Marine Pollution Monitoring and Assessment in the Mediterranean Region: the MED POL Programme Francesco Saverio Civili  MED POL Programme Coordinator Barcelona Convention Secretariat

The MED POL Programme: role and functions MED POL is the scientific and technical component of the Mediterranean Action Plan/Barcelona Convention It assists countries to assess and control land-based pollution and fulfill the obligations set by the Convention and the Protocols It organizes and carries out capacity building programmes It collates, controls and analyzes national data and prepares scientific assessments and technical reports on the state of pollution

MED POL- Phase I (1975-1980) MED POL- Phase II (1981-1995) • Developed the capacities of the participants laboratories/countries • Assisted countries for the formulation of research and monitoring programmes MED POL- Phase II (1981-1995) • Established National Monitoring Programmes • Established a full Data Quality Assurance programme with MEL/IAEA • Achieved a data bank of chemical contaminants MED POL- Phase III (1996-2005) • Enhanced a more objective-oriented monitoring for the management of Mediterranean coastal waters and sensitive areas through a revision of its components (assessment and control) • Initiated a new action-oriented programme based on LBS Protocol called the Strategic Action Programme (SAP) which primarily aims to achieve a targeted reduction of pollution at source

Components of MED POL Phase III Monitoring Activities Trend monitoring aims to detect site-specific temporal trends of selected contaminants at hot spots and coastal/reference areas.  Considering that several decades or more are usually needed to detect trends, long-term programmes are expected to be formulated with consistent monitoring strategies and solid data quality assurance programmes. Monitoring of inputs aims to provide estimates of loads of some major groups of pollutants (listed in LBS Protocol) to the coastal marine environment via point (rivers, municipal and industrial effluents) and non-point (atmospheric) land-based sources. Biological effects monitoring (monitoring with biomarkers) is a part of MED POL’s monitoring activities and considered as the most direct method to assess exposure to, and impacts of, chemical contaminants at the organism level at very early stages Compliance monitoring, referred to health-related conditions in bathing and shellfish/aquaculture waters, effluents and hot spots, represents the pollution control component. Monitoring of eutrophication, a new component of MED POL, aims at quantifying eutrophication phenomena in selected sites

Trend monitoring criteria : parameters, frequency, samples

Compliance monitoring criteria : parameters, frequency

Eutrophication monitoring criteria : parameters, sampling sites ad strategy Monitoring to be carried out: in an affected marine site and a reference site in an off-shore fish farm or a coastal mariculture area in a coastal lagoon As to the sampling strategy, frequency and spatial coverage should be established according to the following minimum requirements: The mandatory monitoring frequency for the all mandatory parameters will be minimum 4 times per year (seasonal). Recommended to sample once a month or to achieve more frequent sampling in highly variable seasons and less frequently during more stable periods The samplings station networks should be set as transects; each transect should have a minimum of 3 stations to achieve an optimum spatial coverage for the selected site. For each monitoring station, vertical profiles at least at three depths (surface, intermediate and bottom) have to be performed.

Monitoring Summary overview Component Matrix Major Parameter Groups Sampling Frequency Participation Spatial coverage Trend Biota T. metals H H Annual All participants* Site specific State Sediment Water Nutrients All participants ----- Biological effects Bio markers 2-4 / year Some participants Eutrophication Phytopl. 4-12 / year Or more Few participants St grids for each site Loads Rivers Effluent Air Envir. par. ------ Compliance Microb. par. 12-18/year 4-12/year

National Monitoring Programmes Information obtained through country reporting: - Annual reports They provide information on the implementation of the programme and an evaluation of results obtained Data transmission in standard formats

MED POL DATA AVAILABILITY Urban wastewater The available data at MED POL on wastewater treatment plants include: existence of treatment plant or not, year of construction degree of treatment volume of treated and untreated wastewater, method of discharge of treated and untreated wastewater for coastal cities with more than 10,000 inhabitants in Albania, Algeria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Monaco, Morocco, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey.

Microbiological quality of sea water: The following are the available data at MED POL on compliance for bathing and shellfish-growing water in Mediterranean countries: Albania (1992-1994, 2003-2005) Algeria (1986-1990 and 1996-1997 and 2002-2005) Croatia (1992 and 1996-2005) Cyprus (1983-1992 and 1998-2005) Egypt (1989-1991) France (1984-2005) Greece (1995-2005) Israel (1983-1991, 1995-2005) Italy (1984-2005) Lebanon (1984-1989 and 1996-2005) Libya (1996-1997 and 2003 and 2005) Malta (1984-2005) Monaco (1995-2005) Montenegro (1996-2005) Morocco (1983-1990, 1995-2005) Slovenia (1995-2005) Spain (1984-2005) Syria (1992, 1994, 1998-2005) Tunisia (1989, 1992, 1994-2005) Turkey (1983-1985, 2005) Ex-Jugoslavia (1983-1991)

Chemical pollution data (1) Croatia COUNTRY 1999-2004 Albania 2001-2005 NUMBER OF DATA PERIOD MATRIX PARAMETER 2002-2004 Cyprus France 1996-2003 1999-2005 Sediments   Trace Metals Chlorinated pesticides Chlorinated Biphenyl congeners Biota 205 830 449 124 211 63 65 Italy Israel Greece 3049 1999 1323 7606 1266 2517 596 663 626 287 516 554 153 70 Polyaromatic hydrocarbons 522 94 Tunisia Slovenia 526 Halogenated hydrocarbons Turkey 1998-2003 Water 1717 390 471 165 134 117 112 86 92 * 1999-2003 Total 26070 106 213 24 60 8

Chemical pollution data (2)

Sources data: industrial pollution for the Year 2003 A Data Base (DB) covering the industrial point sources that release pollutants into air and water is available at MED POL including 9300 industrial sites in coastal areas.  The DB contains data and information from all Mediterranean countries on loads of: -          POPs and chlorinated organic compounds -          Trace metals (Mercury, Lead, cadmium, Nickels and Copper) -          Nutrients (Nitrogen and Phosphorus) -          BOD.  The sources are classified according to ISIC classification for industrial sectors, sub-sectors and processes.  The sources are geo-localized by their coordinates (Longitudes and Latitudes) at river basin and/or national jurisdiction limits and/or national political distribution of locality.  The DB is linked to a software that enables the processing of the data and information according to the needs (e.g. local total emissions, national emissions, etc…) and GIS set up.

The MED POL Programme: medium and long-term prospects (1) Implementation of MED POL Phase IV (2006-2013): continue trend monitoring launch river monitoring expand eutrophication monitoring further develop biomonitoring carry out baseline surveys substitute compliance monitoring with regular updating of baseline budget of emissions and releases

The MED POL Programme: medium and long-term prospects (2) Harmonization of MED POL reporting system with other ongoing systems Preparation of an Information System based on GIS including data on levels and sources Application of the ecosystem approach by all Barcelona Convention components Adaptation of MED POL monitoring programme once ecological and operational objectives are established