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Triple threat processes and/or other forcings can lead to changes in the ocean happening fast and abruptly. These changes, referred to as “tipping points”, are critical thresholds in a marine system that, when exceeded, can lead to a significant change in the state of the system, which often can be irreversible. This leaflet has been prepared with the financial support of Norges forskningsråd (Research Council of Norway) (309382) and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 820989 (project COMFORT, Our common future ocean in the Earth system – quantifying coupled cycles of carbon, oxygen, and nutrients for determining and achieving safe operating spaces with respect to tipping points). The work reflects only the author’s/authors’ view; the European Commission and their executive agency are not responsible for any use that may be made of the information the work contains.

The Ontario Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry compiled brook trout presence and absence data for rivers and streams within the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone of Ontario. Data from hundreds of electrofished sites were grouped into two time periods, past (1970-1980) and recent (2000-2010), to quantify the change in brook trout occupancy in streams of the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone in Ontario at different spatial scales. The data include information for five spatial scales: 1) tertiary watersheds; 2) quaternary watersheds; 3) the well-sampled Credit River-Sixteen Mile Creek tertiary watershed; and, 4) sites within 50 m of each other were sampled in both the past (1970-1980) and recent (2000-2010) periods, and 5) at each spatial scale brook trout occupancy along the longitudinal axes of the rivers was assessed using Strahler stream order. This data set will be cited in a manuscript that quantifies the declines in brook trout occupancy in rivers and streams of southern Ontario.

The documents in these folders represent part of the qualitative data collection documentation. Research has been performed in Flanders (Belgium) in 2016 and 2017. Involved stakehodlers were flemish sugar beet farmers, processors as well as other value chain members. Though, the main stakeholders involved were farmers. The raw data cannot be published. Anonymized interview transcripts and focus group transcripts exist. However, as indicated in the informed consent, farmers did not agree to the raw data being published. The codes that resulted from data analysis are in this folder. Interview questions differed slightly from farmer to farmer as follow up questions may have been posed if needed. First interviews were performed, then focus groups were conducted and finally a workshop was organized. The qualitative reserach followed the research strategy and plan determined by the SUFISA project. On the project webpage (https://www.sufisa.eu/) more information can be found.

This is the English version of the informed consent that has been used for staekholder interactions. Similar forms have been used for focus groups and workshops.

Ten innovative EU projects to build ocean observation systems that provide input for evidence-based management of the ocean and the Blue Economy, have joined forces in the strong cluster ‘Nourishing Blue Economy and Sharing Ocean Knowledge’. Under the lead of the EuroSea project, the group published a joint policy brief listing recommendations for sustainable ocean observation and management. The cooperation is supported by the EU Horizon Results Booster and enables the group to achieve a higher societal impact. The policy brief will be presented to the European Commission on 15 October 2021. The ocean covers 70% of the Earth’s surface and provides us with a diverse set of ecosystem services that we cannot live without or that significantly improve our quality of life. It is the primary controller of our climate, plays a critical role in providing the air we breathe and the fresh water we drink, supplies us with a large range of exploitable resources (from inorganic resources such as sand and minerals to biotic resources such as seafood), allows us to generate renewable energy, is an important pathway for world transport, an important source of income for tourism, etc. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) evaluates the Blue Economy to currently represent 2.5% of the world economic value of goods and services produced, with the potential to further double in size by 2030 (seabed mining, shipping, fishing, tourism, renewable energy systems and aquaculture will intensify). However, the overall consequences of the intensification of human activities on marine ecosystems and their services (such as ocean warming, acidification, deoxygenation, sea level rise, changing distribution and abundance of fish etc.) are still poorly quantified. In addition, on larger geographic and temporal scales, marine data currently appear fragmented, are inhomogeneous, contain data gaps and are difficult to access. This limits our capacity to understand the ocean variability and sustainably manage the ocean and its resources. Consequently, there is a need to develop a framework for more in-depth understanding of marine ecosystems, that links reliable, timely and fit-for-purpose ocean observations to the design and implementation of evidence-based decisions on the management of the ocean. To adequately serve governments, societies, the sustainable Blue Economy and citizens, ocean data need to be collected and delivered in line with the Value Chain of Ocean Information: 1) identification of required data; 2) deployment and maintenance of instruments that collect the data; 3) delivery of data and derived information products; and 4) impact assessment of services to end users. To provide input to the possible future establishment of such a framework, ten innovative EU projects to build user-focused, interdisciplinary, responsive and sustained ocean information systems and increase the sustainability of the Blue Economy, joined forces in a strong cluster to better address key global marine challenges. Under the lead of the EuroSea project, the group translated its common concerns to recommendations and listed these in the joint policy brief ‘Nourishing Blue Economy and Sharing Ocean Knowledge. Ocean Information for Sustainable Management.’. Following up on these recommendations will strengthen the entire Value Chain of Ocean Information and ensure sound sustainable ocean management. In this way, the 10 projects jointly strive to achieve goals set out in the EU Green Deal, the Paris Agreement (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and the United Nations 2021-2030 Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Ocean Development. Toste Tanhua (GEOMAR), EuroSea coordinator: “It was great to collaborate with these other innovative projects and make joint recommendations based on different perspectives and expertise.”

