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Collaboration was fostered in 2011 between GRID-Arendal
and the UNEP Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) through
two agreements:
• During the first half of 2011 GRID-Arendal worked
intensively with the UNEP/MAP team in the prep-
aration of technical documents and the organiza-
tion of meetings with state representatives in order
to advance the Ecosystem Approach. This resulted
in the definition of the ecological and operational
objectives and indicators that will guide imple-
mentation of the Ecosystem Approach. The agree-
ment on objectives and indicators will allow them
to engage in the discussion of target levels and
ultimately lead to targeted monitoring systems and
programs.
• During the second half of 2011 GRID-Arendal worked
in the development of the content of the State of the
Marine and Coastal Environment Report 2012 that will
be concluded during the first half of 2012. The objec-
tive of the report is to synthesize the most advanced
knowledge on major environmental issues for the
further development of the Ecosystem Approach in
the Mediterranean.
Global reservoirs of methane gas are increasingly recog-
nised both as natural drivers of climate change and as a
potential energy resource for development. The Global
Outlook on Methane Gas Hydrates, due to be launched
in 2012, is being prepared in collaboration with national
workgroups from Norway, Canada, US, India, Korea, Ja-
pan and Germany, private sector companies (Statoil
and Schlumberger) and NGOs (WWF, Forum for the Fu-
ture (UK). In 2011 a new public outreach web portal was
launched providing a multimedia experience of methane
hydrates.27
Together with the
of the SPC, GRID-Arendal is a partner in
a major project to address legislative, regulatory, capac-
ity requirements and environmental issues pertaining
to deep sea mineral mining for countries in the Pacific
region. The four-year Deep Sea Minerals Project aims
to ensure sustainable resource management that will
bring tangible benefits to Pacific island countries and
their people. The first deliverable managed by GRID
Arendal, the Pacific Marine Mining Assessment, will
be published in mid 2012. The three-volume report ex-
amines the scientific, technical, environmental, social
and economic aspects of deep-sea mining. It brings
The GeoIQ platform25 forms the backbone of OCEAN-
IDS, which was used in 2011 to support the CBD pro-
cess in identifying ecologically and biologically signifi-
cant areas outside of national jurisdiction in the high
seas of the North-East Atlantic. This exercise was
the first in a global series of workshops the CBD has
agreed to conduct. GRID-Arendal is planning to support
further workshops and training activities in 2012, par-
ticularly in developing countries’ regions, within the
framework of the Sustainable Seas capacity develop-
ment programme.
For improved visualisation of marine data, a new Arc-
tic basemap was developed by GRID-Arendal and in-
corporated in the GeoIQ/OCEANIDS mapping tool. An
interactive map of the Arctic has subsequently been pre-
pared in collaboration with the Global Arctic Programme
administered by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
It includes layers on past, current and projected sea
ice extent, shipping routes, industrial activities (oil
and gas sector), communities, protected areas, distri-
bution of indigenous peoples, and the locations and
descriptions of WWF offices in the Arctic and
projects coordinated by the WWF Global Arctic Pro-
gramme.
Contributing to the European Commission’s European
Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODNET)26 to
improve access to high quality marine data for private
bodies, public authorities and researchers, GRID-Aren-
dal focused in 2011 on the identification of data from
Lebanon, Israel, Turkey and North Africa. GRID-Aren-
dal will continue to provide data mining and network-
ing support to a number of non-EU developing states
throughout 2012.
Natural gas emanating from a laboratory-produced methane gas hy-
drate set alight at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute at the Univer-
sity of Hawaii. Photo: HNEI, SOEST, University of Hawaii
25.The GeoIQ mapping tool was used in 2011 for particular projects
(OSPAR EBSA workshop, WWF) - but will from February 2012 be avail-
able to the public. See
26.
27. http://