Newsletter
NOWPAP
DINRAC
Northwest Pacific Action Plan
Data and Information Network Regional Activity Center
The NOWPAP DINRAC Focal Points Meeting
Sanya, 29 October - 1 November 2003
The 2nd NOWPAP DINRAC
Focal Points Meeting (FPM)
was held on 29 October-1
November 2003 in Sanya,
China. DINRAC was re-
sponsible for the organiza-
tion of the meeting, which
was attended by Focal
Points and Experts from
NOWPAP member states
People's Republic of China
(hereafter referred to as
China), Japan, Republic of
Korea and Russian Federa-
tion (hereafter referred to as
Russia). A representative of
UNEP, the director of
POMRAC, a representative
of CEARAC, as well as staff
and experts from DINRAC also attended.
3. Presentation of a review of the progress made
Inside this issue:
A representative of the Interim Secretariat of
by DINRAC for each of the initial tasks agreed
after the First NOWPAP DINRAC Focal Points
·
NOWPAP, Ms Hanneke Van Lavieren of the Re-
The 2nd NOWPAP DINRAC
gional Seas Coordinating Unit, Division of Envir-
Meeting (2002). These include (1) national re-
Focal Points Meeting
1
onmental Policy Implementation, UNEP, re-
ports on the data and information network (Ac-
· Workplan for the DINRAC
ported on the 22nd session of the UNEP Gov-
tivity A); (2) the database of NOWPAP institu-
Activities in 2004/05
2
erning Council in 2003, which called for UNEP
tions and experts (Activity C); (3) updating, main-
· Introduction to the TOR for 3
to continue to support the activities of the RACs
tenance and enrichment of the DINRAC Web-
NOWPAP DINRAC FPM
through guidance and advice. She also pointed
site (Activity B).
· DINRAC Website
4
out that DINRAC played an important role in the
4. Presentation of a draft review of the general
· 8th NOW PAP IGM
5
collection and management of marine and
NOWPAP Policy on data and information shar-
· NOWPAP Institutions and
coastal environmental data and information,
ing (Activity D) and draft principles and guide-
Experts Database
5
which were fundamental for scientific and man-
lines for the NOWPAP meta-database manage-
· Meetings and
agement activities and the regional exchange
ment system (Activity E).
Communications
5
and sharing of data and information. She ex-
5. A revision of the Terms of Reference (TOR)
·
pressed her confidence in the dynamic, produc-
Statement from Russian
for the NOWPAP DINRAC Focal Points Meet-
Focal Point, Dr N.A. Rykov 5
tive and efficient contributions DINRAC would
ing. The meeting agreed on the TOR with minor
·
make to the success of NOWPAP.
Welcome
modifications, and to submit the draft to the
·
The meeting's major agenda items and conclu-
Statement from Russian
Eighth Intergovernmental Meeting (IGM) on
Focal Point, Dr Igor Rostov 6
sions included:
NOWPAP for its final adoption.
1. Presentation of the NOWPAP DINRAC Re-
6. Discussion and implementation of the DIN-
port of Activities for 2002/2003 by the DINRAC
RAC Project Document. The meeting agreed
Director, which was approved by the meeting.
that the detailed workplan and budget alloca-
2. Presentation of reports on the status of data
tion for each activity be discussed again at the
and information management systems in China,
Third NOWPAP DINRAC Focal Points Meeting,
Japan, Republic of Korea and Russia by Focal
based upon the decision by the Eighth IGM on
No. 2
Points from each country.
NOWPAP on the budget of DINRAC.
