End users of MIDA

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End users of MIDA a government perspective
Trevor Harrison Environment and Heritage
Service Department of the Environment Northern
Ireland
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Background
The Environment Heritage Service
3
Background
Planning Service
Local Government Road Safety
Corporate Services
Environmental Policy
Local Government
RSVSD
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Background
Built Heritage
Natural Heritage
Environmental Protection
Water Management Unit
Protecting Historic Buildings
Conservation Science
Conservation Designations Protection
Drinking Water Inspectorate
Protecting Historic Monuments
Air Environmental Quality
Recording Built Heritage
Countryside Coast
Regional Operations
Industrial Pollution Radiochemical Inspectorate
Biodiversity
Corporate Services
Waste Management Contaminated Land
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Drivers International Conventions

• The Convention on the Prevention of Marine
  Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter
  (London Convention)
• The International Convention for the Prevention
  of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL Convention)
• The Convention on Wetlands 1975 (Ramsar
  Convention)
• The Convention on the Conservation of European
  Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern Convention)
• The Convention for the Protection of the Marine
  Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR
  Convention)
• The Convention on Biological Diversity (Rio
  Convention)
• The Convention on International Trade in
  Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
  (CITES)
• The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory
  Species of Wild Animals (Bonn Convention) The
  Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans
  of the Baltic and North Seas (ASCOBANS)

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Drivers European Legislation

• Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation
  of wild birds (Birds Directive)
• Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation
  of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora
  (Habitats Directive)
• Council Directive 91/676/EEC concerning the
  protection of waters against pollution caused by
  nitrates from agricultural sources (Nitrates
  Directive)
• Council Directive 76/160/EEC concerning the
  Quality of Bathing Water (Bathing Water
  Directive)
• Directive 2000/60/EC establishing a framework for
  the Community action in the field of water policy
  (Water Framework Directive)
• Directive establishing a Framework for Community
  Action in the field of Marine Environmental
  Policy (Marine Strategy Directive)

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Drivers National Legislation

• The Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985
• The Conservation (Nature Habitats, etc.)
  Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995
• The Industrial Pollution Control (Northern
  Ireland) Order 1997
• The Water (Northern Ireland) Order 1999
• The Environment (Northern Ireland) Order 2002
  (ASSIs)
• The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive)
  Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003
• The Protection of Water Against Agricultural
  Nitrate Pollution Regulations (Northern Ireland)
  2004
• Environmentally Sensitive Areas Designation Order
  (Northern Ireland) 2005

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Requirements

• To meet these obligations
• Identify and establish areas for conservation
• Nature Reserves
• National Parks
• Marine Reserves
• Areas of Special Scientific Interest (ASSIs)
• Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
• Special Protected Areas (SPAs)
• Special Areas of Conservation (SACs)

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Requirements

• To meet these obligations
• Identify and monitor priority habitats and
  species
• Habitat Action Plans (NI Boidiversity Strategy)
• Species Action Plans (NI Biodiversity Strategy)
• Annex I Habitats (Article 11 of the Habitats
  Directive)
• Annex II Species (Article 11 of the Habitats
  Directive)
• Water status (Article 8 of the Water Framework
  Directive)

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Requirements

• To meet these obligations
• Report findings
• Government
• Europe
• International bodies
• Educate and raise public awareness

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Data and Information
Undertaken to develop a framework for marine
nature conservation The appropriate management
of the marine environment is dependent on
adequate information and data.
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Data versus Information
Data a collection of facts used for reference or
analysis a series of observations, measurements,
or facts.
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Data versus Information
Data a collection of facts used for reference or
analysis
Data forms
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Data versus Information
Data a collection of facts used for reference or
analysis
Spreadsheets
Data forms
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Data versus Information
Data a collection of facts used for reference or
analysis
Spreadsheets
Databases
Data forms
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Data versus Information
Information the meaning given to data by the way
it is interpreted.
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Data versus Information
Information the meaning given to data by the way
it is interpreted.
Interpretation
Data
Information
Data on its own has no meaning, only when
interpreted by some kind of data processing
system does it take on meaning and become
information.
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Data versus Information
Information the meaning given to data by the way
it is interpreted.
Interpretation
Data
Information
Data on its own has no meaning, only when
interpreted by some kind of data processing
system does it take on meaning and become
information.
People or computers can find patterns in data to
createinformation, and this information can be
used to reason or make decisions.
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Data and Information
Managers and decision-makers often use summary
information
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Data and Information
Managers and decision-makers often use summary
information
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Data and Information
Summary information is often required for
reporting
Key Key
Favourable
Unfavourable - recovering
Unfavourable
Destroyed
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Data and Information
Summary information is often required for
reporting
Key Key
Favourable
Unfavourable - recovering
Unfavourable
Destroyed
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Bathing Waters in Northern Ireland
Data and Information

• The Bathing Water Directive 76/160/EEC
• Regularly test the most popular bathing waters
  (16 sites)
• mainly bacteria

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Bathing Waters in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
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Bathing Waters in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
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Bathing Waters in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
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Data and Information
Water Framework Directive (Directive 2000/60/EC)
Ecological Status Ecological Status
High
Good
Moderate
Poor
Bad
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Marine Surveys in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
The Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC Article 11
surveillance of the conservation status of
priority habitats and species (Annex I habitats
and Annex II species)
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Marine Surveys in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
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Marine Surveys in Northern Ireland
Data and Information
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Marine Surveys in Northern Ireland
Data and Information

• ? Favourable Conservation Status
• Unfavourable Conservation Status

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Northern Ireland sea grass beds
Data and Information

• Spatial interpretation of data.
• context
• perspective

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Northern Ireland sea grass beds
Data and Information

• MNR
• ASSI
• SPA
• SAC

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Data and Information
Summary information is an effective communication
tool for educating the general public
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Users of Data and Information
Data and Information
Data
Information
Universities Research Organisations Consultants NG
Os
Government Agencies Environmental
Managers Decision-makers Public
Detail
Perspective
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Issues

• Issues relating to data and information
• Ownership
• Quality Assurance
• Auditable

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Data and information

• Some survey data were not available
• inappropriate format
• data owner was unable or unwilling to release it.
  

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Data and information
Recommendations a national marine information
network should be established to which marine
data should be contributed using agreed data
standards all marine data collected with
public funds, and environmental data collected by
the private sector for the purpose of complying
with a regulatory procedure, should be placed in
the public domain within specified timescales
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Data and information

• Recommendations
• improved co-ordination of data collection and
  research activities needs to be achieved, and
  there should be a greater degree of collaboration
  between survey organisations
• information on the sources, availability, extent
  and attributes of datasets (metadata) for the
  marine environment needs to be easily and widely
  accessible.

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Issues

• Issues relating to data and information
• Ownership
• Public funded data
• National marine information system
• Summary information
• Quality Assurance
• Metadata (when, where, why, how, who, standards)
• Auditable
• Common Standards Monitoring

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Conclusion

• Summary information is important to conservation
  agencies
• Decision-making
• Managing
• Reporting
• Education

• Environmental atlases such as MIDA can play an
  important role in assisting government and
  conservation agencies through the production and
  presentation of summary information