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Assessing H2020/NAP Waste and Marine cluster, 5 April 2019, Podgorica, Montenegro

Assessing H2020/NAP Waste and Marine cluster, 5 April 2019, Podgorica, Montenegro

© Stipe Surac, WasteSMART /EEA

Countries: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia

Mediterranean waste and marine litter experts gathered in Podgorica, Montenegro, 4-5 April 2019 to review and progress on the assessment of the H2020/NAP indicators for waste, including marine litter, at national and regional levels. They further explored means of ensuring/maximizing synergies between the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme (IMAP) marine litter indicators and ENI SEIS II South H2020/NAP waste indicators.

The workshop organised by UN Environment/Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) and the EU funded project European Neighborhood Instrument (ENI) Shared Environmental Information System (SEIS) II South Support Mechanism. Gathering country representatives from three ENI South countries (Isreal, Morocco and Tunisia) alongside representatives from 12 other Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention. Organisations/institutions in attendance included the European Environment Agency (EEA), European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODNET), European Topic Centre, Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS), Mediterranean Information Office for Environment, Culture and Sustainable Development (MIO-ECSDE), Mohammed IV Foundation for Environmental Protection, Regional Activity Centre for Information and Communication (INFO/RAC), Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas (SPA/RAC), University of Malaga - PANACEA Project and University of Siena.

The workshop served as an opportunity to present and review the analytical approach for developing and assessing the H2020/NAP waste indicators; to present the reporting infrastructure – namely InfoMAPNode –developed by UN Environment/MAP InfoRAC to support reporting of the H2020/NAP related data sets; as well as review the information on the status of implementation of the Regional Plan on Marine Litter Management in the Mediterranean and implementation of the National Action Plans (NAPs).

Participants discussed the scope for synergies between the H2020/NAP waste indicators and MED POL marine littler monitoring programmes (IMAP) as well as other MAP assessments, such as the State of Environment and Development Report. The meeting acknowledged that data flows within the InfoMAP Platform (including IMAP, Barcelona Convention Reporting System – BCRS, National Baseline Budget/Pollutant Release and Transfer Register – NBB/PRTR, MED POL) are relevant for H2020/NAP indicators. These data flows will be harvested by InfoRAC in order to pre-fill data formats and GIS layers with the aim to facilitate the efforts of the Contracting Parties in submitting and completing the required information.

In discussing the scope of the Horizon 2020 waste thematic assessment, participants recommended considering the following:

  • Inclusion of maritime sources of marine litter;
  • Transboundary elements such as rivers;
  • Need to better identify sources of marine litter and increase regional monitoring capacity;
  • Importance of quantifying the impacts of waste and marine litter on the marine environment;
  • Importance of better understanding society’s littering behavior and increase public awareness;
  • Seasonal flows of waste linked to tourism and riverine discharges (including flood plains);
  • Addressing issues specific to countries and inclusion of illustrating case-studies.

More information is available here