August 2004

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Workplan for DINRAC Activities in 2004/05
The workplan for DINRAC Activities in 2004/05 has been
3. Activity E: Establishment of principles and guidelines for
discussed and approved by the 2nd NOWPAP DINRAC Focal
the NOWPAP DINRAC meta-database (continued)
Points Meeting and was revised and confirmed by the
8th Intergovernmental Meeting on NOWPAP (Sanya, China,
4. Activity F: Organization of DINRAC Experts Meeting
5-7 November 2003). The total budget of DINRAC for the
5. Activity G: Organization of Focal Points Meeting
2004/05 biennium was also approved, with an allocation of
US$150,000 by the 8th IGM (Sanya, China, 5-7 November
6. Activity H: Cooperation, Communication of DINRAC
2003).
activities
Major activities in 2004/05 are as follows:
7. Activity I: Framework for the creation of the NOWPAP
DINRAC meta-database
1. Activity B: Update, maintenance and enrichment of DIN-
8. Activity J: Studies on GIS-type products within and out-
RAC Website (continued)
side NOWPAP
2. Activity D: Draft of the general NOWPAP Guideline on
9. Activity K: Exchange of detailed information and publica-
data and information sharing (continued)
tion of a Regional Overview
Brief Introduction to the Terms of Reference
for the NOWPAP DINRAC Focal Points Meeting
The terms of Reference for the NOWPAP DINRAC Focal
riodic reports prepared by DINRAC; to identify and estimate
Points Meeting have been approved by the Eighth Intergov-
cost of follow-up activities; and to implement relevant activi-
ernmental Meeting on the Northwest Pacific Action Plan
ties decided upon by the IGM.
(Sanya, China, 5­7 November 2003). They cover the follow-
ing elements:
7. Intersessional work
In principle, all intersessional work will be carried out by cor-
1. Background
respondence among the participants without financial provi-
sion. When specific funds are provided by the NOWPAP Trust
2. Objectives
Fund and/or other sources of funding, the tasks will be car-
To exchange information on marine and coastal environmental
ried out with funds for intersessional work.
data and information management in the NOWPAP region;
to promote, coordinate and harmonize regional cooperation
8. Experts Meeting
in the NOWPAP Region related to the establishment of a
comprehensive marine and coastal environmental database
9. Secretariat
and information management system.
The DINRAC Focal Points Meeting and the Experts Meeting
will be served by a Secretariat provided jointly (as appropri-
3. Functions
ate) by DINRAC, the NOWPAP RCU, UNEP and IOC.
4. Participation
10. Decisions
NOWPAP members will be invited to participate in the DIN-
The meeting will achieve decisions by consensus among the
RAC Focal Points Meeting. The NOWPAP DINRAC Focal
NOWPAP members. If consensus cannot be reached on
Points and representatives of each NOWPAP member should
administrative and procedural matters, a vote may be taken.
represent the relevant national authority, which has the re-
Each NOWPAP member will have one vote. Such a decision
sponsibility and authority at the national level regarding the
will be taken by a majority of those NOWPAP members
marine and coastal environmental data and information man-
present and voting.
agement. Each representative may be accompanied by ad-
visors as appropriate. It is expected that NOWPAP members
11. Procedure
would ensure that their delegations reflect the full range of
12. Agenda
national expertise and interests.
13. Budget and Expenses
5. Sessions
The budget for the DINRAC Focal Points Meeting, the Ex-
The DINRAC Focal Points Meeting should be held once a
perts Meeting and subsequent activities of DINRAC is sup-
year. Each session will discuss the timing of the subsequent
ported by the NOWPAP Trust Fund. Other external funds
session. At each session, the meeting will elect, from the
should also be sought in accordance with the development
official representatives of the NOWPAP members, a chair-
of DINRAC activities. The Director of DINRAC will report to
person and a rapporteur. Election of officers of the meeting
the Focal Points Meeting on expenditures of the NOWPAP
will be decided by consensus.
Trust Fund related to the DINRAC activities. After approval
6. Tasks
of a report by the Focal Points Meeting, the Director of
To advise and make recommendations to the IGM on the
DINRAC will report on DINRAC expenditures to the IGM.
