The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information

The Republic of Cyprus is located in the Mediterranean Sea and is a member of the UNEP RAC/SPA. According to the UNEP/MED WG.548/7 a multidisciplinary group of experts was nominated by the Contracting Parties to define parameters allowing to use phytoplankton and zooplankton for relevant IMAP biodiversity indicators and elaborate the List of Reference of Pelagic Habitat Types in the Mediterranean Sea. As indicated by the UNEP/MED WG nominated experts “Overall, while there has been progress in developing indicators based on phytoplankton and zooplankton, continued research and development are needed to define these indicators and improve their usefulness for assessing and managing pelagic habitats” (UNEP/MED WG.548/7). These were going to be addressed by the ABIOMMED project (www.abiommed.eu) that was funded by the EU, through the Activity 2. In 2017, before the UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group establishment, the Republic of Cyprus started a monitoring programme to collect phytoplankton and zooplankton samples to be able to address the pelagic habitat as requested by the MSFD. The samples were collected from four sampling stations located at 50 m depth and the zooplankton and chl-a results covering the years 2017-2019 are presented in Vasilopoulou et al. (2022) and are presented here. It is noted that the monitoring programme will be updated for the next reporting cycle, in order to incorporate the EC and UNEP Pelagic Habitat Working Group recommendations. Furthermore, as no TVs have been defined, GES cannot be assessed. See MSFD CY-Tecxt Report for additional information