Revision of the consistency in Reference Criteria application in the phase one of the European Intercalibration Exercise

This document is produced within the cross GIG working group on Reference con-ditions and is a final report on the consistency check survey, with an assessment of implications and recommendations for the application of reference conditions during IC phase two.JRC.H.5-Rural, water and ecosystem resource

Improving Science-Policy Interfaces: Recommendations for JPI Oceans

The report builds on the outcomes of the first publication of the CSA Oceans Work Package 5. In this public deliverable, we aim to supplement the outcomes of the consultations to determine the current and future needs of policy makers and advisors from relevant international, European and national public bodies. We also discuss what actions JPI Oceans could do to add value to existing science-policy mechanisms. This is considered in the context of joint programming, and looks at how other similar organisations have been effective at adding value. Firstly, we explore five examples of science-policy mechanisms as case studies. The case studies were selected to demonstrate examples of best practice, including examples highlighted by stakeholders and other known mechanisms, to explore how they work and what makes them effective. The second section of this report investigates how new technology and methodologies could be useful in improving science-policy interfaces. This section contains a number of specific examples of existing projects that could be considered relevant or cutting edge, while they are not discussed in detail, links have been provided for further reading. There are several examples of ongoing work in individual Member States; these examples are mostly drawn from the CSA Oceans consultation exercise. The third section explores how JPI Oceans could act to improve science-policy interfaces. This section looks at the recommendations made by stakeholders and attempts to briefly summarise the context and identifies how JPI Oceans could add value without duplicating existing efforts in the field. In this section we also discuss how JPI Oceans could add value to the science-policy interactions in ten strategic areas identified by its Strategic Advisory Board (StAB). These areas were defined in a workshop held between CSA Oceans and the StAB in July, 2014

Transitional waters North East Atlantic geographic intercalibration group: Benthic invertebrate fauna ecological assessment methods

This report gives a technical description on the intercalibration (IC) process of the different benthic assessment approaches for soft sediment habitats (muds to sands) in transitional waters in the North East Atlantic Geographical Intercalibration Group (NEA-GIG) for type NEA 11 (Transitional Waters). Eight member states are involved: Belgium (BE), France (FR), Germany (DE), Ireland (RoI), the Netherlands (NL), Portugal (PT), Spain (SP), and United Kingdom (UK). In Spain, the competent authorities for the WFD application are the regions, as such, for the benthic macroinvertebrates assessment methods three regions have been considered: Andalusia (SP-An), Basque Country (SP-BC) and Cantabria (SP-C). Those member states proposed 7 approaches for IC: AeTV (DE), BAT (PT), BEQI (BE), BEQI2 (NL), IQI (RoI and UK), M-AMBI (DE and SP-BC), QSB (SP-C) and TAsBeM (SP-An). However, AeTV and BEQI are not intercalibrated as they assess benthic invertebrates at water body and ecosystem level, respectively, whereas the rest of methods assess the benthic status at sample level.JRC.D.2-Water and Marine Resource

Coastal waters North East Atlantic geographic intercalibration group: Benthic invertebrate fauna ecological assessment methods

The European Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires the national classifications of good ecological status to be harmonised through an intercalibration exercise. In this exercise, significant differences in status classification among Member States are harmonized by comparing and, if necessary, adjusting the good status boundaries of the national assessment methods. Intercalibration is performed for rivers, lakes, coastal and transitional waters, focusing on selected types of water bodies (intercalibration types), anthropogenic pressures and Biological Quality Elements. Intercalibration exercises are carried out in Geographical Intercalibration Groups - larger geographical units including Member States with similar water body types - and followed the procedure described in the WFD Common Implementation Strategy Guidance document on the intercalibration process (European Commission, 2011). The Technical report on the Water Framework Directive intercalibration describes in detail how the intercalibration exercise has been carried out for the water categories and biological quality elements. The Technical report is organized in volumes according to the water category (rivers, lakes, coastal and transitional waters), Biological Quality Element and Geographical Intercalibration group. This report gives a description of the intercalibration of the different benthic assessment approaches for in coastal waters in the North East Atlantic Geographical Intercalibration Group (NEA-GIG) for types NEA 1/26 (Exposed or sheltered, euhaline, shallow waters), NEA 3/4 (Wadden sea type) and NEA 7 (Deep fjordic and sea loach systems). The benthic assessment approaches of nine European Member States (Belgium, Germany, Denmark, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom) and Norway are intercalibrated. In Spain, the competent authorities for the WFD application are the regions (‘autonomous communities’); therefore for the benthic assessment methods three regions have been considered: Basque Country, Andalusia and Cantabria (no information on Galicia or Asturias). Part D of the report describes the Germany assessment approach for the type NEA 5. This type is not shared with the rest of the Members Stares, and therefore, the Intercalibration is not possibleJRC.D.2-Water and Marine Resource

JPI Oceans Concerted support action deliverable 5.1 'Mapping and preliminary analysis of policy needs for evidence'

