INTERNATIONAL  HYDROGRAPHIC  REVIEW

MAY  2020

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In  particular,  the  main  benefit  for  the  mariner  is  a  seamless  transition  from  chart  to  chart,  from
country  to  country,  and  from  sea  to  land,  based  on  a  unified  height  datum.  This  comes  at  the
“price”  of  potentially  changed  reference  levels  in  harbors  and  shifted  charted  depths
(see  Sections  3  and4).  Wherever  possible,  these  changes  will  be  introduced  together  with  major
updates  of  anyway  outdated  map  sheets.

2.  Organisational  background  for  the  establishment  of  the  BSCD2000
BSCD2000  was  initiated  by  the  Baltic  Sea  Hydrographic  Commission  (BSHC).  The  BSHC  (http://
www.bshc.pro)  is  an  integrant  part  of  the  International  Hydrographic  Organisation  (IHO),
promotes  the  technical  cooperation  in  the  domain  of  hydrographic  surveying,  marine  cartography
and  nautical  information  among  the  neighboring  countries  of  the  Baltic  Sea  region.  The  main
objectives  of  the  Commission  are  the  coordination  of  the  production  of  the  Baltic  Sea  I  NT  Charts,
the  coordination  of  hydrographic  re-surveys,  harmonization  of  chart  datums,  harmonization  of
Baltic  Sea  ENCs,  and  the  exchange  of  information  and  the  harmonization  of  practices  with  regard
to  various  issues  related  to  hydrography.  Its  member  states  are  visualized  in  Figure  3.

BSHC-Members

Sweden

Germany

Finland

Russian
Federation

ia

Estoni

Latvia
Lithuania
Oblast  Kaliningrad

Poland

Figure  3:  Members  states  of  the  Baltic  Sea  Hydrographic  Commission  (BSHC)
In  2005,  the  Baltic  Sea  Hydrographic  Commission  (BSHC)  recognized  the  issue  of  the  incompatible ­
  chart  datums  in  the  Baltic  Sea  and  established  the  Chart  Datum  Working  Group  (CDWG)  to
develop  a  concept  of  a  harmonized  chart  datum.  The  CDWG  (http://www.bshc.pro/workinggroups/cdwg)
  reports  to  the  BSHC  Conferences  and  aims  to  implement  the  Baltic  Sea  Chart
Datum  2000  as  a  common  reference  level  in  the  Baltic  Sea.  The  working  group  cooperates  with
relevant  bodies,  reviews  the  progress  of  national  plans  and  proposes  harmonization  actions.  The
working  group  also  liaises  with  relevant  IHO  bodies  and  studies  relevant  IHO  resolutions  and
specifications.  It  is  currently  chaired  by  Mr  Thomas  Hammarklint  (SMA,  Sweden)  with  Mr  Jyrki
Mononen  (Traficom,  Finland)  as  ordinary  secretary.