SIXTH FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME PRIORITY 1.1.6.3 Global Change and Ecosystems Contract for: NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE Annex I - “Description of Work” Project acronym: ESONET Project full title: European Seas Observatory Network Proposal/Contract no.: 036851 Related to other Contract no.: (to be completed by Commission) Date of preparation of Annex I: March 2007 revised the 20 June 2010 Start date of contract: 1st March 2007 Revisions October 2008 - New chapter 9 after yearly review - Addition of partners: UPC and CNRS/LMGEM - Modification of partners names: JUB instead of IUB, ALTRAN instead of ATLANTIDE November 2008 - Correction of deliverables names for WP5 according to version#1 of the DoW - Correction of deliverable number for GA in pp131=D31 February 2009 - Revised A3.1 and 13.2 forms (as CPF) - Addition of partners: CNRS/LMTG, CNRS/DT-INSU 15 April 2009 - Change of deliverable number in page 117: D33 instead of D23 - Modification of partners names: SLR instead of CSA – BHT instead of TFH Berlin – SEND offshore instead of SEND Signal - Modification Chapter 9 = months 25-42 1st July 2009 - Modification Chapter 9 = months 25-42 - SIS eviction 16 february 2010 - Part A.2 Sub-contracting - Updated A3.2 CPF - Update chapter 6.A with WP9 - Update of financial table 10.4b + subcontracting in appendix 15 April 2010 - Update table 10.1 - Update table 10.4 20 June 2010 - Modification Chapter 9 = months 37-48 - Update of the AOEM budgeted costs table - Update of the table 10.4b 20 June 2010 2 SUMMARY 1. PROJECT SUMMARY ....................................................................................... 6 2. PROJECT OBJECTIVES................................................................................. 13 2.1. Scientific Objectives 13 2.2. Environment and Security Operational Objectives 14 2.2.1. Seismic and Tsunami hazard operational networks 14 2.2.2. Physical Oceanography networks (water column) 16 2.2.3. Ecosystem management 19 2.3. Technical Objectives 20 2.4. Societal and Policy objectives 20 2.5. Objectives of long term governance 21 3. PARTICIPANT LIST......................................................................................... 23 4. RELEVANCE TO THE OBJECTIVES OF THE SPECIFIC PROGRAMME AND / OR THEMATIC............................................................................................... 26 4.1. Appropriateness of using a NoE: generation of knowledge 26 4.2. Appropriateness of using a NoE: reduction of fragmentation, and creation of a progressive and durable integration of the EU research capacities 26 4.2.1. Disciplinary boundaries 26 4.2.2. Geographical boundaries 27 4.2.3. National 27 4.2.4. Legal 27 4.2.5. Institutional 27 4.2.6. Technological 28 4.3. Relevance to EU policy in this thematic 28 5. POTENTIAL IMPACT ...................................................................................... 30 5.1. Strategic impact 30 5.2. Public interest for deep-sea processes 30 5.3. Contributions to standards 31 5.4. Contribution to policy developments 32 5.5. Risk assessment and related communication strategy 33 6. OUTLINE JOINT PROGRAMME OF ACTIVITIES (JPA) - FOR THE FULL DURATION OF THE PROJECT....................................................................... 34 6.A – Activities 34 6.1. Integrating activities 35 6.1.1. WP1- Networking 35 6.1.2. WP2 – Standardisation and interoperability 41 6.1.3. WP5 Implementation strategies 46 6.1.4. WP9 – Networking ESONET Data management 51 6.2. Programme for jointly executed research activities 52 6.2.1. WP3 - Observatory design related to scientific objectives 52 6.2.2. WP4 - Demonstration missions 55 20 June 2010 3 6.3. Spreading of excellence activities 59 6.3.1. WP 6 Socio economic users 59 6.3.2. WP 7 - Education and outreach 60 6.4. Management of the Consortium activities 63 6.4.1. WP8 Management and governance structure. 63 6.B - Plans 65 6.5. Plan for using and disseminating knowledge 65 6.6. Gender Action Plan 66 6.7. Raising public participation and awareness 67 6.C - Milestones 68 6.8. Major Milestones over full duration of the action 68 7. QUALITY OF INTEGRATION AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS ............. 71 8. PROJECT ORGANISATION, MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE ................................................................................................... 74 8.1. Organisational, management and governance structure and decision- making mechanisms 74 8.2. Adequation and necessity to the NoE objectives of researchers to be integrated 81 8.3. Management of knowledge 81 8.4. Adequacy of the requested grant 82 8.5. Decision making process 82 8.6. Evolution of partnership 83 8.7. Progress made in establishing a Consortium Agreement 83 9. CHAPTER 9 OF THE DOW: DETAILED JOINT PROGRAMME OF ACTIVITIES (JPA) MONTHS 37-48................................................................. 