The implementation of the EU-funded EcAp MED III project is proceeding well despite restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first Steering Committee convened on 28 April 2021 (online) heard.
The project, which is executed by the Mediterranean Action Plan of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP/MAP), aims to assist Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries to implement the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme and related assessment criteria for the Mediterranean Sea and Coast (IMAP), and to contribute to the preparation and delivery of the 2023 Mediterranean Quality Status Report (2023 MED QSR), a key UNEP/MAP knowledge product, the preparation of which is mandated by the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols .
Since the inception of the project in September 2020, the seven beneficiary countries (namely Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia) have devised data collection plans to ensure adequate monitoring on pollution, marine litter, biodiversity and fisheries. Further support will be provided through the project for the gathering of data covering coast and hydrography elements.
In addition, the project will implement a Joint Monitoring and Assessment programme of Non-Indigenous Species (NIS) in the Eastern Mediterranean, in close coordination with other countries of the area that are not beneficiaries of the Project (namely Cyprus, Greece, and Turkey).
The development of the scientific methodologies and technical foundations required for the integrated environmental assessment of the Mediterranean Sea and Coast is another area where the support of the EcAp MED III project is gradually filling existing gaps. The endeavour will be crucial for the preparation of the 2023 MED QSR.
EcAp MED III is being implemented in close coordination with two other EU-funded projects, namely IMAP-MPA and Marine Litter MED, that seek to remove hurdles to the full implementation of IMAP.
Painstaking work on the IMAP thematic clusters
IMAP is the regionally harmonised monitoring and assessment instrument adopted by the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols.
In order to advance the scientific and technical work on developing scales of assessment, assessment criteria, and baseline and threshold values for the Common Indicators, experts from several Contracting Parties attend the technical meetings of the Correspondence Group on IMAP Implementation (CORMON) established under the Barcelona Convention.
- The CORMON meeting on Marine Litter, which was held online on 30 March 2021, approved the baseline values and threshold values for beach macro-litter and the updated guidelines for monitoring floating microplastics.
- The CORMON meeting on Pollution, which took place online on 26-28 April 2021, pored over the monitoring guidelines, integration and aggregation rules, and assessment criteria for the IMAP Common Indicators related to contaminants.
- The CORMON meeting on Biodiversity and Fisheries, which will address monitoring protocols and scales, assessment criteria, and threshold and baseline values of IMAP Common Indicators related to Biodiversity, is scheduled for 10-11 June 2021.
- The CORMON meeting addressing the “Coast and Hydrography” cluster of IMAP is foreseen in October/November 2021.
The way forward
The first Steering Committee of the EcAp MED III project approved the Workplan for the period April 2021–March 2022. Activities scheduled for 2021 include support to the monitoring of the marine environment in the seven beneficiary countries for Pollution, Marine Litter, Biodiversity and NIS, as well as Coast and Hydrography elements.
In addition, pilots for the creation of national Science-Policy Interface networks for each IMAP thematic cluster will be identified and implemented in beneficiary countries.
The IMAP Info System will continue to be upgraded. By June 2022, it will host essential data for the preparation of the 2023 MED QSR. Meanwhile, assessment scales, criteria and methodologies for the integrated assessment of the Mediterranean Sea and Coast will continue to be honed.
Learn more:
- The Ecosystem Approach in the Mediterranean
- Monitoring and Assessments under the Barcelona Convention
