The CBMP-Freshwater Plan was endorsed by the CAFF board in 2012 and represents an agreement among the Arctic nations on the approach which should be taken to monitor and assess freshwater biodiversity across the pan-Arctic region. By establishing common approaches for monitoring and assessment, the plan is intended to improve our ability to detect changes to biodiversity and evaluate stressor impacts on a circumpolar scale, thus facilitating more effective management of these systems.

The first status and trends assessment of Arctic freshwater biodiversity (planned for completion in 2017) will evaluate existing data and identify gaps in monitoring efforts and scientific knowledge of Arctic freshwaters. This first status and trends assessment will also provide recommendations and guidance for more effective, coordinated future monitoring activities.

The support was used for the production of the 2015 Annual report on the implementation of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program’s Arctic Freshwater Biodiversity Monitoring Plan. In addition, each of the participating nations has created national reports on the status of the implementation of the Arctic Freshwater Monitoring Plan, available here.

Applicant: Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) Secretariat

Countries: Iceland, Greenland/Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Norway, Sweden

Project start 2015, expected to be finalized in 2017.

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