For years, the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), together with the international MOSAiC partners, had been planning and developing the scientific, logistical and financial concept for the implementation of the MOSAiC expedition. The planning and organization of this endeavor was an enormous e˙ort, involving more than 80 institutions from 20 countries. The number of groups and individuals that significantly contributed to the success of the drift observatory goes far beyond the scope of usual polar expeditions.

The Convention on Biological Diversity in 2004 set out 12 principles to underpin implementation of the ecosystem approach that can be broadly grouped into four categories: People - The care of nature is a shared responsibility for all of society; we most value all knowledge and perspectives; we most involve more of society in decisions. Scale and Dynamics - Work at the right geographic scale and timescale; look well ahead into the future; work with inevitable environmental change. Functions and services - Maintain the flow of ecosystem services; work within the capacity of natural systems; balance the demand for use and conservation of the environment. Management - Allow decisions to be led locally, as far as practicable; assess the effects of decisions on others; consider economic factors. Fifteen years later the integration of ecosystem services and natural capital into environmental assessment is still very much in its infancy. Despite their seemingly remote nature, deep sea benthic habitats generate ecosystem services which provide benefits to society. Examples of these ecosystem services include provisioning ecosystem services such as fisheries, regulating ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling and maintenance of biodiversity and cultural ecosystems such as existence value. This report examines the assessment, mapping and valuation of ecosystem services in the marine and specifically for deep sea benthic habitats in the ATLAS case studies. For the provisioning ecosystem service of fisheries, a comparison is made between qualitative and quantitative approaches in methods of measuring and mapping ecosystem services generated from benthic habitats. In addition, this report has collated maps assessing the risk of fisheries impact - the most widespread and impacting human activity in the North Atlantic – in areas where vulnerable marine ecosystems and fish habitat are likely to occur in each ATLAS case study. This work presented as an atlas will provide a foundation to underpin subsequent testing of blue growth scenarios in each of the case studies.

