====== S9.2.2 - Ecosystem health in the North Sea ======
===== Description =====

This work package addresses 'Ecosystem Health in the North Sea', intended for decision makers concerned with monitoring and predicting the health of marine ecosystems - for example whether there is a risk of algal bloom, poor water quality, or danger to marine organisms. The information provided is past, present and forecast ocean information from the UK Met Office Shelf-Seas physical and ecosystem numerical model (which is called MRCS-ERSEM), together with ocean measurements from several fixed and moving platforms. These include: 
  * SmartBuoys operated by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science 
  * Ferrybox systems operated by the UK National Oceanography Centre, and the Norwegian Institute for Water Research 
  * Fixed platforms that contribute observations to EuroGOOS, through the SEPRISE project 
Other observations are to be included during the demonstration phase. Standards based data services have been used where possible: Open Geospatial Consortium Web Map Services for maps, Web Feature Service for observations, and THREDDS OpenDAP for gridded data. This addresses another aim of the project: to provide interoperable systems that can be combined for different uses and in different regions.

===== Users and user requirements =====

User requirements were captured for S9.2.2 Ecosystem Health in the North Sea and S9.2.8 Environmental Status Support to North Sea Fisheries Assessment, from interviews conducted with users and experts.  A single requirements capture exercise covered both applications, since the users were able to offer expertise on both and the main input dataset (UK Met Office physical-ecosystem shelf seas model) is the same.  The differences in requirement between the two systems are reflected in the two web portals.

==== Variables: ====

  * Temperature, salinity and chlorophyll most important, followed by algal occurences.  
  * Waves, wind and currents also useful for fisheries.

==== Products: ====

  * Maps of surface and bottom fields and anomalies, and surface-bottom difference as a familiar proxy for stratification.

  * Time series.

==== Time Horizon: ====

  * Daily for ecosystem health, past data plus five day forecast where available.
  * Monthly means for fisheries.

==== Regions: ====

  * Whole MRCS domain fine for Ecosystem Health – DESS provides full flexibility for region and zoom
  * Subregions useful for fisheries - ICES regions are a good choice.
 
==== Resolution: ====

  * 6km model resolution adequate for open water applications but may be insufficient for very-near-coast applications.

===== The present system =====


The system will contain the following information
  * Ecosystem information from Met Office Medium Resolution Continental Shelf -  European Regional Seas Ecosystem Model (MRCS-ERSEM), plus near real time ecosystem observations (Smartbuoys, Ferrybox, coastal monitoring stations, others)
  * Forecast and hindcast information from model and observations, plus model quality assessment by comparison




[[http://lovejoy.nerc-essc.ac.uk:8080/ncWMS_Ecoop_Ecosystem/godiva2.html?menu=ecoop|Web page]]