Abstract
The need for improved access to ocean observations for Pacific Island countries and territories has been increasingly recognized over the last decade, particularly in the face of a changing climate. Although more remote sensing and in situ data are available than ever before, however, oceanographic and marine forecasting expertise in the region is limited. To support capacity building in these areas, the Climate and Oceans Support Program in the Pacific (COSPPac) has engaged with partners in the National Meteorological Services (NMS) and other relevant agencies in 14 Pacific Island nations, to identify priorities and to develop tools and training to address these needs. A key tool is the online Pacific Ocean Portal. With a focus on the Pacific Islands region, this website provides ocean data relevant to a range of sectors and applications such as tourism, fishing, shipping, coastal inundation, and environmental management. Via a user-friendly interface, the portal serves up data from a variety of sources including near real-time observations, historical information and forecast data. Training modules have been designed for portal users and delivery has gone hand-in-hand with in-country stakeholder engagement workshops, allowing sector users to make requests for ocean information products. Eight workshops have been delivered from November 2015 to June 2018, training a total of 97 NMS staff and 116 ocean sector stakeholders including port authorities, disaster management, tourism, fisheries, community leaders, and many more. As a result, five Pacific Island NMSs (Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, and Vanuatu) are now producing monthly Ocean Outlooks, guided by the needs of in-country stakeholders. Outlooks are tailored for each country and can include forecasts such as sea surface temperature, coral bleaching, and sea level, as well as information about current chlorophyll conditions, wind and wave climate.
Highlights
Pacific Island countries (PICs) are custodians of 20% of global Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs), where ocean space exceeds land area by an average factor of 300 to 1
Pacific Island countries often referred to as small island developing states (SIDS), can be more accurately described as large ocean developing states due to the size of their EEZs, which are rich in biodiversity and natural resources (Appeltans et al, 2016)
Ocean information has been identified as a requirement for successful implementation of the United Nations-led initiative Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) in SIDS that are vulnerable to climate variability and climate change (WMO, 2014)
Summary
Pacific Island countries (PICs) are custodians of 20% of global Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs), where ocean space exceeds land area by an average factor of 300 to 1. Many NMSs have expressed their aspiration to better engage the marine sector within their respective countries For this to occur, NMSs require access to relevant ocean data that is frequently updated, low bandwidth, tailored for priority applications within their EEZs, and accompanied by a training program. This paper offers a case study perspective on the development and roll-out of the COSPPac Pacific Ocean Portal (http:// oceanportal.spc.int), a web-based delivery system for ocean data in support of Pacific NMSs and in-country stakeholders. It discusses lessons learnt, outcomes, and benefits to portal users, and explores future opportunities
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