[1] An important goal of WP2 was to develop mechanistic and predictive models for the distribution and metabolic activity of cold-water corals (CWCs) and deep-water sponges (DWS) and use these models to understand how their distribution is affected by the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). [2] Output from hydrodynamic models (VIKING20 or ROMS-Agrif) was used to simulate transport of reactive organic matter in the water column around CWC reefs of DWS grounds. The approach is inspired by Soetaert et al. (2016), in which suspended organic matter dynamics above coral mounds was simulated. Here, we extend this methodology by having CWCs and DWS feeding on the suspended organic matter in the bottom layer using simple formulations for passive (CWC) and active (DWS) suspension feeding and metabolic activity. Physiological model formulation was based on data collected within ATLAS (Deliverables 2.1 and 2.2). [3] We focus on three ATLAS Study regions: 1) large CWC mounds, dominated and formed by the scleractinians Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata, in the Logachev mound province in the south-eastern section of Rockall Bank, 2) coral gardens, dominated by the soft-coral Viminella flagellum, on Condor seamount, and 3) extensive sponge grounds, dominated by Geodia barretti along the east Canadian shelf break in Davis Strait. [4] We faced considerable computational challenges when developing the coupled models. CWC and DWS growth is slow, which implies that long simulation periods are needed to reach a (dynamic) steady state. Long simulation periods are not feasible given the high spatial and temporal (i.e. with tidal dynamics) resolution of the models. A 3-step solution procedure is proposed to tackle this issue, in which in step 1 initial suspended organic matter (OM) concentrations in the water column are calculated. In step 2, the bottom layer concentrations from step 1 are used to calculate initial concentrations for CWCs or DWS. In step 3, the coupled model is run with suspended organic matter (step 1) and CWC or DWS (step 2) as starting conditions. This approach sufficed for most of the model applications, but we acknowledge that some regions in the different model domains have not yet reached a (dynamic) steady state. [5] The coupled models, based on hydrodynamics, organic matter biogeochemistry and physiology of reef-forming organisms, successfully predicted the coral and sponge distribution and biomass in the three case study areas and thereby provide a new mechanistic tool to understand the distribution (see figure below) and metabolic (not shown) activity of hotspot ecosystems. [6] A striking result for Rockall Bank and Condor Seamount was that the suspended organic matter concentration in the bottom layer of the model domain was heavily modified by the passive suspension feeding CWCs. The initial PSF biomass (step 2) immediately depleted the organic matter concentration in the bottom layer to near zero across the whole model domain (see figure of Condor seamount below). As a result, the remaining organic matter concentration was insufficient to meet demands, which invoked a slow but steady reduction in PSF biomass over time. We conclude that the impact of PSF on bottom layer suspended OM concentration extends over large areas of the seafloor, including regions where the natural biomass is low. [7] The distribution of CWC at Rockall Bank and Condor seamount could be accurately modelled with suspended organic matter being parameterized as labile, fast-sinking organic matter, e.g. labile marine snow and zooplankton faecal pellets. The relatively fast sinking rate of this organic matter, gives a relatively low concentration in the water column, but the high current velocities around coral mounds ensure sufficient interception by the passive suspension feeding CWCs. [8] In contrast, the concentration of labile, fast-sinking organic matter OM proved grossly insufficient to meet the carbon demands of the active suspension feeding DWS. Only when we parameterized the suspended organic matter as slow sinking, relatively refractory organic matter the ambient concentration was sufficient to allow growth of DWS. This organic matter is likely characterised by smaller particles (microbial and [colloidal] DOM). The modelled DWS distribution matched field observations substantially better with slow-sinking organic matter as opposed to predictions based on fast-sinking organic matter. Experimental work (Deliverable 2.2) already hinted at these different feeding preferences between active and passive suspension feeders. We hypothesize that CWC (i.e. passive suspension feeders) and DWS (i.e. active suspension feeders) distribution on shelf breaks and slopes can be explained by a niche separation based on organic-matter type. [9] Model simulations for different AMOC states were run for each of the three case study areas. We cannot conclude from the results to what extent AMOC influences the biomass of CWC and DWS. As mentioned in [4], it proved challenging to reach a (dynamic) steady state for the models. As a result, it remained unclear whether the small differences in hydrodynamics between AMOC states truly governed differences in biomass development. In addition, tidal dynamics proved important for the transport of organic matter to the CWCs and the tidal forcing is not influenced by AMOC. We do however believe that the models are well suited for the exploration of mechanistic relations between distributions of CWCs and DWS and for example reductions in export of organic matter or changes in the type of exported organic matter.

