Environmental assessment training of researchers from the Mediterranean and the Black Sea

Abstract

Leading research Institutes and SMEs from EU Member States, Associated States, Associated Candidate countries, non-EU Mediterranean and Black Sea countries joined forces in a coordinated manner within the PERSEUS Project, in order to address common environmental pressures and, ultimately, take action in the challenge of achieving the Good Environmental State. One of these coordinated actions was the summer school on “The contribution of environmental indices in meeting the objectives and principles of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive”, organized in Constanta, Romania, during 3-7 June 2013, within the framework of Work Package 8 (WP8). The main objectives of the PERSEUS Summer School on the contribution of environmental indices in meeting the objectives and principles of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive were to expose participants to aspects of the theoretical and practical background on the assessment of the benthic ecological status using the index M-AMBI (multivariate AMBI - AZTI’s Marine Biotic Index) and MSFD assessment issues; to provide participants with the most important concepts related to the fishery related indices; to get participants acquainted with the main applications of ocean color based index/eutrophication- related core set indicators CSI023 (chlorophyll-a); to present theoretical and practical aspects of characterization of the ecological state of marine and coastal waters using Trophic index (TRIX); to establish links between different researchers involved in the field of environmental indicators related with MSFD. As a result of the conduction of this summer school, 20 Mediterranean and Black Sea young researchers were trained in the basics of MSFD environmental indices, which they can apply in their respective institutes for the better management of marine resources, thus contributing to build experience in the formulation of scientifically based synthetic assessment of the state of the marine environment, aligned with the objectives of the PERSEUS project.