Indicator Specification

This indicator comprises several metrics to describe past and future sea level rise globally and along European coastlines: observed change in global mean sea level, based on reconstructions from tide gauge measurements (since 1900) and on satellite altimeter data (since 1993); projected change in global sea level for three different forcing scenarios; spatial trends in relative sea level along the European coastline, based on tide gauge stations with long time series (since 1970); and projected change in relative sea level across European seas

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The indicators track the status of commercial fish stocks in European regional seas and the pressure exerted by fisheries on those stocks, as well as the quality of the information available. To that end, the following is reported: the status of marine fish and shellfish stocks based on the current level of exploitation and reproductive capacity; the importance of the (sub-)region, reflected by the total landings (as a proxy of catch) of fish from commercial fisheries in European seas per MSFD (sub-)region; the availability of appropriate information for the status assessment, as reflected by the proportion of those landings covered by quantitative stock assessments (i.e. the proportion providing the required indicators and their reference levels). State of marine fish and shellfish stocks The MSFD requires 'Good Environmental Status' to be achieved by 2020 (EC, 2008). According to the MSFD (Descriptor 3), three criteria are relevant to determining if a fish or shellfish stock has achieved GES. Stocks should be: (1) exploited sustainably consistent with high long-term yields, (2) have full reproductive capacity in order to maintain stock biomass, and (3) the proportion of older and larger fish/shellfish should be maintained (or increased) being an indicator of a healthy stock. Sustainable exploitation: sustainably exploited stocks are stocks for which F is at or below levels that deliver MSY, i.e. F ≤ F MSY . If values for F and F MSY  are available from a stock assessment, the stock is considered to have met the GES criterion if F ≤ F MSY . For some ICES stocks without stock assessments, proxy methods exist to estimate the status of F in relation to F MSY by using catch length and other available biological information. Reproductive capacity: in areas assessed by the ICES, the criterion for sustainable reproductive capacity (SSB > SSB MSY ) has been modified, for pragmatic reasons, to SSB > MSY B trigger . Spawning stock biomass (SSB) is consistently provided as part of ICES stock assessments, i.e. of the North-East Atlantic and Baltic Sea, but not, for the most part, by STECF assessments, i.e. of the Mediterranean and Black Sea stocks. Similarly to the above, a stock is considered to have been assessed against this criterion if values of SSB and a good proxy for SSB MSY  (i.e. MSY B trigger ) are available from a stock assessment, and the stock is considered to have met the GES criterion if SSB > SSB MSY  (or appropriate proxy). Healthy age and size structure: in this case, the assumption is that a stock with sufficient numbers of old and large fish is healthy. However, this criterion is not sufficiently developed and no threshold for GES is known for this criterion. Therefore, it is not included. This has resulted in four assessment categories: Not assessed: no sufficient information available to assess status; F: status assessed based only on F in relation to F MSY; SSB: status assessed based only on SSB in relation to SSB MSY  (or some proxy, i.e. MSY B trigger ); F & SSB: status assessed based on both F and SSB. Due to the ongoing discussions of the criteria integration rules for Descriptor 3, the stocks are classified as: Stocks meeting both the available GES criteria for F and SSB  Stocks meeting only one of the available GES criteria, i.e. either F or SSB criteria are met  Stocks not meeting any of the available GES criteria, i.e. neither F nor SSB criteria are met   For those stocks for which adequate information is available to determine GES for fishing mortality (F) and/or reproductive capacity (SSB) a second distinction is made between: (1) stocks in good status based on both fishing mortality and reproductive capacity; (2) stocks in good status based on only one criteria (either because one of the two criteria are not in good status or data is only available for one criteria and it is in good status); and (3) stocks not in good status (either because one of the two criteria are not in good status or data is only available for one criteria and it is not in good status).   Total landing Landings information for the North-East Atlantic and the Baltic Sea is based on the Stock Assessment Graphs landings data for the assessed stocks, and in the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Official Nominal Catches, 2006-201 8 dataset in the case of unassessed stocks/landings. Fisheries nominal catch statistics are reported annually by the national offices. In cooperation with Eurostat and FAO, ICES prepares and publishes the Official Nominal Catch statistics dataset for the Northeast Atlantic (FAO major fishing area 27). SAG catches are used whenever available, as these take discards and potential area reporting issues into account, neither of which are reflected in the nominal catches. Landings information for the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea is based on the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) capture production dataset For the Mediterranean and Black Sea, the figure is based on 2018 landings data. In this case, it was not possible to use landings data from the assessments as these refer to GSAs which are not specified in the FAO capture production dataset, divided in larger aggregation areas. Only some of the species/taxa in the landings data can be considered 'commercial fish', which, for assessment purposes, may consist of several stocks. Only some of these stocks are covered by quantitative stock assessments such that their status can be assessed based on the above criteria.   Stock In the North-East Atlantic area, stocks are generally defined based on biological criteria and knowledge of population migration, mixing and spawning areas. For example, cod in the northeast Atlantic is currently considered to form sixteen different stocks, between which mixing is generally negligible. These stocks are found over multiple MSFD ecoregions, and some individual stock distributions cover more than one ecoregion. However, in this analysis each stock has been assigned to a single ecoregion (see Methodology). In the Mediterranean and Black Sea, on the other hand, stocks are mostly defined by management area because of a lack of biological knowledge. Because these stocks are based on a specific geographical area, most can be attributed to a specific MSFD (sub-)region. In the Mediterranean, assessments can refer to several stocks of the same species, but these stocks remain separate management and functional units.  

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This indicator shows the negative impact of ground-level ozone on ecosystems and vegetation in Europe. In particular, it shows exposure of areas covered with vegetation (crops and forests) to ground-level ozone. Ground level ozone is one of the most prominent air pollution problems in Europe, mainly due to its effects on human health, crops and natural ecosystems. When absorbed by plants, it damages plant cells, impairing their ability to grow and reproduce, and leading to reduced agricultural crop yields, decreased forest growth and reduced biodiversity. The risk is estimated by reference to either a target value and a long-term objective, or to the 'critical level' for ozone for each location. The target value and the long-term objective are levels fixed with the aim of avoiding, preventing or reducing harmful effects on the environment. For ozone, the critical level is a concentration in the atmosphere, above which direct adverse effects on receptors, such as human beings, plants, ecosystems or materials, may occur according to present knowledge (ICP on Modelling and Mapping, 2015; UNECE, 2004).

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This indicator shows observed and projected changes in annual average near-surface temperature globally and for Europe. Europe is defined here as the land area in the range 34° to 72° northern latitude and -25° to 45° eastern longitude. Temperature anomalies are presented relative to a ‘pre-industrial’ period between 1850 and 1899 (the beginning of instrumental temperature records). During this period, greenhouse gases from the industrial revolution are considered to have had a relatively small influence on the global climate compared with natural influences. Time series of global and European land temperatures in Figure 1 are provided both as annual values (top) and as decadal averages (bottom).

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This indicator considers the number of fatalities, and the overall and insured economic losses from weather and climate-related events in EEA member countries since 1980. Hazards considered are those classified as meteorological hazards, hydrological hazards and climatological hazards as used by Munich Re and based on the classification by the International Council for Science (ICSU). Integrated Research on Disaster Risk. (2014). Peril Classification and Hazard Glossary (IRDR DATA Publication No. 1). Beijing: Integrated Research on Disaster Risk.

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