The Oslo and Paris commission were established in the seventies with the aim to protect the marine environment against anthropogenic contamination. Combined they constitute the Oslo - Paris commission (OSPAR).
OSPAR is implementing, a suite of five thematic strategies which one of them are a Strategy for the Joint Assessment and Monitoring Programme (JAMP), which assesses the status of the marine environment and follows up implementation of the strategies and the resulting benefits to the marine environment. This strategy are a part OSPAR's ecosystem approach. The 1992 OSPAR Convention contains a general obligation to collaborate in regular monitoring and assessment of the state of the marine environment in the maritime area. Annex VI to the Convention provides for cooperation in monitoring programmes, joint quality assurance arrangements, the development of scientific assessment tools, such as modelling, remote sensing and risk assessment strategies, and the preparation of assessments. The environmental assessment and monitoring related work is implemented by OSPAR’s Environmental Assessment and Monitoring Committee (ASMO).
As a member og OSPAR, Norway have implemented JAMP and has accomplished monitoring along the coastline from Lofoten island to the Norwegian - Russian border since 1994. The following contaminants are included in the program for bottom sediment analysis and biota: ZN, Hg, Cu, Pb, Li (normalising element for bottom sediments), PAH and POPs (organochlorine pesticides and PCBs). In blue mussel concentration of organotin (TBT) are measured.
At the Joint Norwegian - Russian Environmental Commission meeting in 2001, it was stated that the Norwegian JAMP activity should be extended into the coastal areas of mainland boarding the Barents Sea, involving harmonization activities between Norwegian and Russian monitoring institutions.
Results from this activity are presented i our MAP Service.
It should be mentioned that the Ministerial Meeting of the Commission adopted in 2003 a Strategy for the Joint Assessment and Monitoring Programme (JAMP). This provides a framework for work to prepare and produce a series of thematic assessments, leading to the next comprehensive assessment: the Quality Status Report 2010. In this way OSPAR is co-ordinating repeated measurement and assessment of the marine environment over a 10 – 20 year timeframe. Hopefully, the result from monitoring in the whole Barents Sea will be included.
