The EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) calls for the establishment and implementation of coordinated monitoring programmes to assess the status of the marine environment. The Monitoring Programme is established in accordance with Article 11 of the Directive, on the basis of the descriptors and elements set out in the Directive and related Commission Decision 2017/848 laying down criteria and methodological methods for monitoring and assessment.
Malta’s first marine monitoring programme was established in 2015 and implemented over the period 2017 – 2019. The data collected was used for Malta’s Update to the Initial Assessment, GES and Environmental Targets, published in 2019. Additional monitoring and assessment focusing on marine mammals and reptiles, seabirds and food webs, was undertaken in 2020 – 2022 to inform the updating of the monitoring programme. Malta’s second marine monitoring programme was established in 2023, following consultations with stakeholders and the public. The update was carried out on the basis of the experience gained through the implementation of the first MSFD monitoring programme as part of EMFF 8.3.1, which project also allowed for the development of long-term monitoring protocols for seabirds, marine mammals and marine reptiles.
More information on the Marine Monitoring Programme can be found at the link hereunder.
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