The overall aim of integrated monitoring was originally to determine and predict the state and change of terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems in a long-term perspective with respect to the impact of air pollutants, especially nitrogen and sulphur. This was to provide one basis for decisions on emission controls and assessment of the ecological impact of such controls within Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution of the UNECE. However, the full implementation of the Integrated Monitoring Programme will allow the ecological effects of tropospheric ozone, heavy metals and persistent organic substances to be determined. Implementation of the Programme will provide a major contribution to the international data requirements for examining the ecosystem impacts of climatic change, changes in biodiversity and depletion of stratospheric ozone. A primary concern is the provision of scientific and statistically reliable data that can be used in modelling and decision making. The main emphasis is to establish consistent time series for environmental variables rather than establishing representative surveys across the UNECE region.
The aims are fulfilled by:
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monitoring both biogeochemical trends and biological responses in small (10 - 1000 ha) clearly defined areas
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seeking to separate the noise of natural variation, including succession, from the signal of anthropogenic disturbance by monitoring natural or semi-natural ecosystems
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developing and applying tools, e.g. models, for regional assessment and prediction of long-term effects.