A Common Strategy
Although they share the same objective, aiming at getting operational data for assessment, model validation and assimilation purposes, the heterogeneity of the high-frequency in situ measurements obtained from coastal observatories is striking. The set of measured parameters and the density of their respective coverage obviously differ, due to the incentives that initiated the implementation of such or such network. Precision and reliability do not hinge on pan-European standards, and some concurrent methods are not cross-validated. Moreover, the sustainability would also rely on the availability of project funding or on the renewal of service level agreements, which barely cover excessively high running costs due to maintenance at sea, recalibration, etc. Hence, coastal observatories have rapidly developed along most European shorelines, but with such diversity that JERICO truly becomes a timely initiative.
This full work package is therefore devoted to developing a common strategy:
– listening representative user committees and accounting for the richness of the various initial approaches,
– defining the most efficient standards by way of a label that does not kill initiative but recognizes shared values,
– plotting a convincing roadmap from the conclusions of the project. It should then help all stakeholders to benefit from well-designed, well-maintained and cost effective observatories to fulfill the needs for coastal data in research and operational usage. Pan-European governance should then be proposed, that would carry on this harmonization process and foster the expansion of coastal observations. As a first step, a long-lasting forum should be launched, that will provide a clear response to the lack of competitiveness of the oceanographic instrumentation in Europe, due to the fragmentation of the market. As for the global research and operational infrastructure, for obvious geographical reasons the network of coastal observatories should remain distributed, but the JERICO partners wish to design a common implementation strategy with a clear message, by visible outcomes.
Therefore, the objectives of NA1 are to address these issues by:
Launching a European strategic view on operational coastal observatories:
– To analyze with shared criteria the initial state of existing networks among the ROOSs: commonalities and differences will be highlighted, obviously showing gaps and unbalanced coverage;
– to inform stakeholders, mainly public authorities and research consortia, where and why information is missing, pointing out which natural or anthropogenic processes cannot be presently tracked, and which operational services are missing or provided with insufficient accuracy, for research purposes but also for objective assessments regarding the European policies and regulations, such as the WFD and the MSFD;
– To show ways to reduce the investment and the running cost;
– To find out mechanisms for durable links with financial resources including new economical models;
– To identify future technological and methodological developments;
– To evaluate further, within the same time frame, the needs expressed by scientists and by operational systems for a larger geographical and thematic coverage of the coastal observatories;
– To prepare an ad-hoc governance scheme facilitating and linking European coastal observatories.
Creating a JERICO label:
– to establish a consensus on guidelines for best practices in the design, the implementation, the maintenance, the data policy and the valorization of operational coastal observatories;
– To get, for the partners and all new comers that comply with this label, a fair recognition of the quality of the managed observatories;
– To help stakeholders becoming aware of the European interest in the development of high quality coastal observatories;
– To foster a wider market for the industry in sensor technology and platforms based on the agreed standards.
Organizing a Forum for Coastal Technology:
– to set up a non profit-making mechanism scheme to promote and share informal exchanges on scientific and technical topics related to coastal environment;
– To provide a strong interface between SMEs, industry, stakeholders and science & technology, e.g. by joint developments and technology transfer;
– To provide a market intelligence tool, indicator of the tendencies/growth on the JERICO related market on instruments and services,
– To seed a Euro-Act, based on the model and in close collaboration with the US-ACT organization; – To provide an unbiased third party test bed for sensors and measuring systems;
– To prospect the market, forecasting scientific and societal needs for new coastal observations; – To identify upcoming standards for quality assessment and for reducing equipment and maintenance costs, by exchange over best practices;
– To sustain joint research and development initiatives on sensors and platforms.
To promote open access to JERICO network:
The primary objectives of this WP is to enable scientists and engineers to have access to original infrastructures to which they do not have access to in their countries. They include fixed platforms, buoys, profiling systems, gliders, ferry boxes and associated support facilities (e.g., calibration laboratories).
These access opportunities will also contribute to: – build a long-term collaboration between users and JERICO’s partners and associated, facilitating the staff exchange and scientific collaboration among them, – build a real European facility for science dedicated to innovation (new sensors , new automated platforms), opening the access for users also from non-EU countries of common regional interest (South Mediterranean, Black sea, Baltic Sea), – promote the infrastructure by transferring know-how from the partners to users and may be future partners (Including from non European countries).
