IHO-EC joint Metting Brussels 24 October 2013

The fourth meeting between Hydrographic Offices and representatives of European Commission under the aegis of the Memorandum of Understanding between the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the European Commission (EC) took place in Brussels on 24 October 2013.

Participants:

· Iain Shepherd, DG Mare

· Gilles Bessero, IHB

· Paul Canham, UKHO (United Kingdom)

· Sean Cullen, (GSI, Ireland)

· Leendert Dorst, NLHO (Netherlands)

· Guido Dumon, MDK, Flemish hydrography (Belgium)

· Guillermo Coll Florit, IHM (Spain)

· Yves Guillam, SHOM (France)

· Gerhard Heggebo, NHS (Norway)

· Carlo Innocenti, (ISPRA Italy)

· Mathias Jonas, BSH (Germany)

· Vasileios Petropoulos, HNHS (Greece)

· Yves-Henri Renhas, SHOM (France)

· Noralf Slotsvik, NHS (Norway)

· Andrea Taramelli, (ISPRA Italy)

· Ellen Vos, NLHO and IHO MSDI WG (Netherlands)

· Magnus Wallhagen, SMA (Sweden)

Caroline Ellingsen (DG Mare) and Bastien Khoury (France) took part also as trainees.

Apologies received from Denmark.

Short summary report and decisions:

1-Welcome

Guido Dumon welcomes the participants in the building of the “Flemish Community in Brussels, Boudewijngebouw”.

2- Introduction

Yves Guillam opens the meeting and welcomes the participants.

3- Marine Knowledge 2020 & other items EU Integrated Maritime Policy

1 4th Marine Knowledge 2020

Iain Shepherd presents the status of Emodnet programme. He advances that the results of the Marine Knowledge 2020 impact assessment study will be made available in November 2013. DG Mare plans to reserve some budget in 2014 for coastal mapping .It is noted that Blue Growth will be the common thread for future EU funding. He pointed out that Emodnet will be transformed into a permanent service and becomes supposedly an integrant part of COPERNICUS. He adds that satellite data received from the Irish were not the ones they were expecting regarding bathymetry.

Action: SHOM: When the final report on impact assessment study is available, it will be forwarded to the members of the group.

4- Joint European Coastal Mapping Programme

2 4th JECMaP

Yves-Henri Renhas presents a proposal to DG Mare for a design study on a Joint European Coastal Mapping Programme (JECMaP). The submission paper, which has been send to DG Mare, should be amended with the addition in paragraph 5.2 of one issue (how to ensure adequate coordination between seaside surveys and landside surveys (and between Institutes in charge) in order to provide adequate seamless products) and in paragraph 5.4 of one Work Package (analyse the cost efficiency of different surveying methods for different regions). The interest of European Commission for a European programme for coastal mapping could be issued by mid2014.

Action: IHO EU Network: before mid2014, to describe more extensively the contents, and the results that could be delivered, of both the design study and the programme that will follow;

to organise itself to be ready to carry out both the design study and the programme.

5-Baltic Sea Bathymetric Database

3 4th BSBD

Magnus Wallhagen presents the Baltic Sea Bathymetric Database and makes a demonstration. The policy that was elaborated, with support of DG Move, HOs of Baltic Sea Hydrographic Commission, to make joint programmes could provide guidance at European level to the HOs of the European Union. The intention of BSHC is to interface the Baltic Sea Bathymetric Database to the local activities of currently ongoing Emodnet Phase II. DG Mare, as representative for the EU commission, and the Swedish HO as the host for the Database aspire to a Memorandum of Understanding to cover this cooperation on technical level.

6- Sea surface level, towards a common reference in European waters

4 4th NSHC

Leendert Dorst presents the challenges that navigation faces in the North Sea.

5 4th NSHC Vert Ref

Leendert Dorst presents the status of progress on establishing a common vertical reference in the North Sea. This process involves several HOs and universities and could benefit from a support from DG Research and Development (DG RTD) of the European Commission.

Action: Iain Shepherd: to make DG RTD aware of the interest of DG Mare for the establishment of common references surfaces and the need to support researches made in the frame of IHO standardisation activities on this topic.

7- Resurvey strategy in North Sea

6 4th NSHC resurvey

Leendert Dorst presents the resurvey strategy in the south part of the North Sea. The policy that was elaborated by some HOs of the North Sea Hydrographic Commission to coordinate their survey programmes could provide guidance at European level to the HOs of the European Union. Iain Shepherd indicates that some budget could be reserved in 2015 to support a joint initiative of HOs to foster joint programmes of hydrographic knowledge. Taking into account the challenges that navigation faces in the North Sea, especially in its southern part, this area could be considered as a pilot area for joint programming.

This could be considered as a part of the European Programme of Hydrographic Knowledge 2020.

Action: IHO EU Network: to prepare itself to be ready in 2015 to make a proposal on a European Programme of Hydrographic Knowledge

8- Marine spatial data infrastructure, Instituto Hidrográfico de la Marina

7 4th MSDI IHM

Guillermo Coll Florit presents the Marine Spatial Data Infrastructure of the Instituto Hidrográfico de la Marina. It responds to the requirements of INSPIRE directive, to IHO MSDI recommendations and to the many requests of nautical information in digital format made by the public.

9- Marine spatial data infrastructure, programme of work MSDI WG

8 4th MSDI WP

Ellen Vos presents the programme of work of MSDI WG. Iain Shepherd encourages MSDI initiatives as MSDI could help to meet the requirements of a future Marine Spatial Planning directive.

10- Way ahead and other business, date and place for the next meeting

The European Commission would welcome further input on the respective roles of HOs, the European RHCs and industry in the future development of EMODnet.

Action: Iain Shepherd will invite IHO to take part in the next MODEG meeting in January 2014.

Action: Noralf Slotsvik will invite DG Mare to take part in the next NSHC meeting, in Amsterdam, 25-27 June 2014.

Action: Magnus Wallhagen will invite DG Mare to take part in the next BSHC meeting, in Riga, on 11-12 June 2014.

Next meeting between IHO and EC should be planned in March 2014 (tbc), possibly back-to-back with another related event.