Measures and Actions Programme

The OSPAR Measures and Actions Programme (MAP) is an overarching and integrative instrument to support planning and development and to track progress in implementing measures and actions. The MAP aims to internally structure OSPAR’s approach to measures and externally enhance the visibility and transparency of what OSPAR has achieved and is currently working on.

Access the OSPAR Measures and Actions Programme Matrix

The MAP complements the North-East Environment Strategy 2030 which will be put into effect through an implementation plan that contains specific tasks to achieve its objectives. The plan will be a living document, used by OSPAR to record and assess progress (Part I, section 6, NEAES).

In 2021 OSPAR published a report on the progress made with implementation of measures adopted within the competence of the OSPAR Commission. The findings of the report support the evaluation of progress of the North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy 2010-2020.

What is the MAP?The MAP is intended to support OSPAR Contracting Parties to improve regional coordination in planning and implementing measures and actions. The MAP matrix has been aligned with the European Commission’s requirements for MSFD reporting. The purpose is to assist those Contracting Parties that are EU member states in their national reporting commitments for the MSFD Art.13 Programmes of Measures.

In support of the MAP, the matrix provides a fully accessible database of the OSPAR acquis of measures, each attributed to the relevant objectives of the OSPAR North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy (NEAES), the relevant Joint Assessment & Monitoring Programme (JAMP) products, MSFD Descriptors, activities, pressures and ecosystem components among other elements. In this context measures equate to OSPAR Decisions and Recommendations. Other Agreements are not so far included. Since OSPAR measures include a range of different types of actions, several of which do not directly infer an improvement of status of the marine environment through the reduction of pressures (e.g. in the EU definition of measures), the matrix distinguishes these types on the basis of their mode of action:

(1) the measure directly reduces or mitigates pressures;

(2) the measure may reduce or mitigate pressures depending on national policy and implementation decisions; or

(3) the measure concerns monitoring and assessment and only has an indirect mode of action, e.g. awareness raising, research). Measures have also been classified according to the system used in the MSFD, known as Key Types of Measures (KTMs).

How to use to the MAP matrix
This web tool allows full access to the MAP database. The “Filters” function enables searches by any of the categories. While the full matrix is displayed initially, each filter added will narrow down the list to a selection most relevant to your interest. Both the complete matrix and any search results can be ranked by clicking on the column headers. The matrix can be exported at any time, in spreadsheet form, by clicking “Export Spreadsheet”.

As the MAP will be a living tool, additions and amendments will be uploaded continuously.