workplan and budget of DINRAC through its Director; to pe-
14. Report
riodically review and approve the implementation of the
workplan and budget as approved by the IGM; to review pe-
15. Language
2
NOWPAP DINRAC Newsletter

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Update, Maintenance and Enrichment of the NOWPAP DINRAC Website
1. Background
URL: dinrac.nowpap.org
Webmaster: dinrac@zhb.gov.cn
Layout: updated in June 2003
2. Website Contents
Regional Seas: Introduction
About NOWPAP: Action Plan
NOWPAP DINRAC: Meeting Reports,
Newsletters, Staff List
NowpapInstitution: Institutions /
organizations in China, Japan, Republic
Documents: Oceans, Regional Seas, WSSD, National Pro-
of Korea and Russia
grammes of Action Documents, Wastewater, Sewage Documents,
Clearing-House Mechanism Documents, Reports and Studies
NowpapExpert: Experts in China,
Japan, Republic of Korea, Russia
Contact Us: Contact information and staff list
Related Organizations: UN Organiza-
Site Map: Columns, sub-columns and links
tion, NOWPAP Origins, Member States,
Feedback: Comments/suggestions to the webmaster
others
Internal Documents: History Documents, DINRAC Working
Related Activities: Intergovernmental
Documents, DINRAC Outputs and Publications, National Focal
Meetings on NOWPAPRAC, other
Points, 1st NOWPAP1 CWG Meeting, First National Focal Points
related meetings
Meeting, 2nd National Focal Points Meeting
8th NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting
Mr Wang, Director of DINRAC attended the 8th
NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting (IGM) held
in Sanya, People's Republic of China, 5­7 Novem-
ber 2003, where he reported on the activities of
DINRAC during 2002/2003 and the workplan and
the budget of DINRAC for 2004/2005. The meet-
ing approved the workplan and budget of NOWPAP
for 2004/2005, including US$150,000 for DINRAC
activities.
The meeting adopted the NOWPAP Regional Oil
Spill Contingency Plan and approved the related
MoU. The meeting also approved the Terms of
Reference for the Focal Point Meetings of the four
respective (CEARAC, DINRAC, MERRAC,
POMRAC) of NOWPAP.
The meeting outlined the progress made in the es-
tablishment of a Regional Coordinating Unit (RCU).
The Government of Japan and the Executive Di-
NOWPAP RAC's Directors Meeting,
rector of UNEP signed the Host Country Agree-
held during the 8th NOWPAP IGM
ment (HCA) for the Toyama Office. The negotia-
tions on the HCA with the Republic of Korea are in
(Sanya, China, 5-7 November, 2003 )
their final stages, and UNEP is ready to begin the
official recruitment of RCU staff pending final agree-
ment on both HCAs.
NOWPAP DINRAC Newsletter
3

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Finalization of NOWPAP Institutions & Experts Database
in the Northwest Pacific Region
In the First DINRAC Focal Points Meeting (Shanghai, China, 25­28 November
2002), the workplan and budget for 2002/2003 was approved. Activity C in the
workplan is "Finalization of Institutions and Experts Database".
1. New Questionnaires
The new questionnaires for collecting information for the NowpapExpert and
NowpapInstitution are designed by DINRAC. After revision, on August 21, 2003
the new questionnaires were sent to the DINRAC Focal Points of NOWPAP
Members including MoU to implement Activity C.
2. Databases
The new online databases for NowpapExpert and NowpapInstitution databases
were developed before the end of October 2003. A search program has been
developed for convenience. Information in the NowpapExpert and
NowpapInstitution can be accessed through Internet at the URL <http://
dinrac.nowpap.org>.
3. Data in the Databases
Records of NowpapInstitution and NowpapExperts from four countries' Focal
Points have been entered into the databases. As of now, there is information
from 122 institutions and 657 experts in the two databases in the member coun-
tries respectively.
4. Update
In each record in NowpapInstitution and NowpapExpert, there is a field called
Last Date of Update, which refers to when the current information was updated.
The update information may be sent to DINRAC directly or through National
Focal Point by Email or standard mail. DINRAC will be in charge of updates of
NowpapExpert and NowpapInstitution.
