1. OSPAR biodiversity assessments Intermediate Assessment 2017
Joint meeting on biodiversity assessment and reporting under the
Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) and Habitats and Birds Directives (HBD)
Brussels, 23 March 2018
Lena Avellan OSPAR Deputy Secretary

4. The OSPAR Commission meeting in June 2017 adopted the OSPAR Intermediate Assessment 2017
- The Intermediate Assessment is a culmination of seven years of collaborative work by OSPAR’s 16 Contracting Parties.
- Objective is to give access to content and data behind the assessments to as wide an audience as possible.
-Its multi-level approach will provide useful information for a different range of users, policymakers, academics, students and the public in general.
To make sure that OSPAR continues to learn and evolve, in collaboration with the CP, we are undertaking a “lessons learnt” process, the results of which will feed into the planning of the next QSR These QSR reports consist of a factual basis for new policies and strategies, meaning they are not only reports on environmental status, but also evaluate the effectiveness of measures.
Outputs of the IA 2017:some clear messages could be drawn from the IA 2017:
Marine Birds are in trouble – 44% of species in Norwegian arctic waters, 35% in the greater north sea, and 35% in Celtic Seas are experiencing widespread breeding failure
Marine Litter is a problem - Marine litter, in particular plastic, is abundant on beaches, in the water column and on the seafloor in the regions assessed
Fish communities are showing signs of recovery - indicating that fisheries management is beginning to have a positive impact on fish communities
The network of OSPAR MPAs is expanding - MPAs now cover 5.9% of the OSPAR Maritime Area compared with a total coverage of only 1.1% in 2010
OSPAR assessments are based on the cooperative gathering of data and its collective assessment by scientists from OSPAR CP:
Those scientists also work in cooperation with the wider scientific and academic community, including the ICES:
And share developments and knowledge from other Regional Seas Conventions to which they also belong

5. OSPAR Biodiversity assessments - what questions are they looking to answer?
OSPAR Convention, Annex V on the protection and conservation of ecosystems and biological diversity of the maritime area
OSPAR North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy Thematic strategy; Biological Diversity and Ecosystems
Support a regionally coherent approach that can be used by Contracting Parties that are also EU Member States in their reporting on EU requirements
Intermediate Assessment is comprised of 47 stand alone assessments, each one with varying spatial coverage within the OSPAR Maritime Area;
Time period for assessments varies as reporting periods are parameter specific (always used the latest available data) – in some cases data up to 2015;
The majority of assessments are based on indicators– which is a new approach for OSPAR and allows CP who are also EU MS to use them (if they so wish) for MSFD reporting;
For example, one of the indicators of biological diversity and seafloor integrity looked at the extent of physical damage to predominant and special habitats using surface abrasion fishing pressure maps;
OSPAR’s regular thematic assessments are also presented (discharges from offshore oil and gas installations and radioactive discharges);
The figure on the left shows the number of assessments (by OSPAR Strategy) that have been undertaken in each OSPAR region – so you can see the most extensive coverage is in the Greater North Sea, the Celtic Seas and in the Bay of Biscay and Iberian Coast;
Table on the right shows number of assessments by subject.

6. Intermediate Assessment 2017 Online product with thematic structure
47 assessments
Non-Indigenous Species 1
Marine Mammals 6
Marine Birds 2
Fish Communities 3
Benthic Habitats 4
Pelagic Habitats
Foodwebs
Marine Protected Areas
Marine Litter
Noise (Impulsive)
Dredged Material
Eutrophication/Nutrients
Hazardous Substances 11
Offshore Industry
Radioactive Substances
Intermediate Assessment is comprised of 47 stand alone assessments, each one with varying spatial coverage within the OSPAR Maritime Area;
Time period for assessments varies as reporting periods are parameter specific (always used the latest available data) – in some cases data up to 2015;
The majority of assessments are based on indicators– which is a new approach for OSPAR and allows CP who are also EU MS to use them (if they so wish) for MSFD reporting;
For example, one of the indicators of biological diversity and seafloor integrity looked at the extent of physical damage to predominant and special habitats using surface abrasion fishing pressure maps;
OSPAR’s regular thematic assessments are also presented (discharges from offshore oil and gas installations and radioactive discharges);
The figure on the left shows the number of assessments (by OSPAR Strategy) that have been undertaken in each OSPAR region – so you can see the most extensive coverage is in the Greater North Sea, the Celtic Seas and in the Bay of Biscay and Iberian Coast;
Table on the right shows number of assessments by subject.

7. The Intermediate Assessment contains 47 assessments (main bulk with regard to Pressures from Human Activities and Biodiversity Status) and also three chapters covering:
Climate and Ocean Acidification – review of existing literature and status – on the effects of ocean acidification and climate change on the indicators assessed
Socio-Economics – indicator-based approach still in development – results will be presented in 2018
Ecosystem Assessment which sets out the method for cumulative assessment that will be used in the next Quality Status Report 2023
OSPAR Assessment Portal (OAP) used to disseminate results,
aim to make follow up between assessments easier in the future
allow for clear linkage across to other portals for assessments (e.g. reporting purposes) with clear metadata provided

8. Results
and extended results
Assessment method
CEMP guidelines

9. Geographical coverage of assessments vary
depending on data availability and OSPAR Region where indicator is agreed as common

10. ODIMS
Developed through IA2017 process based on the OSPAR Data and Information strategy and will hold and share IA2017 data
To be the future focal point of OSPAR decentralized database (to hold and share OSPAR information and to pull in layers from other providers)

12. Indicator operationalisation
Assessment values agreed for a few indicators, priorities for future incl. issues such as assessment methods for incidental by-catch, fish and benthic habitats and data management
Assessment programme for ‘rolling assessments’ under development to deliver for OSPAR Quality Status Report 2023
Data management under development

14. The OSPAR list of threatened and/or declining species and habitats
Status assessments for all listed features
Assessment guidelines and assessment programme under development during the coming year, including test assessments
Phased assessment approach
Exploring the use of third party assessments

15. Thank you!