Sustainable governance of our biological resources demands reliable scientific knowledge to be accessible and applicable to the needs of society. The fact that current biodiversity observation systems and environmental datasets are unbalanced in coverage and not well integrated brings the need of a new system which will facilitate access to this knowledge and will effectively improve the work in the field of biodiversity observation in general. In light of the new Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), such a network and approach are imperative for attaining efficient processes of data collation, analysis and provisioning to stakeholders. A system that facilitates open access to taxonomic data is essential because it will allow a sustainable provision of high quality data to partners and users, including e-science infrastructure projects as well as global initiatives on biodiversity informatics. EU BON proposes an innovative approach in terms of integration of biodiversity information system from on-ground to remote sensing data, for addressing policy and information needs in a timely and customized way. The project will reassure integration between social networks of science and policy and technological networks of interoperating IT infrastructures. This will enable a stable new open-access platform for sharing biodiversity data and tools to be created. EU BONs 30 partners from 18 countries are members of networks of biodiversity data-holders, monitoring organisations, and leading scientific institutions. EU BON will build on existing components, in particular GBIF, LifeWatch infrastructures, and national biodiversity data centres.
The HGF Alliance 'Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics' aims at the development and evaluation of novel bio/geo-physical information products derived from data acquired by a new generation of remote sensing satellites; and their integration in Earth system models for improving understanding and modelling ability of global environmental processes and ecosystem change. The Earth system comprises a multitude of processes that are intimately meshed through complex interactions. In times of accelerated global change, the understanding and quantification of these processes is of primary importance. Spaceborne remote sensing sensors are predestined to produce bio-geo-information products on a global scale. The upcoming generation of spaceborne remote sensing configurations will be able to provide global data sets and products with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution in the context of a consistent and systematic observation strategy. The integration of these data sets in existing environmental and climate science components will allow a new global view of the Earth system and its dynamics, initiating a performance leap in ecosystem and climate change modelling.
The goal of Light2CAT is to develop new, highly efficient visible-light-activated titanium dioxide for inclusion in concretes to be used in structures across the whole of Europe to improve ambient air quality independent, for the first time, of local climate conditions. The need to improve air quality in European Countries has been identified as a major requirement to be achieved within the next decade in the effort to control climate change, a key Europe 2020 strategy, and to improve human health. Despite vigorous efforts to reduce levels of hazardous substances in the air, targets remain a challenge. One of the most valid sustainable technologies explored so far is photocatalytic concrete. This technology is proven to reduce the amount of hazardous air pollutants up to 80 % . It also imparts self-cleaning properties to built structures which has a secondary effect of reducing harsh cleaning chemicals entering the water systems. However, the titanium oxide based photocatalytic building materials are activated by ultraviolet light so, to date, such environmental benefits are limited to countries with a high incidence of sunlight. The concept of this project is to extend the use of photocatalytic concretes to the whole of Europe by developing materials that can also be activated by visible light . The aim is to remove climate and seasonal considerations from the use of the materials and, through higher conversion efficiencies of the catalytic components, to reduce production costs facilitating further take up of the technology within existing markets. The results of the project are initially focused on use within the transport infrastructure where the greatest impact is expected. The consortium is well conceived to achieve the results, comprising research centres leading research in these materials and industry partners including SMEs able to develop, demonstrate and market the new materials in the sector.
