INTERGOVERNMENTAL OCEANOGRAPHIC COMMISSION
(of UNESCO)
Seventeenth
Session of the IOC Committee on International Oceanographic Data and
Information Exchange (IODE), Paris, France, 3 – 7 March 2003.
IODE NATIONAL REPORT FOR MALTA
1. Name of Data Centre
The Physical Oceanography Unit (PO-Unit)
2. National IODE Co-ordinator
Name: Dr. Aldo Drago
Address: Director of Research
Physical Oceanography Unit
IOI-Malta Operational Centre
C/o 36,
Valletta
Tel: +356 21232493
Fax: +356 21232493
E-mail: aldo.drago@um.edu.mt
3. PO-Unit Address
Same as in (2)
4. PO-Unit URL:
www.capemalta.net/pounit
5. IODE Data Centre Designation Date:
6. PO-Unit Description
The Unit undertakes fundamental
research in coastal meteorology, hydrography and physical oceanography with a
main emphasis on the experimental study of the hydrodynamics of the sea in the
vicinity of the
7. Brief History
The PO-Unit was established under
the Malta Council for S&T. It was recently transferred to the
In February 2001 the installation of
a sea level gauge in the Portomaso marina at the Malta Hilton in St. Julians
was completed. It constitutes the first real-time monitoring station for
oceanographic data in
The Unit participated in two EU/MAST
(Marine Science and Technology) IVth Framework Programme projects which were
funded by the European Commission DGXII. These were the Mediterranean
Forecasting System Pilot Project (MFSPP) and the Mediterranean Data Archaeology
and Rescue of Temperature, Salinity and Bio-chemical Parameters
(MEDAR/MEDATLAS).
Since January 2002, the Unit is
technically supporting several activities of the ‘Mediterranean network to Assess
and upgrade Monitoring and forecasting Activity in the region’ (MAMA) project,
including the conduction of surveys and assessments on current routine ocean
monitoring activities in the
Starting from November 2002, the
PO-Unit is participating in another project related directly to oceanographic
data and information management - SEA-SEARCH (http://www.sea-search.net). This EU
funded project targets (i) to further develop and upgrade the EURONODIM
network, (ii) to improve the exchange, availability and accessibility of ocean
and marine data and information within Europe, including non-EU countries of
Europe, (iii) to improve the transfer of knowledge, exchange of best practices
and communications on ocean and marine data and information management in order
to strengthen the overall performance of ocean and marine data and information
management both on a national and international level in Europe, (iv) to
stimulate the overall awareness of potential users of ocean and marine data and
information, and (v) to enhance and improve the European competitiveness in the
field of ocean and marine data management. The SEA-SEARCH consortium is made up
of almost all the NODCs from the EU Member States, Mediterranean NODCs and
Marine Institutes of non-EU countries, NODCs from the
8. Roles and Responsibilities of the PO-Unit
-- Archival of data and data rescue
The PO-Unit provides support to
local entities involved in marine research and monitoring to collect and
maintain oceanographic data according to international standards. The PO-Unit
plays the role of keeping track of ocean observations made in the vicinity of
the
-- Data exchange with other NODCs
The PO-Unit has followed and promoted the IODE activities in
the past years through the organisation of regional meetings and training
courses. Contact is kept with local entities involved in marine research and
monitoring in order to disseminate IODE products and updates on IODE
activities.
The involvement in several projects has
further enhanced the expertise of the PO-Unit in ocean data quality control,
transcoding and management to international standards. It has also consolidated
the role of the Unit to locally promote the IOC/IODE products and activities in
The PO-Unit has
participated to the MEDAR/MEDATLAS project which 1) rescued historical data in
the
Within
the MAMA project the PO-Unit is providing technical support in the compilation
of information on present capacities of existing institutions dealing with or
underpinning research in relation to the routine monitoring of the marine
environment in the
During
the period 2001/2 the PO-Unit has supported the establishment of the MeDir
directory which consists of an online searchable database of marine scientists
and professionals working in the Mediterranean region (http://ioc2.unesco.org/medir).