Meetings and Communications
1. Sixth IOC/WESTPAC International Scientific
4. 2nd NOWPAP CEARAC Focal Points Meeting
Symposium
Upon the invitation of the NOWPAP CEARAC, Ms Shang Yi
Upon the invitation of the North-East Asian Regional-Global
participated in the 2nd NOWPAP CEARAC Focal Points
Ocean Observing System (NEAR-GOOS), Mr Jianguo Wang
Meeting, held on 15-17 March 2004 in CEARAC (Toyama,
and Ms An Tong of DINRAC participated in the Workshop on
Japan). The meeting agreed to the TOR for NOWPAP Work-
Development of Data and Products in Operational Oceanog-
ing Group 3 (Harmful Algal Blooms) & Working Group 4 (Re-
raphy, held on 21-22 April 2004 in conjunction with the Sixth
mote Sensing) and reviewed the Workplans of Working Group
IOC/WESTPAC International Scientific Symposium in
3 and Working Group 4.
Hangzhou, China. The workshop aims to discuss the imple-
mentation of the NEAR-GOOS strategy at its second phase
5. Seventh NOWPAP MERRAC Focal Points Meeting
and the strengthening of collaboration with related organiza-
tions/programs in the region.
Upon the invitation of the NOWPAP MERRAC, Ms Liu Liyuan
of DINRAC participated in the 7th NOWPAP MERRAC Focal
2. Eighth Session of IOC/WESTPAC Coordinating
Points Meeting, held on 18-21 May 2004 in MERRAC
Committee
(Daejeon, Republic of Korea). Apart from routine tasks, the
Upon the invitation of the NEAR-GOOS, Mr Jianguo Wang
FP meeting mainly discussed the implementation of the
of DINRAC participated in the Eighth Session of IOC/
NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan and signa-
WESTPAC Coordinating Committee for the NEAR-GOOS,
tures of the associated MOU. The regional cooperation
held on 8-10 December 2003 in Beijing, China, and presented
regarding Marine Litter was also highlighted in this FP
a paper regarding the activities of DINRAC. The main objec-
meeting.
tive of the session was to discuss the second phase (2002-
2007) NEAR-GOOS Strategy Plan.
6. 2nd NOWPAP POMRAC Focal Points Meeting
3. Sixth NOWPAP MERRAC Focal Points Meeting
Upon the invitation of the NOWPAP POMRAC, Mr Yudong
Upon the invitation of the NOWPAP MERRAC, Mr Jianguo
Zhu participated in the Working Group 2 Meeting held on 24-
Wang and Mrs An Tong of DINRAC participated in the 6th
25 and the 2nd NOWPAP POMRAC Focal Points Meeting
NOWPAP MERRAC Focal Points Meeting, held on 1-4 Sep-
held on 26-28 May, 2004 in Vladivostok, Russia. The FP
tember 2003 in MERRAC (Daejeon, Republic of Korea). The
meeting approved the TORs and the workplans for WG 1
meeting agreed to the Draft NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Con-
and WG 2 as well as the POMRAC biennium workplan for
tingency Plan.
2004/05.
4
NOWPAP DINRAC Newsletter

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Far Eastern Regional ESIMO Center under construction
by Dr Nikolay.A.Rykov, Head of the Regional Oceanographic Data Center (RODC),
Far Eastern Regional Hydrometeorological Research Institute (FERHRI),
Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring
The subprogram "Unified system
information and information concerning state security is
of information on the World
confidential; (3) information of common interest is provided
Ocean condition" (ESIMO) ­ the
to every category of users free of charge. A list of available
main part of the Russian Federal
information is prepared by the State Agencies and approved
target-oriented program, "The
by the Federal Government; specialized information is pro-
World Ocean" ­ is now being de-
vided to users within joint programs or according to agree-
veloped (Rostov, 2003). The us-
ments on information services for a user's fee.
ers of the system will be serviced by specific ESIMO centers.
According to ESIMO plans, nine centers with different func-
tions will be organized in 2004. One of them, the Far Eastern
Welcome
Regional ESIMO Center, will be created in the Far Eastern
Regional Hydrometeorological Research Institute (FERHRI).
Dr Ellik Adler, Regional Seas Coordinator, from Division of
Other marine organizations having their own information re-
Environmental Conventions, UNEP and Mr Jianguo Wang, Di-
sources and technologies are welcome to participate in the
rector of NOWPAP DINRAC welcome the new DINRAC Focal
Center's work.
Points for Japan and the Republic of Korea.