Marine data are needed for many purposes: for acquiring a better scientific understanding of the marine environment, but also, increasingly, to provide information and knowledge to support ocean and coastal economic developments and underpin evidence‐based ocean and wider environmental management decision making. Data must be of sufficient quality and at the right resolution to meet the specific users’ needs. They must also be accessible in a timely manner and in appropriate formats – not only in raw data but as integrated datasets, data products, etc. – for use by marine and maritime professionals. Such expert users span scientific research, policy and industry. In addition, providing engaging and user‐friendly interfaces and tools for wider society to explore marine data and information e.g. through visualisations, is vital to promote a knowledge‐driven, ocean literate society. In addition, the blue economy, policy makers, researchers and wider society increasingly require data that are Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable (FAIR) across multiple parameters, spatial scales and resolutions. Many data services and initiatives already exist in Europe and there is a drive towards collaboration and interoperability of these to ensure data can be discovered through web services by human queries and through machine‐to‐machine communication. This ATLAS deliverable (D8.4) is driven by the philosophy of Open Data and Open Science, adding value to the diverse datasets produced by ATLAS, making them more FAIR and so, ultimately, increasing their long‐term use and impact. To this end, project partner Seascape Belgium (SBE) provided and customised a web‐GIS Platform for the ATLAS project. Using an open source geospatial content management system – GeoNode – the ATLAS GeoNode was developed as a tool to share, visualise and download geospatial data with the ATLAS consortium and wider stakeholders. In addition, ATLAS data and data products are being ingested into the European Marine Observation Data Network (EMODnet) as a long‐term solution to data availability, discovery and use. This report summarises the work conducted by SBE, in collaboration with University of Bremen (UniHB) and the PANGAEA2 information and data publisher for earth and environmental data, British Geological Survey (BGS) and others partners, to valorise the marine data being produced by ATLAS, namely building on existing methods and tools to add value, use and impact of marine data along the pipeline from data production to end‐user. This contributes in particular to the 3rd key objective of ATLAS, to transform new data, tools and understanding and make it accessible to wider stakeholders for effective ocean governance. To achieve this, SBE has worked together with UniHB (as data management and WP8 lead) and BGS to assess, optimise and – where possible – innovate the data flows in place. A key focus has been at the mid‐point of the “data pipeline”, where curated data can be ‘valorised’ through methods including data visualisation and data integration, to make them more accessible to multiand inter‐disciplinary research communities and to wider stakeholders including policy and industry. SBE administers the EMODnet Secretariat, and so has been able to facilitate direct dialogues between EMODnet Data Ingestion and the seven thematic areas of EMODnet (Bathymetry, Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Human Activities, Physics and Seabed Habitats) with ATLAS data providers to ensure a longer‐term ingestion of data into EMODnet. As a North Atlantic basin scale project with strong industry partnerships ATLAS has offered an opportunity to assess data flows and pipelines from major research activities and projects via existing data publishers and assembly centres to EMODnet, and to recommend further ways to optimise these in the future. This report also looks at the relevance of ATLAS data and outputs to policy and industry, including recommendations from meetings and consultations conducted by ATLAS WP6 and WP7. These include recommendations from ATLAS D6.4 that a desire from offshore maritime industry to see greater connectivity and interoperability between marine data to increase their impact and use and to streamline the process of marine data discovery, uptake and exploitation. Particular focus has also been dedicated to investigate the flow of data from PANGAEA data publisher to EMODnet. This has resulted in stronger collaborations between the two initiatives, leading to more systemic and operational exchanges in data flows, including a move towards automated data harvesting. The project has also offered an opportunity to develop an innovative online GIS platform as a community tool for sharing and integrating geospatial data. This was developed as a pilot and the positive user feedback shows its potential for making data ‘come alive’, connecting it to wider stakeholders and offering useful maps and products which marine and maritime professionals can use for their professional needs e.g. marine spatial planning. Recommendations from this report in terms of data stewardship and data flows can be taken forward by marine data initiatives and by the marine research community in the future. The advances that have been taken in ATLAS towards FAIR data are important steps towards streamlining the ingestion of data into EMODnet. In EMODnet, data are discoverable through data and web services, contributing to the European Union’s policy on marine knowledge, the “Marine Knowledge 2020” initiative. Here, EMODnet has a key mandate to transform Europe’s fragmented data landscape into an interoperable sharing framework, in addition to supporting coordinated European observation activities. This will increases the information available, and therefore the efficiency, for marine and maritime professionals from industry, public authorities and academia to discover and use marine data, information and knowledge. This encourages innovation that reduces our present uncertainty as to what is happening beneath the sea surface. Beyond 2020, EMODnet is working with key data initiatives to federate existing infrastructure and contribute to a Blue‐Cloud cyber platform3 that will offer enhanced capabilities for marine research including a virtual research laboratories, computational power and storage and the latest data discovery and interoperability to access data from a large diversity of data initiatives and data providers.