CSA Oceans preliminary analysis of policy needs CSA Oceans has completed its preliminary analysis of policy needs. The public deliverable reports on the current status of marine and maritime policies relevant to JPI Oceans and identifies examples of science to policy mechanisms. The report uses stakeholder input to identify the needs of different policies to fulfil their objectives. One of the underlying issues is thought to be a lack of integration between marine and maritime activities. It was suggested that new technologies, integrated systems and greater data sharing could be the key to developing more holistic management strategies. Stakeholders also identified several examples of effective science to policy mechanisms which include ICES, the IPCC assessment, and science-policy activities of the European Marine Board. Evidence for the public deliverable was gathered from three stakeholder consultation exercises conducted in 2013. This involved a series of stakeholder workshops, a national funding agencies questionnaire, and an online consultation. Next steps The next step for CSA Oceans - Work Package 5 is to build on the findings of the first deliverable. The next deliverable will develop case studies, based on the examples identified, and suggest how JPI Oceans could improve science to policy mechanisms in Europe. Both deliverables of Work Package 5 will be used to inform the content of the JPI Oceans Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda and Implementation Plan. Stakeholder inputs are at the core of this deliverable to ensure that the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda and the Implementation Plan are developed in parallel with the opinions of the European marine and maritime community

Aggregate extraction from tidal sandbanks: Is dredging with nature an option? Introduction

Sandbanks are considered as primary targets for the marine aggregate industry, not only because of considerationsrelated to resource quality and operational advantages, but also due to the notion that natural sediment transportprocesses that form and maintain sandbanks are able to counterbalance the loss of sediment due to extraction.This paper introduces: (a) the problems related to the assessment of the impacts of aggregate extraction fromtidal sandbanks; and (b) the multidisciplinary and integrated research that was undertaken on the potential forregeneration of the most intensively exploited area of the Kwinte Bank (Flemish Banks, Belgian Continental Shelf),following the cessation of extraction on this part of the sandbank. We assert that the results of a 30-year monitoringof exploitation effects along the Kwinte Bank have put in doubt the universal notion of ‘dredging with nature’. Theelongated depressions that have been observed in the most heavily exploited areas provide a clear signal that moredetailed information and thorough assessment are required in order to understand and predict the most likelyevolution of the bank’s hydro-sedimentary regime and its natural and anthropogenically-induced dynamics

Intercalibrating classifications of ecological status: Europe's quest for common management objectives for aquatic ecosystems

Halting and reversing the deterioration of aquatic ecosystems requires concerted action across state boundaries and administrative barriers. However, the achievement of common management objectives is jeopardised by different national quality targets and ambitions. The European Water Framework Directive requires that quality classifications are harmonised via an intercalibration exercise, ensuring a consistent level of ambition in the protection and restoration of surface water bodies across the Member States of the European Union. We outline the key principles of the intercalibration methodology, review the achievements of intercalibration and discuss its benefits and drawbacks. Less than half of the required intercalibration has been completed, mostly due to a lack of national assessment methods. The process has fostered a scientific debate on ecological classification with important implications for environmental management. Despite a significant level of statistical abstraction, intercalibration yielded a fundamental and unified vision of what constitutes good ecology across Europe, in principle ensuring greater parity in the funds invested to achieve good ecological status

An intercalibration exercise for benthic macrophyte indices across the Mediterranean Sea coastal lagoons

Within the transitional waters macrophyte Mediterranean Geographical Intercalibration Group (MEDGIG) of the Water Framework Directive intercalibration, three countries (France, Greece, and Italy) compared their methodologies (Exclame, EEI-c, R-MaQI, respectively) for coastal lagoons. All methods classified soft bottom benthic macrophytes (angiosperms, seaweeds) in several sensitivity groups following the concept that “anthropogenic pressure” (stress) drives the ecosystem from a pristine state, where seagrasses are dominant, to a degraded state, where opportunistic species and phytoplankton are dominant. While Greece and Italy assessed the species abundance as coverage (%) in the laboratory, France assessed the species abundance as cover (%) in the field. A database consisting of 105 taxa abundance and pressure data from 55 shallow (depth=1-3m) and vegetated (cover >10%) sites (14 in France, 20 in Greece, 20 in Italy) belonging to meso-, poly- and euhaline (salinity >5‰) coastal lagoons, either confined or not confined, has been created. The 3 methods used a similar scale at biological (species), spatial (site) and temporal (one sampling per year during spring-summer) level, enabling a direct comparison of the 3 indices at biological community level. A common pressure index based on expert judgment was calculated. Multivariate analyses (MDS, Cluster) indicated no biogeographical differences across the Mediterranean Sea. SIMPER analyses confirmed that reference “benchmark” sites communities (pressure index ≤ 6) were characterized by the dominance of angiosperm species (Cymodocea nodosa=49.9%, Ruppia cirrhosa=35.67%, Zostera noltii=10%), while “borderline” communities between good and moderate ecological status were dominated by macroalgae-cyanobacteria in coexistence with angiosperms. Due to ecosystems high natural variability and to relative low number of benchmark sites provided, it was decided to use continuous benchmarking to determine the differences between the countries. Greece appeared more precautious and adjusted its quality class boundaries by lowering both High/Good and Good/Moderate boundaries to 0.7 and 0.4, respectively (France, and Italy: H/G=0.8, G/M=0.6).JRC.H.1-Water Resource