Im Rahmen der EU-Biozid-RL werden derzeit Risikobewertungen von Antifouling-Altwirkstoffen (AF) (Produktgruppe PT 21) durchgeführt. Dabei werden i.d.R. Expositionsmodelle eingesetzt (Emission Scenario Documents, ESD), die einen realistic worst-case abbilden sollen. Die Datenbasis für AF (OECD ESD PT 21, 2004) ist im Süßwasserbereich jedoch sehr klein, da sie in der Schweiz erhoben wurde und spiegelt daher nicht die Situation in Deutschland wieder, wo Sporthäfen mit mehr als 1000 Liegeplätzen im Binnen- und Küstenbereich auftreten können. Es fehlen aussagekräftige, bundesweite Daten über Verteilung, Anzahl, Lage und Struktur dieser Häfen und repräsentative Daten über aktuelle Antifouling-Konzentrationen für die Validierung der Modelle, für die spätere, nationale Biozid-Produktzulassung und zur Schätzung möglicher Gewässerkonzentrationen während der Verwendungsphase. Durch eine Bestandsaufnahme der Yachthafen-Situation (u.a. Anzahl der Liegeplätze je Sportboothafen, Verteilung der Sportboothäfen) im Binnenland und an der Küste werden regionale Belastungsschwerpunkte und bewertungsrelevante Struktur-Daten ermittelt. Außerdem werden expositionsrelevante Wirkstoffe in wenigen, repräsentativen Sportboothäfen erstmals systematisch identifiziert und gewichtet. Die Ergebnisse fließen als deutscher Beitrag in die EU-Risikobewertungen gemäß Biozid-RL ein, stellen für die nationale Biozid-Produktzulassung eine belastbare Datenbasis dar und werden für die Validierung der Expositionsszenarien (ESD) genutzt. Die Daten dienen weiterhin zur Vorbereitung der Ermittlung der Risiken in der späteren Verwendungsphase nach einer Produktzulassung zur Gewährleistung eines 'sustainable use' und einer möglichen Risikominderung.
Background: The evolution and ablation of the seasonal snowcover in a forest is very different compared to snow in the open. A canopy may absorb radiation, dampen turbulent fluxes and intercept precipitation. Given a heterogeneous canopy structure, the energy and mass budget of a forest snowcover typically features a highly complex spatio-temporal dynamics. As boreal and subalpine forests cover large areas of the Northern Hemisphere land surface, snow-forest processes have an important influence on weather and hydrology, even at hemispheric scales. Approach / Measurements: In this project we focus on the radiation balance inside subalpine forests in winter. A novel instrument was developed to capture the spatio-temporal variability of radiation below the canopy: A four-component net-radiometer is periodically moved back and forth along a 10-m transect. As reference, two further net-radiometer are installed, one instrument above the canopy and another instrument on a nearby clear-cut site. Sites: The radiation measurements are carried out on two long-term research sites. Between 2003 and 2007 the measuring device was installed at our research site in Alptal at 1200 m a.s.l.. Since then the radiation measurements are being continued at our research site Seehornwald in Davos at 1650 m a.s.l. Link to other projects: This project contributes to the development of our snowcover models Snowpack and Alpine3D. These models include a detailed description of snow-forest processes and have been tested against data from this project. Furthermore, we provided data for the international snow model intercomparison project SnowMIP2.
The huge diversity of data formats, proprietary data management systems, analysis packages, numerical models and visualization tools severely limits the multiple re-use of (marine research) data and reduces our access to the data. The need for a common data framework to enable this integration has now become an essential component of building our knowledge of the marine environment. The eXtensible Mark-Up Language (XML) developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) can be used to develop a framework that improves the interoperability of data in support of marine observing systems. XML is a text-based system meaning that both humans and machines can understand it directly, and it is self-describing in so much as each data element can be traced to a definition. XML is extensible, which means that components can be linked together and document grammars extended without compromising any existing data standards. A key advantage of XML is its transformability . In the marine community, it is an accepted goal to develop a common Marine XML that has the capability to describe a large variety of different kinds of marine data.
The overall aim of this unique project is to establish whether metabolites produced by fungal BCAs enter the food chain and if they pose a risk to human and animal health. This will be achieved through: 1. development of sensitive tools (e.g. biosensors) and methods (including high throughput assays like ELISA and the Vitotoxin test) for rapid and accurate detection of fungal metabolites, 2. biochemical and molecular studies to elucidate their mode of action, 3. molecular markers to monitor fungal BCAs in the environment, 4. studies to determine if metabolites enter the food chain and, if so, identify the route of entry and type and quantities present.
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