Research and Development
Bonn Agreement countries cooperate on a wide range of technical issues through the Working Group on Operational, Technical and Scientific Questions Concerning Counter Pollution Activities (OTSOPA).
To ensure that the best available technology and techniques are used for surveillance and response Bonn Agreement Contracting Parties share information and collaborate on a range of research and development programmes.
To guide this work, the Intersessional Working Group for Regional Priorities (ICG-RP) meets regularaly to identify knowledge gaps and areas of need
The issues covered include aerial surveillance sensors, radar, dispersants, oil recovery, risk analysis, oil spill modelling, equipment for use in rough seas, etc. For example, Bonn Agreement Contracting Parties have been involved in projects looking to develop sensors to identify HNS during aerial surveillance, testing new ship arrestor methods for dealing with drifting vessels and the development of mini sniffers to detect ship emission levels from aircraft.
Collaboration on these issues is a key part of the Bonn Agreement's work and allows countries to increase the coverage of their research and development programmes.
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Projects
To facilitate the work of the Contracting Parties in preventing and responding to pollution incidents in the Greater North Sea and its wider approaches, the Bonn Agreement is involved in projects aimed at developing operational capabilities and furthering its strategic aims. Non-binding guidance on how to develop a proposal for a Bonn Agreement project and on how the Bonn Agreement can support external projects is available here. BE-AWARE I and BE-AWARE II produced the first area-wide risk assessments of marine pollution in the North Sea and the potential impacts of a pollution incident. HNS-MS, ARCOPOL, MARINIER and MARPOCS, IRA-MAR are related, but external projects intended to aid in the preparedness and response capability to Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) spills.
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