In
another project entitled SEA-SEARCH, the EU is funding the extension and
enhancement of the current online European database on ocean metadata by
including non-EU European states and some Mediterranean Partner countries. On a
national scale this project will provide a framework to enhance and update the
national database of oceanographic data sets, holdings and research projects.
-- Data products
The PO-Unit is currently developing an oceanographic
database on the internet. The database will allow on-line browsing and
selection of data sets for downloading. The database will form the basis of the
Malta Blue Pages that is intended to be developed in the future to hold
information on oceanographic data holdings in the Maltese Islands
It is also offering real time
access to sea level, sea temperature and atmospheric pressure data collected by
the MedGLOSS station at the Portomaso marina (within the new Malta Hilton
complex) on the northern coastline of
9. Projects and Activities during the Inter-sessional Period
The PO-Unit keeps contact with all
national entities involved in marine research and monitoring. The following
table list a brief description of their activities and data holdings.
Agency
|
Research Fields |
Main Ongoing Projects
|
Description of Data Holdings |
|
Physical
Oceanography Unit (IOI-MOC) |
Coastal meteorology, hydrography,
physical oceanography and experimental study of the hydrodynamics of the sea
around the |
Sea-level data in the Maltese coastal
area MedGLOSS Sea Level Station Meteo station Hydrographic measurements Measurements of subsurface sea currents |
Water Level recordings since 1993 at
Mellieha Bay Temperature, pressure and sea-level
recordings since 2001 Meteorological data collected at Ramla
Tal-Bir since 1994 Physical oceanographic surveys of parts of the NW
coast of the Maltese Islands Subsurface currents at stations along
the northern coast of the Maltese Islands in the Comino Channel |
|
Environment Protection Directorate Biodiversity Protection
Section Marine
Pollution Section Pollution Control Co-ordinating Unit |
Protection and
conservation of the Maltese environment, flora in particular Monitoring of water quality |
Biodiversity Monitoring Project (BMP) National Marine Monitoring Programmes: Trend and Compliance |
Database for the BMP, including entries
from the Biodiversity Record Sheet Programme Data on threatened flora and important
plant areas State of the Environment Report Data relevant to bathing water quality gathered for
the last 8 years Data relevant to quality of offshore
coastal waters and heavy metal and hydrocarbon content of marine sediments
gathered for the last 4 – 5 years |
|
Malta
Freeport Coastal Management Company Ltd. |
Marine environmental monitoring |
Collection of wave data for coastal and
offshore zones; Utilisation of above data for hydraulic modelling
carried out at the ferry terminal in the north of |
Data since 1992 |
|
Department of Fisheries and
Aquaculture Fisheries Section |
Scientific fisheries research and
monitoring |
COPEMED (FAO) Project includes the
following : - Artisanal Fisheries - Tuna Population Dynamics - The Fishery, Biology and Management of
Dolphin–Fish - Fisheries Sampling Network MEDITS trawl survey exercise |
MALTASTAT – A Computerised Fisheries
Statistics and Catch Assessment System Abundance of demersal marine resources on a regional
and subregional basis |
|
University
of Malta Department of
Biology Department of Biology (cont.) Department of Biology (cont.) |
Marine Ecotoxicology - environmental monitoring
related to biological responses to marine pollution Marine research on migratory and pelagic organisms
and coastal conservation research Coastal and Marine Ecology |
Assessment of Pollution Biomonitoring in
the Mediterranean Airborne Remote Sensing Techniques Simulation for
Assessment, Monitoring and Surveillance of South-Mediterranean Maritime
Ecosystems Environmental Monitoring of Maltese
Coastal Waters using Remote Sensing Cetacean project: identification of species found
in the Central Mediterranean Region and studies on their distribution and
abundance Bluefin tuna project: investigation of
stock structure and migration of the species Faunistics and ecology of the Biodiversity, functional structure and conservation
of deeper water benthic assemblages of the Maltese Islands |
Coastal surveillance data (related to
oil pollution and fisheries) using satellite and air-borne radar images Data bank on water quality as surveyed in eight
coastal inshore areas to monitor eutrophication and transport of land-based
discharges. Colour-coded output maps of the sites showing LANDSAT TM-based
images of turbidity, suspended solids, surface water temperatures and
chlorophyll a levels. Photo-ID system project for species found close to
the Maltese Coasts Measurements (and genetic and environmental
analyses) of bluefin tuna individuals in samples gathered over 3 years Data on the faunistics and coastal and marine
ecology Data related to sublittoral marine benthic
assemblages |
Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Insular Coastal Dynamics (ICoD)
|
Meteo / Marine Numerical modelling |
COMPASS, RAMSES,
LAND-13 |
Near operational 16Km resolution
forecasts of Mediterranean Meteo - Marine parameters with option for specific
area forecasts at 4km resolution. Historical data access since 1997
www.icod.org.mt |
|
Remote Sensing |
|
||
Multi-Spectral Scanning of select coastal areas.
