PROJECT OBJECTIVES.

Due to the combination of all these different factors affecting the Southern European lagoons, the development of a general management information system is needed in order to take into account all these aspects in an integrated way.

It will therefore contribute to developing techniques for assessing the effectiveness of measures designed to achieve a good quality status of waters, as described in the Framework Directive on Water. This effectiveness will be measured by developing and applying global bioindicators. This will also allow us to address the issue of a rigorous definition of "good ecological status" which has been introduced in the Water Framework Directive.

The objective of this research project is to develop the scientific and operational bases for a sustained and rational utilization of the available resources in Southern European lagoons. Specifically, it intends to:

- Synthesizing the knowledge about these types of ecosystems (also using prior investigations from ELOISE), and gathering data in the form of long-term spatio-temporal time series that support this knowledge
- Develop integrated watershed basin-coastal lagoon-coastal zone modelling techniques
- Develop the basis of the common information technology tools and decision support systems(DSS)
- Develop scenario analysis for each site taking into account end-users priorities
- Assess methodologies to see if it is possible to detect climatic impacts on coastal sea lagoon systems by long-term simulation using global change scenarios at regional scale
- Apply global bioindicators able to include structural, functional, and system-level aspects (Exergy or other indices)
- Apply LOICZ standard biogeochemical budgets methodology to contribute to an assessment of the Mediterranean basin area and to assess its efficiency for the case of coastal lagoons

WP0. Project Coordination. The work package will include the administrative, financial and technical management of the project. The provision of an adequate mechanism for the proper control and coordination of the project will be especially important in the case of this project because of the relatively large number of partners involved, of the technical complexity of the research work involved and because of the active interfaces which are to be maintained with complimentary research initiatives and groups across Europe.

WP1. Data compilation and analysis. The first activity of the project is to perform data inventory, compilation and validation according to the end-users selected priority problems to be analysed at each test site. The objective of this WP is to collect all the relevant data on the following items: topography, bathymetry, climate and meteorological information, hydrology, oceanography, soils and geology, living resources, land-use, marine activities, etc. Specific data are also needed on physico-chemical measurement in soils, surface water, ground water (where this plays an important role), and seawater. Data concerning fish (when applicable) and shellfish farming as well as economical aspects will be also gathered.

Figure 3. Interconnection diagram. The arrows indicate the main flow's direction of information/data/results/products between WPs, scientists and end-users

WP2. Database development.The data from WP1 will be used to define the appropriate format for data management in the form of a general database (DB). The data population of the DB will be specific of each test site. But considering that the analysis and implementation of the database will be generic a common physical model of the data based upon a common hierarchic organization of the data, and a coherent dictionary of data will be implemented.

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