The principles of the future Center's activities are explained
Mr Shoichi KOKUTA and Dr KIM Sung-Dae were named
briefly below.
the new DINRAC Focal Points for Japan and the Republic
The main goal of the Center is to organize and facilitate the
of Korea respectively.
cooperation of Russian Far East marine institutions in the
DINRAC sincerely welcomes Mr Kokuta and Dr Kim and
provision of comprehensive information for government au-
wishes the new Focal Points a productive and fruitful coop-
thorities, industry, science and the private sector using web
eration for DINRAC. DINRAC expresses its sincere thanks
technologies. The information provided must be sufficient for
to Mr Taisei MORISHITA (Japan) for his invaluable support
decision-making by users in terms of composition, volume,
and many contributions to DINRAC activities in past two
forms, nomenclature, and time-limits.
years.
The updated list of the Focal Points for NOWPAP
The Centers' major functions are connected with activities
DINRAC is as follows:
related to data collection; development of information tech-
nologies; and receiving and providing information products
Japan
in oceanography, marine meteorology, biology, ecology; and
Mr Shoichi KOKUTA
other fields. The Center's activities include the following tasks:
Director for International Affairs Office, Technology Planning
· creation, storage, use and protection of information re-
and international Affairs Division, Hydrographic and
sources for the NW Pacific, adjacent seas, and coastal
Oceanographic Department, Japan Coast Guard
territories;
Dr Toru SUZUKI
· establishment of metadata;
General Manager, Research & Development, Marine
· development and improvement of systems to provide
Information Research Center (MIRC), Japan Hydrographic
users with environmental information on the condition of
Association (JHA)
the sea and atmosphere along with information on eco-
People's Republic of China
nomic aspects and environmental monitoring; and
Ms CHEN Mo
· scientific research.
Programme Officer, Division of Planning, Department of
Technical and technological aspects
Planning and Finance, State Environmental Protection
Administration (SEPA)
The Center will deal with formats of data and information
exchange, web technologies for data access, and calcula-
Dr PEI Xiangbin
tion methods and models. Its equipment should be adequate
Programme Officer, Division of Marine Environment
for information collection, processing, storage and protec-
Management, Department of Pollution Control, SEPA
tion, interconnection with information sources and users, and
Republic of Korea
integration of information flows into the united information
Dr JEONG Hee-Dong
space of ESIMO. Technical equipment will include the local
Senior Researcher, KODC/Oceanography Division, National
processing network and means of interconnection with na-
Fisheries Research & Development Institute
tional and international networks. Technological equipment
will consist of system, applied, and self-developed software.
Dr KIM Sung-Dae
Chief, Data Management Section, Republic of Korea Ocean
The Center carries out comprehensive information support
Research & Development Institute
for marine activities, providing national data, accessible in-
ternational data and information products for industry, re-
Russian Federation
search and environmental monitoring. The supply of this in-
Dr Igor Rostov
formation is carried out mainly by means of telecommunica-
Head of Laboratory of Ocean Information and Ocean
tion technologies.
Monitoring, Pacific Oceanological institute, Far Eastern
The provision of information and services from state marine
Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences
information resources will be carried out in accordance with
Dr Nikolay A. Rykov
the following principles of the Russian Federal Law--On
Head, Regional Oceanographic Data Center (RODC)
information, informatization, and information protection (No.
Far Eastern Regional Hydrometeorological Research
24, Feb. 20,1995): (1) state marine information resources
Institute, Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environ-
are open and accessible for users; (2) only confidential
mental Monitoring
NOWPAP DINRAC Newsletter
5

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Dataware for marine activities in the Russian Federation in 2003
by Dr Igor Rostov, Head of
analysis of the status and conception of data-ware at the
Laboratory of Ocean
second stage of execution of eight ESIMO projects in 2004-
Information and Ocean
2007. The web-portal (site) http://www.oceaninfo.ru provides
Monitoring, Pacific
access to Russian and foreign databases/metadatabases and
Oceanological Institute
the ability to navigate within the ESIMO site according to re-
(POIFEB RAS), NOWPAP
gion and nature of the coastal activity.
