1. MRUs - update Irene del Barrio (EEA) September 28, 2017
16th meeting of WG DIKE, Brussels
MRUs - update

2. MRUs proposal: list sent to coutries
A list of possible Marine Reporting Units for MSFD 2018 reporting was sent by DG ENV the 30 June, where WG DIKE (Member States) were asked to:
1) Select (enter 'Y') in one of the 2 lists (‘MarineUnits_4geo’ or ‘MRUs_proposal_LIST’), the MRUs that you intend to use for the MSFD 2018 reporting, so that they can be included as a list of available MRUs in the Reporting system
2) Provide feedback on the proposed units, including units that may be missing (e.g. if territorial waters have not yet been submitted under WFD, are there plans to submit them under WFD? Will they be used for MSFD D8 reporting, as required in the 2017 GES Decision? In that case, have they planned their submission?)
3) If there are reporting units missing that you want to use, submit an updated 4geo.xml file to CDR by the 31st August If this timeline is not feasible (e.g. because you are still defining the MRUs you wish to use), please advice on your expected timeline to decide on MRUs. For inclusion of your MRUs in the testing phase of the web-form system in early 2018, your set of MRUs should be submitted by January 2018 latest.
4) Once you have finalised the MRUs to be used, please upload GIS files of their boundaries to CDR (as per previous reporting guidance). Boundaries do NOT need to be submitted for the following: Marine regions, Marine Subregions, Subdivisions used by HELCOM and OSPAR, Water bodies for coastal and territorial waters already submitted under WFD reporting. Where your MRUs use boundaries that coincide with any of these agreed boundaries, please ensure you use the official GIS boundary as part of your MRU boundary.
5) If the boundaries of your marine waters have been updated since last submission (mostly 2012, but some MS updated later), please provided an updated GIS file and 4geo.xml file.

3. MRUs proposal: list sent to coutries
Few feedback has been provided:
Calendar: in order to have the MRUs ready for the test-phase (vocabulary created), updates of 4geo.xml and GIS files the latest by 15 January 2018
Since DG ENV and EEA are asking in advance the report of updated 4geo.xml and GIS files, folders have already been created in CDR for the MSFD 2018 reporting. So please use these folders for the update of your files:
Country folder
European Union (EU) obligations
Marine Strategy Framework Directive: Article 17 (updates)
2018 Reporting – Articles 8, 9 and 10, and related geographic areas
MSFD - Article 4 - Spatial data
Country
Date
Update of Spatial 4geo.xml and GIS files
Denmark
29/08/2017
Updated 4geo.xml and GIS files expected by 15th September
Estonia
Still to be decided
Germany
Draft updated GIS files uploaded 29/8-2017
Netherlands
31/08/2017
As soon as new MRU’s are known NL will update 4geo.xml and GIS files
Sweden
Update of the GIS-layers will be done after decision in Parliament
Belgium
01/08/2017
Not mentioned
Finland
13/09/2017
MRUs which were not included in the Excel will be provided in GIS format