84 9.1. Introduction – summary of main achievement and next main milestones 84 9.1.1. Summary of main Achievements 84 9.1.2. Main milestones until the end of the project and new management structure for work packages 92 9.1.3. WP1 Networking (Months 37-48) 95 9.1.4. WP2 Standardization and interoperability (Months 37-48) 96 9.1.5. WP3 Scientific Objective and Observatory design (Months 37-48) 100 9.1.6. WP4: Demonstration Missions (Months 37-48) 102 9.1.7. WP5: Implementation Strategies (Months 37-48) 103 9.1.8. WP6: Socio-economic users (Months 37-48) 105 9.1.9. WP7: Education and Outreach (Months 37-48) 107 9.1.10. WP8: Management Activities (Months 37-48) 108 9.1.11. WP9: Networking ESONET Data management (Months 37-48) 110 9.2. Planning and time table (months 37-48) 112 9.3. Work package list Joint programme of activities (months 37-48) 113 9.4. Deliverables list of the Joint programme of activities (months 37 – 48): March 2010-February 2011) 115 9.5. Workpackage descriptions (Months 37-48) 117 WP1: Networking 117 WP2: Standardization and interoperability 118 WP3: Observatory design related to scientific objectives 121 20 June 2010 4 WP4: Demonstration Missions 122 WP5: Implementation Strategies 123 WP6: Socio-Economic users 125 WP7: Education and outreach 127 WP8: Management activities 128 WP9: Networking ESONET Data management 130 10. PROJECT RESOURCES AND ESTIMATION OF INCURRED ELIGIBLE COSTS ........................................................................................................... 133 10.1. Indicative Efforts for full duration 134 10.2. 10.2 Indicative Efforts next 18 months (01/03/2009-30/09/2010) 135 10.2. 10.2 Indicative Efforts next 18 months (01/03/2009-30/09/2010) 136 10.3. Researchers and doctoral students in the network 137 10.4. Project management level description of resources and grant 140 Table 10.4b – Eligible costs full period (core partners) 142 10.5. Involvement of researcher 148 11. ETHICAL ISSUES.......................................................................................... 149 APPENDIX A – CONSORTIUM DESCRIPTION APPENDIX B – SCIENTIFIC OBJECTIVES FOR OCEAN RESEARCH DISCIPLINES APPENDIX C – REGIONAL OBSERVATORIES APPENDIX D – FIRST COMPOSITION OF COUNCILS AND COMMITTEES APPENDIX E - GLOSSARY 20 June 2010 5 1. Project summary The aim of the ESONET Network of Excellence is to create an organisation capable of implementing, operating and maintaining a network of multidisciplinary ocean observatories in deep waters around Europe from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea. The NoE will structure the resources of the participating institutes to create the necessary critical mass, remove barriers and through a joint programme of activities arrive at durable solutions for this future organisation. Long-term observatories are crucial for European scientist to maintain world leadership that was developed through past and present framework programs. Only long-term observatories allow continuous observation of large numbers of parameters collected through power intensive sensors. This capability is crucial for observing natural processes that are either very episodic or statistically require long time series to detect because they are hidden by noise of higher frequency. The predecessors in the concerted action ESONET have identified such processes in all fields of marine sciences. The most important ones are: (1) the episodic release of methane from the seabed affecting climate change, (2) the relationship between earthquakes, tsunami generation and submarine slope failures, and (3) the short term biogeochemical processes affecting the marine ecosystem. These processes are of fundamental importance for European society, because we need to devise sensible climate change policies, protect our coastal population and infrastructure, and manage our marine resources. The establishment of long-term marine observatories is justified because they are the only means of acquiring continuously large amounts of different data, and being able to respond to them through interpretation task forces. The ESONET project has identified several of crucial scientific objectives. The ESONET observatories will provide information on global change, warnings of natural hazards and a basis for sustainable management of the European Seas. They will be a sub-sea segment of the GMES and GEOSS initiatives and linked to the EU INSPIRE initiative. A network of observatories around Europe will lead to unprecedented scientific advances in knowledge of submarine geology, the ecosystem of the seas and the environment around Europe. Very rapid advances in technical knowledge are anticipated. This will place European SMEs in an excellent competitive position for installation