MYCOAST

The European Union has funded large scale initiatives to protect, secure and develop the potential of marine and coastal environments. The aim of MYCOAST is to enhance the capability of risk management systems in the Atlantic region by improving co-operation between, observational and forecasting systems, and end users. This project aims to build a coordinated Atlantic Coastal Operational Observatory in the Atlantic Area joining capabilities from all the five countries and from existing cross-border cooperation activities, all targeted towards the improvement of coastal monitoring and forecasting tools to support threat and emergency response. The technical networking and specific synergies will strengthen the use and the dissemination of downstream applications of the Copernicus Marine and Environmental Monitoring Service (CMEMS) in order to address the common challenge of resilience of the coastal to risk.

The proposed data management tools will promote information sharing and interoperability between coastal observatories and the common European information sharing systems. To ensure effective implementation, the risk management tools will be developed and validated jointly with the key actors involved in managing and preventing coastal risks like flooding and coastal erosion, those in managing water quality issues, and those responsible for managing maritime safety and response to pollution incidents. Finally MYCOAST will improve the awareness of these risks in the Atlantic Area, and identify and promote opportunities for the private sector.

A range of outputs will be obtained from the Atlantic Coastal observatories:

Integration of the coastal observing systems by sharing data, experiences and resources of the various systems in operation (18 buoys, 15 HF radars, 3 ships of opportunity, 50 drifters, 10 profilers).

Optimization, validation and intercomparison of 9 forecasting coastal and local tools (cf. following list) connected to the Copernicus system (including nesting challenges with IBI-MFC, process-oriented diagnostics, intercomparison tools, and model output statistics). The 9 coastal systems are from RAIA observatory (IEO, MeteoGalicia, INTECMAR), West Brittany and Aquitaine coast (SHOM), Western Channel Observatory (PML), Smart Bay observatory (IMI), LOREA observatory (AZTI), UK Shelf Wide (CEFAS), Greater Lisbon (IST), Scottish Coastal Observatory (MSS), and SAMOA local observatories (PdE).

Development of standardized and interoperable data systems, delivering real-time observations and model outputs, in the 9 coastal observatories connected with European structures, INSPIRE compliant, using state of the art geographical information services standards such as Thredds, OpenDAP, WMS, SOS, etc.

At least 16 Policy, strategy and operational instruments (cost-benefit analysis, HF radars performance methodology, analysis on user needs, methodology for coastal nesting from CMEMS products, forecast integrated product, guideline and handbook for the adaptation of datasets, vulnerability maps on the web, operational Lagrangian tool, search and rescue forecasting tool, oil and chemical spills tool, aquaculture and renewable energy tool, etc.)

Development of pilot tools and instruments applied to specific coastal risks: extreme events and flood risks (around 9 municipalities with a population of 900.000), maritime security and harbour (1 pilot area), search and oil spill (1 pilot area) marine renewable energy and offshore aquaculture (1 pilot area) and coastal pollution (2 pilot areas).8 pilot demonstration and case studies for the implementation in national and regional prevention and management systems in the 5 countries along the Atlantic coast.

At least 14 dissemination actions (press clipping, 3 events with relevant stakeholders for 500 participants, participation in 5 conferences and events (EuroGOOS, IBIROOS, etc), 5 regional workshops with training courses and a hackathon for 75 participants, etc.).

Support and transfer of opportunities to the private sector in the 5 countries, such as operational services applied in the blue economy (alert systems, applied products software and apps for the blue economy actors, support for operations in the observing networks).

At least 6 technical and scientific publications. At least 6 technical and scientific publications.