DINRAC Focal Point of
The ESIMO web-portal provides a great volume of informa-
Russian Federation
tion on the following topics: description of information re-
sources; metadata; data on the marine environment; scien-
In Russia and abroad there
tific, technical, legal, social-economic documentation and in-
has been a great deal of recent activity in the field of integrat-
formation; news and publications under the ESIMO subjects;
ing diverse information resources, and their well-coordinated
and links. The site contains about 2000 references to foreign
use to solve complex problems. Examples of such initiatives
and national web-resources, systematized for 15 categories.
are the global systems of observation and monitoring for the
marine environment, and their regional components ­ NOW-
In the site section <http://data.meteo.ru:8080/resource/
PAP NEAR-GOOS.
index.jsp> there is an integrating document ­ the electronic
compendium, "ESIMO information resources ­ 2003", cat-
The section Search by Subject produces references for 586
egorized by the general state of the problems to be solved,
descriptions of available information resources according to
guidelines and results. The manual presents results of the
the following subjects: analysis, forecast, observations, cli-
generalization and analysis of information on the state of in-
mate, and documents.
formation resources and the technologies of processing, dis-
tribution, and use of information on the condition of the World
The section Search by Geographical Map provides an op-
Ocean, conducted by RIHMI-WDC of Roshydrom using an
portunity for fast access to and retrieval of information on
interagency base of metadata. The document presents cata-
various areas of the World Ocean.
logues of information included in the initial data from the first
Section Search by Marine Organization yields a catalogue of
stage of ESIMO.
databases for 1206 organizations in Russia and overseas.
The catalogues were prepared by project executors. Sum-
The section Applications provides the opportunity to access
mary characteristics of information resources on the situa-
data provided by the GST channels, information on cruises/
tion in the World Ocean are presented, a brief background
"Cruise Descriptions" database, ARGO data, IODE data, the
on marine data collection is provided, and the current state
uniform dictionary of parameters (accessed by sphere, proc-
of observation systems is considered. National and interna-
ess, statistics, single parameters and groups).
tional marine data sets and databases are described. Scien-
tific-technical, regulatory and legal information and the re-
The section Metadata presents data on research vessels and
sults of international data exchange are presented. Users'
cruises, projects and programs, observation nets and devices,
demands to the information and the ways of satisfying the
data files and databases, electronic atlases, data formats and
requirements are also considered.
software.
The section Decision Making contains a version of the re-
gional system of decision-making based on various kinds of
Newsletter of
coastal and social-economic activities which require the data-
ware.
NOWPAP DINRAC
As a result of international cooperation, Russian organiza-
The 2nd Issue of the Newsletter of NOWPAP DINRAC
tions have the opportunity to obtain access to more than
is published by NOWPAP DINRAC and is distributed
11,600 cruises of research vessels from 64 countries for the
free of Charge. We hope this newsletter will not only be
period from 1870 to 2002: 1,895,000 oceanographic stations;
informative, but also beneficial to communication needs.
3,400,000 BT profiles and 140 000 CTD profiles; 800 series
of current observations; 35,000 records of pollution observa-
Correspondence should be addressed to:
tions; more than 10 million one-way vessel observations; etc.
Northwest Pacific Action Plan
Data and Information Network Regional Activity Center
The extensive partnership in the GOOS Program is respon-
sible for integrating the majority of the international (IOC,
(NOWPAP DINRAC)
WMO, UNEP) and national information systems and also the
Environmental Information Center (EIC),
national programs. The 1st stage of creating the national
State Environmental Protection Administration of
"Unified system of information on the World Ocean condi-
China
tion" (ESIMO) of Russia in 2002-2003, has included the pro-
No.1 Yuhui Nanlu, Chaoyang District
vision of complex information in support of the execution of
Beijing 100029, P.R.China
the "Marine Doctrine of the Russian Federation for the pe-
Tel: 86-10-84640869
riod up to 2020".
Fax: 86-10-84630849
Website: <http://dinrac.nowpap.org>
This activity has resulted in the publication on the official site
Email: dinrac@zhb.gov.cn
of ESIMO of many papers and documents concerning the
6
NOWPAP DINRAC Newsletter

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