit "Descriptio" = Description of the HELCOM scale 4 assessment unit "AULEVEL" = Assessment unit level used for the indicator "Contamination ratio in biota" = Contamination ratio in biota for this substance "Status in biota" = Status of the indicator in biota (“Achieve”, “Fail” or “Not assessed”) "Contamination ratio in sediment" = Contamination ratio in sediment for this substance "Status in sediment" = Status of the indicator in sediment (“Achieve”, “Fail” or “Not assessed”) "Contamination ratio in water" = Contamination ratio in water for this substance "Status in water" = Status of the indicator in water(“Achieve”, “Fail” or “Not assessed”) "Overall Status" = Overall Status of the indicator according to one-out-all-out (“Achieve”, “Fail” or “Not assessed”)

This dataset contains all PFOS in sediment monitoring station locationsas reported to HELCOM secretariat by HELCOM Contracting Parties by 2016.

Illegal oil discharges data is based on airborne surveillance supplemented with remote sensing equipment in the Baltic Sea Area carried out by HELCOM Contracting Parties within HELCOM IWGAS group. Aerial surveillance is limited within Russia and Latvia. Attribute information: "HELCOM_ID" = HELCOM ID "Country" = Country of observation "Year" = Year of observation "FlightType" = Flight observation performed at Day or Night "Date" = Date of the observation "Time_UTC" = Time of the observation (time zone is UTC) "Wind_speed" = Wind speed during observation "Wind_direc" = Wind direction during observation "Latitude" = longitude coordinate of observed oil spill "Longitude" = longitude coordinate of observed oil spill "Length__km" = length in km "Width__km_" = Width in km "Area__km2_" = Area in km2 "Spill_cat" = Spill category (oil or orther substance detected) "EstimVol_m" = Estimated volume of oil spill (m3) "Category" = Category of oil spill "SPILL" = Spill ID

A vector grid in 2 x 2 km resolution showing model results of environmental damage caused by spill of soluble chemicals from ships of all sizes as incidents/million years weighted.This dataset has been produced by COWI (http://www.cowi.dk) for the BRISK project (Sub-regional risk of spill of oil and hazardous substances in the Baltic Sea, http://www.brisk.helcom.fi/). Fields: COL_NO (Dbl): Column ROW_NO (Dbl): Row WLoad (Dbl): Environmental damage (Incidents/million years weighted).

The dataset contains information on commercial traps and pots fishery in Baltic Sea in 2007 (Lithuanian data from 2008). Total catches/landings are given per ICES rectangle in tons. The dataset contains information on commercial traps and pots fishery in Baltic Sea in 2007 (Lithuanian data from 2008). Total catches/landings are given per ICES rectangle in tons. Gillnet gears (included in the gear category 3, coastal and stationary gears) includes falling gears, live-bait gears set gillnets, trammel nets, handlines and pole-lines. The catches/landings per ICES rectangle are also given per species. Data was requested from HELCOM contracting parties through HELCOM HOLAS project. Landings/ catches data from Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia is based on national data, while Russian data is based on the ICES report "Report of the Baltic Fisheries Assessment Working Group (WGBFAS)" (2008). Commercial fishery data was reported by the following persons/authorities to HELCOM Secretariat: Germany:Dr. Christopher Zimmermann (Institut für Ostseefischerei (OSF), Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut (vTI), Bundesforschungsinstitut für Ländliche Räume, Wald und Fischerei) Lithuania: Open sea: Irina Jakovleva (Fisheries Reguliation Division, Baltic Sea Fisheries Department, Fisheries Department under the Ministry of Agriculture); coastal: Rimantas Repecka (Head of Laboratory of Marine Ecology, Institute of Ecology of Vilnius University) Sweden: Jarl Engquist (Avdelningen för fiskerikontroll, Swedish Board of Fisheries) Latvia: Marina Fettere (Fishery and Information section, Latvian Fish Resources Agency) Finland: Pirkko Söderkultalahti (Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute) Estonia: Ministry of Agriculture Denmark: Troels Pade (The Danish Directorate of Fisheries, Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries) Russia: no contact person, data from ICES reports Poland: Malgorzata Marciniewicz-Mykieta (Departament Monitoringu i Informacji o Srodowisku, Glówny Inspektorat Ochrony Srodowiska) Abbreviation of species ABK=White Bream; ACC=Ruffe; ACH=Charr; ALR=Bleak; ANE=European anchovy; ANF=Anglerfishes; BLL=Brill; CAT=Rockfishes; CGO=Goldfish; COD=Cod; CRA=Marine crabs; CRE=Edible Crab; CSH=Common shrimp; DAB=Dab; DGS=Sourdog/Spint Dogfish; ELE=Eel; ELP=Eelpout; FAS=Asp; FBM=Bream; FBR=Freshwater breams; FBU=Burbot; FCC=Crucian carp; FCP=Common carp; FGR=Grayling; FID=Orfe (=Ide); FIE=Common dace; FLE=Flounder; FLX=Flatfishes; FPE=Perch; FPI=Pike; FPP=Zander (Pikeperch); FRD=Rudd; FRF=Freshwater fishes; FRO=Roach; FRU=Ruffe; FSB=Silver bream; FTE=Tench; FVE=Vendace (Cisco); FVI=Freshwater Vimba; GAR=Garfish; GPA=Gobies; GTA=Three-Spined Stickleback; GUG=Grey Gurnard; HAD=Haddock; HAL=Halibut; HER=Herring; HKE=Hake; HOM=Horse Mackarel; JAX=Jack and horse mackerels; LAR=River lamprey; LAU=Sea lamprey; LBE=European Lobster; LEM=Lemon Sole; LIN=Ling; LUM=Lumpfish; MAC=Mackerel; MLR=Thicklip Grey Mullet; MON=Monkfish; MQS=Four Spined Sculpin; MTL=Thick-lipped Mullet; MUL=Grey mullets; MUS=Blue mussel; MUX=Surmullets (= Red mullets); MZZ=Marine fishes; NBU=Round Goby NEP=Norway lobster; NOP=Norway pout; OTH=Other sp; PLA=Long-rough dab; PLE=Plaice; PLN=European Whitefish; POK=Saithe; POL=Pollack; PPZ=Common Prawn; PRA=Northern Pink Shrimp; SAL=Salmon; SAN=Sandeels; SKA=Skates, rays; SKB=Sticklebacks; SME=Smelt; SOL=Sole; SPR=Sprat; SQU=Squids; SRA=Atlantic searobins; SRE=Rudd; TAS=Twaite Shad; TGQ=Fourhorn Sculpin; TRB=Rainbow Trout; TRO=Trouts; TRR=Rainbow Trout; TRS=SeaTrout; TSD=Twaite Shad; TUR=Turbot; UNK=Unknown Catches; USK=Tusk; WEG=Greater Weever; WHB=Blue Whiting; WHF=Whitefish, Houting, Powan; WHG=Whiting; WIT=Witch; VIV=Vimba bream