Marine spatial planning (MSP) is a planning process that uses Ecosystem Based Management (EBM) principles and focuses on the spatially explicit nature of many ocean activities and resources (TEEB 2012, p23). EBM differs from traditional approaches focused on single sectors, activities or species, by taking account of interactions, synergies and cumulative effects. MSP needs to take account of the services provided and potentially provided from different areas, the activities involved in accessing them, and the resulting cumulative effects on marine ecosystems. The planning approach should be ecosystem based and spatially explicit, and should consider human benefits and impacts, address cumulative impacts, and take account of future activities and changes, with the aim of ensuring that the collective pressure of activities remains compatible with a healthy and sustainable marine environment (Nordic Council of Ministers 2017). Services from the deep sea are in increasing demand, and pressure to utilize more fully deep-sea products such as seafood, energy resources and minerals are on the rise (Thurber, Sweetman et al. 2014). The deep North Atlantic Ocean is now known to harbour ecosystems that support a biologically rich variety of life that perform key functions within global biogeochemical cycles (Armstrong et al, 2019a). The deep-sea ecosystems, including cold water corals, sponges, seamounts and hydrothermal vents, also provide many other ecosystem goods and services, which contribute to maritime economic activities that underpin the socio-economic well-being of Atlantic nations and their citizens (Galparsoro et al, 2014; Armstrong et al, 2019a). These services include nutrient cycling, waste absorption and detoxification, fisheries, bioprospecting and a number of cultural services related to education and science, aesthetic and inspirational contributions (Armstrong et al, 2012). However, marine ecosystems and resources are subject to significant pressures. Human activities, but also climate change effects, and natural hazards and dynamics such as erosion and accretion, can have severe impacts on marine ecosystems, leading to deterioration of environmental status, loss of biodiversity and degradation of ecosystem services (COM 2014). These pressures and impacts in turn have potentially significant consequences for marine economic development and growth. The dual recognition that human pressures directly impact on ecosystem services and that ecosystem services directly benefit human well-being has led to increasing efforts to integrate ecosystem services in policy and management (Galparsoro, Borja et al. 2014). Achieving sustainable exploitation of marine resources in the deep sea is particularly challenging, due to the huge uncertainty around the many risks posed by human activities on these remote and relatively poorly understood ecosystems (Armstrong et al, 2019a), for which management regimes are often poorly defined, in particular in the areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ). There are often difficult trade-offs to make between different possible services and the immediate and longer-term impacts of marine activities (Armstrong et al 2019a). It is essential to consider the various pressures and their impacts in the establishment of marine spatial plans (COM 2014). So in order to evaluate the effectiveness and sustainability of a plan for simultaneously benefiting from and conserving marine resources, a range of ecological, socio-economic and institutional indicators need to be developed and monitored (Douvere and Ehler, 2011). These indicators must include the identification of services, their values and conflict areas, and their incorporation as important inputs to policy making, and in particular marine spatial planning (Armstrong et al, 2014). To date, however, there is a lack of environmental baselines and assessments in relation to human interactions with the deep sea (Armstrong et al, 2019a). Consequently MSP is not well developed for the deep sea, and most existing MSP focuses on coastal waters or shelf areas. With growing anthropogenic pressures in deep-sea environments, developing sustainable plans is a priority. Better knowledge of the values provided by habitat-based sea-floor ecosystem services could help to justify further policy action, development of Marine Protected Areas, conservation, and resource use. This information could also help design responses to global change that will inevitably impact on deep-sea ecosystems and biodiversity, and the services they provide.2 The ATLAS project has started to put in place the information required for economic baselines in the North Atlantic, considering areas both inside and outside EEZs. The research includes: Identification of ecosystem goods and services (Deliverable 5.1) Assessment of risks to ecosystem services from diverse human drivers (Deliverable 5.2): Ecosystem goods and services and environmental risk assessment (Deliverable 6.2): Original stated-preference valuation surveys for two ATLAS case-study areas (Deliverable 5.4) A Q study of decision-maker and stakeholder views on the legitimacy, validity and acceptability of monetary valuation methods and the use of values in decision support (Deliverable 5.3) Together, the results of this work can be considered as a first step towards establishing an economic baseline for adaptive MSP in the deep North Atlantic Ocean.