Thermal Imagery for select Maltese / southern
Sicilian coasts with a thermal resolution of 0.03Kelvin. Digital imaging of Maltese Island Coastline and select
southern Sicilian coast. with 50cm resolution.
Select Satellite Images (Landsat, SPOT, SAR) of coastal
areas in the Central & Eastern Mediterranean since 1997. Select In-situ
marine water quality for Maltese, Crete & Sicilian coastal areas.
|
|||
|
|
|
AGRISTAT |
|
|
|
Coastal Zone Management
|
Oil Pollution Contingency Plans
|
Sensitivity maps for the entire Maltese coastline
|
|
Meteorological Office |
Meteorology |
|
Meteorological data (analogue/digital) |
|
Malta Maritime Authority Hydrographic
Office |
Hydrography
|
|
Coastal Bathymetry (digital); (tides/analogue) |
|
Office of the prime Minister Oil
Division |
Geophysical
|
|
Marine seismic data |
The Coastal Management
Company Ltd. (CMC) is a subsidiary of the Malta Freeport Co. Ltd. CMC provides various
services including real-time wave monitoring, hydraulic modelling,
environmental impact assessments, feasibility studies and design consultancy
services for coastal developments.
The Fisheries Conservation and Control Division within the Ministry of Agriculture and
Fisheries enforces the ‘Fisheries Conservation and Management Act’ which came
into force in June 2001. It is responsible for the management of the local
fisheries and aquaculture industries. This division is made up of three units:
the Malta Centre for Fisheries Sciences; the Market Structures and External
Relations Unit; and the Fisheries Protection Unit. The Malta Centre for Fisheries
Sciences conducts research activities on fish vaccines and nutrition trails;
environmental monitoring and controls fish health.
Malta
Environment & Planning Authority (MEPA) is the regulatory authority
which includes the Planning Directorate and the Environment Protection
Directorate which is responsible for biodiversity protection, waste control and
management and pollution control. The latter is responsible for various
programmes aimed to control and abate environmental pollution.
The Euro-Mediterranean Centre
on Insular Coastal Dynamics (ICoD), University of
Malta, forms
part of a network of specialised Centres pertaining to the Open Partial
Agreement of the Council of Europe on Major Natural and Technological Hazards
(EUR-OPA). ICoD was established in 1988 within the framework of the Foundation
for International Studies at the University of Malta, as the
“Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Marine Contamination Hazards” where it initially
addressed marine degradation in general; it has subsequently re-oriented its
objectives and activities towards a greater focus on the interactive processes
which occur at the coastal zone and in particular, of insular areas. Its objectives are: to combat marine and
environmental degradation; to carry out research; to contribute to civil
protection at the coast and to raise public awareness.
The Department of Biology,
10. PO-Unit Products and Services Developed and/or made available during the
Inter-sessional Period
Services provided by the
PO-Unit in relation to its function as an NODC consist of tidal predictions,
dissemination of unclassified data, real time access to sea level, sea
temperature and meteo data, as well as support on oceanographic data quality
control and management.
11. Comments
A national oceanographic data
policy needs to be established in order to provide a framework for control on
data quality and access.