European Marine Observation and Data Network | EMODnet

On 20-21 September 2022, EMODnet together with EC DG MARE organised a workshop on “EMODnet marine data for the offshore renewable energy sector in the Northeast Atlantic, North Sea and Baltic Sea”. The workshop was attended by more than 65 offshore renewable energy experts with representatives from diverse sectors including industry, research and marine data services. EMODnet was well represented by thematic experts from physics, biology and human activities, together with the EMODnet Secretariat. The agenda included a demonstration of the latest EMODnet services, use cases of how the offshore renewable energy sector use EMODnet data and data products, and dialogues on data requirements and data sharing. A second workshop on the same topic, focusing on the Mediterranean and Black Seas will follow on 20-21 October 2022.

On 12 September the EMODnet Secretariat moved into their new offices in the new InnovOcean Campus in Ostend, which is hosting also the Flanders Marine Institute administering EMODnet Biology, European Marine Board, IODE Project Office, the Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO), the regional coastal heritage team Kust Erfgoed and the Province of West Flanders coastal office. The new official address is Jacobsenstraat 1, 8400 Ostend (Belgium).

EMODnet powers the European Atlas of the Seas, a European Commission online communication tool for wider society. For the start of the new school year, the European Atlas of the Seas released its interactive help tool in 24 languages. Thanks to its multilingual features, the Atlas makes it possible for citizens, teachers and students from all around Europe to easily explore a wide range of popular marine topics such as: environment; marine life; nature conservation; sea surface temperature trends; sea level rise; marine litter; fisheries; aquaculture; tourism; energy; transport; and much more! The EMODnet Secretariat presented the latest updates at the European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA)'s annual conference on 28 September 2022 in Mallorca, Spain. Have a look at the presentation!

On 22 September the second EMODnet-Copernicus Marine Thematic workshop on Coastal issues took place, two years after the first workshop in June 2020. The meeting brought together EMODnet and Copernicus Marine Service experts together with inter-DG representation from the European Commission and CINEA. The workshop focused on dialogue between the two EU marine data services EMODnet and Copernicus Marine Service with a specific focus on the coastal area. Existing capabilities and emerging areas for collaboration across EMODnet themes and between EMODnet and Copernicus Marine were assessed, and concrete joint contributions to European (e.g. EU DTO, Green Deal) and global (UN Ocean Decade) initiatives/strategies were defined. A report will follow on the EC Maritime Forum.

On 21 and 22 September, technical experts from across the EMODnet thematic lots gathered in a hybrid meeting to focus and discuss progress on the centralisation of the EMODnet data services. The centralisation will be completed by the end of 2022, bringing a number of benefits to the user through centralised data discovery, access and visualisation directly from the EMODnet Central Portal and a common map viewer. The minutes and presentations will be made available on the EC Maritime Forum in due course.

On the 1st of September, The Community of Practice (CoP) on Data sharing, information and communication technology serving Maritime Spatial Plans (MSP) organised its second Workshop meeting on "Coherence of the MSP data and information". EMODnet Human Activities attended the workshop online. Guest presentations were given by among others the Danish Maritime Authority and the Italian National Research Council, who both indicated to use EMODnet in their work.

EMODnet Chemistry has significantly expanded the new edition of the guidelines entitled "Updated guidelines for SeaDataNet ODV production: Eutrophication & Contaminants". The recently published manual explains to data providers which standards, tools and software provided by the SeaDataNet infrastructure are adopted by EMODnet Chemistry to harmonise and validate data. A list of the most important problems and common errors and how to solve or avoid them is also part of the guide. In addition to information on the correct submission of data for pollutants and eutrophication, this edition includes a full section on ocean acidity.

The EMODnet Seabed Habitats Map viewer contains over 80 modelled maps of specific habitat type. Models showing the predicted presence/absence of OSPAR habitats such as Lophelia pertusa and the newly listed Kelp Forests, are available to view, download or add as a web mapping service (WMS). Models for other Regional Sea Convention areas include spatial distributions of coralligenous outcrops across the Mediterranean Sea and over 20 species distribution models in the Baltic Sea.

Over the past couple of years EMODnet Biology has been focusing on the development of R packages that allow users to access EMODnet data via OGC webservices. These are now publicly available.

This event aims to mobilise a wide range of stakeholders to join the Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”, and particularly the Atlantic-Arctic lighthouse. The event will focus on the political commitments to implement the Mission and agree on concrete measures and actions in the Atlantic-Arctic basins to protect and restore marine and freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity, and boost coastal resilience. This follows the wider dialogues on Mission Ocean as part of the EU Research and Innovation Days which took place on 28-29 September 2022.

Take part in the final conference of the Blue-Cloud pilot project for an opportunity to learn about the main results, achievements and the road ahead of this key component of the EU “Future of Seas and Oceans Flagship Initiative”.

The Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), Marine Technology Society (MTS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and industry partners launched a new Ocean Decade action - a forum for compact and meaningful dialogue with new and established companies, academia, and government. Through a successful and thriving mix of the public and private technologies and players, Dialogues with Industry will aim to dismantle barriers and highlight opportunities towards achieving a mature, vibrant ocean observing enterprise.

DG MARE has identified smart specialisation strategies (S3) as a key tool for implementing the Communication on a Sustainable Blue Economy (SBE), as an integral part of the European Green Deal (EGD). DG MARE has set up the S3 thematic platform for SBE, to support blue economy interregional partnerships/value chains. The promotion of best practices, lessons learned and future perspectives is extremely valuable in fine-tuning the support provided by the S3 thematic platform for SBE.

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