The Marine Strategy Framework (Directive 2008/56/EC, MSFD) came into force in 2008, confirming the increased political interest in the oceans observed in recent years, and the change in the philosophy of environmental management, which has resulted in the development of many initiatives to guide the conservation, protection and sustainable management of marine ecosystems. This Directive is the key environmental instrument of the European Union (EU) maritime policy, and establishes that Member States shall adopt the necessary measures to achieve or maintain the Good Environmental Status (GES) of the marine environment by 2020. The central part of the MSFD is formed by the ‘marine strategies’, which have to be developed by the Member States for the marine waters under their jurisdiction. The implementation of the MSFD represents a demanding task in the integrative assessment of marine ecosystems. The first three steps of the implementation cycle of marine strategies (initial assessment, GES definition and establishment of environmental targets) concluded in 2012. The next task to be addressed in order to implement marine strategies is the elaboration of the monitoring programs (Article 11, MSFD). The general aim of these monitoring programs is the continuous assessment of the status of the marine environment, and will be used to estimate the distance between the environmental status and the GES, based on the elements listed in Annex III and following the principles contained in Annex V of the MSFD. Here we describe the implementation process, and we discuss the institutional framework and the main difficulties and challenges encountered so far, with emphasis on the Spanish context.

Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO)