The concept of EMODnet Sea-Basin Checkpoints was introduced within the Green Paper 'Marine Knowledge 2020: from seabed mapping to ocean forecasting' (COM-2012-437). In spite of EU initiatives such as EMODnet, Copernicus and Data Collection Framework (DCF) for Fisheries to deliver seamless layers of marine data across national boundaries, there are still shortcomings with the availability and accessibility of EU marine data. Data collections have been largely put in place for specific and/or national purposes. There is still an approximate overview on a sea-basin scale of gaps and duplications and there is no overall view of what the priorities are for further data collection or assembly. Thus the EMODnet Checkpoint initiative will start to link to all existing monitoring data and assess them in order to define their future improvements.
The EMODnet-BlackSea project aims to quality assess, extract the synergies between and identify the gaps of, the present monitoring data sets for the entire Black Sea in view of eleven applications or 'challenges':
- Windfarm siting
- Marine Protected areas
- Oil Platforms leak
- Climate
- Coasts
- Fisheries management
- Fisheries impact
- Eutrophication
- River inputs
- Bathymetry
- Alien species
The main aim of the EMODnet Black Sea Checkpoint is to assess the fitness for purpose of the present basin and coastal scale monitoring system by producing 'selected outputs' or 'targeted products'. This assessment methodology is known as 'end-to-end' engineering for innovative technologies and it will allow to define the gaps and the sustainability of the marine monitoring system for the Black Sea. Two Checkpoint Portals are already in place, one for the Great North Sea and the other for the Mediterranean Sea. Their experience has driven our proposal preparation and the work plan development. EMODnet Black Sea Checkpoint will coordinate with them as well as the other Lots of this call.
Institute of oceanology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, BG
National Institute for Marine Research and Development "Grigore Antipa",RO
Euro-Mediterranean Center for Climate Change, IT
Collecte Localisation Satellites, FR
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, GR
ORION-Joint research and development centre, CY
University of Sofia, BG
Plymouth University, UK
CLU, IT
Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer, FR
Middle East Technical University Institute of Marine Sciences, TR
P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences, RU
Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, GE
Ukrainian Scientific Centre of Ecology of the Sea
Renewable Energy Systems Limited, UK
SC Marine Research SRL, RO