This dataset represents the underlying water data on core indicator Heavy metals – Lead.The core indicator evaluates the status of the marine environment based on concentrations of heavy metal Lead (Pb) in water, fish liver and sediments. Quantitative thresholds are used to evaluate if core indicators status is Achieve, Fail or Not assessed. Threshold values are based on Environmental quality standards (EQS), defined at EU level for substances included in the priority list under the Water Framework Directive. The Core indicator displays the result of the indicator in HELCOM Assessment Scale 4 (Division of the Baltic Sea into 17 sub-basins and further division into coastal and off-shore areas and division of the coastal areas by WFD water types or water bodies). Attribute information: "region" = MIME subregion "country" = country "station" = Unique text that identifies the station "stationNam" = name for the station "determinan" = determinant parameter (PB = Lead) "detGroup" = the grouping of determinands used to display the results "filtered" = Filtered or unfiltered water sample used in analysis "_shape" = shape used to map assessment results "colour" = colour used to map assessment results "l3area" = HELCOM assessment unit on scale 3 "l4area" = HELCOM assessment unit on scale 4 "nyall" = total number of years of data "nyfit" = number of years of data used in the assessment "nypos" = number of years with at least one measurement above the limit of detection "lastyear" = most recent year of data "prtrend" = the significance of the change over the most recent 20 years; for the assessment conducted in November 2017 and published in June 2018, this is the period 1996-2016 "rtrend" = annual ‘linear’ change over the most recent 20 years "meanLY" = fitted value in last monitoring year "clLY" = upper one-sided 95% confidence limit on fitted value in last monitoring year "EQS" = Threshold value "EQSdiff" = difference between clLY and EQS "EQSbelow" = whether the mean value in the last monitoring year is significantly below EQS

This core indicator evaluates the status of the marine environment based on concentrations of polyaromatic hydrocarbons PAHs - Fluoranthene in sediment. Quantitative thresholds are used to evaluate if core indicators status is "Achieve", "Fail" or "Not assessed". Attribute specifications and units: "HELCOM_ID" = Code of the HELCOM scale 4 assessment unit "country": country in which the HELCOM assessment unit is located or a mention to an open sea area "level_2" = Name of the HELCOM assessment unit in scale 2 "Name" = Name of the HELCOM assessment unit in scale 4 "Open_sea" = Name of the HELCOM assessment unit in the open sea "F2_Name" = Name of the HELCOM assessment unit "determinan" = Determinat "est" = The estimated mean loge concentration in the assessment unit "se" = The standard error on the estimated mean log concentration in the assessment unit "fit" = The estimated mean concentration in the assessment unit "upper_cl" = Upper one-sided 95% confidence limit on the mean concentration: exp(est + qnorm(0.95) * see) "Status" = Overall Status of the indicator according to one-out-all-out

Baltic International Trawl Survey (BITS) data (2016-2020) from ICES DATRAS database was used as a base to create a map of cod relative abundance.