EMODnet’s ongoing contribution of marine data for EU Policy was presented at the 11th Technical Group (TG) Data meeting of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). EMODnet services including the Biology and Chemistry thematics were presented at the meeting, which was attended by representatives of Member States, Regional Sea Conventions (RSCs), European Environment Agency, European Commission (DG ENV, MARE, JRC), among others. Ongoing collaborations of EMODnet with the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), RSCs and the Joint Research Centre (EC JRC) were presented and discussed with marine litter highlighted as a key example.
Figure1. Marine Eutrophication Data on EMODnet Chemistry. ©EMODnet Chemistry
The EMODnet Secretariat and thematic Coordinators also noted that even though EMODnet data is largely not mandatory data for MSFD, the wealth of data spanning the marine environment and human activities data could be very valuable to complement monitoring data for European, regional and national assessments. EMODnet remains engaged in dialogues, with a view to continue strengthening EMODnet's contribution to MSFD implementation. Explore more through the EMODnet for Policy video!
Figure 2. MSFD TG Data online meeting screenshot ©EMODnet Secretariat