Objective The river Neva flows into the Gulf of Finland via the Megabyte. Its fresh water discharge ranks first place for the entire Baltic Sea transporting the freight of the metropolitan area of St. Petersburg. The anthropogenic impact tithe ecological and economical resources of the hydrosphere underlies a continuous variation especially due to accidents. For the mitigation of the pollution within this region it needs a consequent and comprehensive management of the resources of the hydrosphere on the basis of an operational monitoring, which will be provided by HYMNE linking modern observation and prediction techniques. This will be evaluated during the spring time, when the river Neva reaches its seasonal maximum discharge rate. The monitoring strategy will be established together with and further exploited by the environmental administration of St. Petersburg.The objective of HYMNE was to provide the scientific basis for an operational hydrographic monitoring and prediction system as a cost effective tool for the management of the environment. Its possible application was demonstrated for the Neva Bight; it is possible to adapt this tool to other threatened areas. Remote sensing data were adapted to provide an operational monitoring of the regional hydrosphere with a high spatial and temporal resolution. To assess external impacts, satellite optical, IR (infra-red) and radar instruments were used to monitor hydrographic and environmental parameters on a large scale. Locally situated shore based radar devices observed the water transport rates, ice movements, wind, waves as well as small-scaled eddies. Operational numerical models, which were adapted to the region of the Neva Bight, were used for coupling the forecasts for water circulation, ice coverage, river level and ecological parameters and were nested into models with different scales covering the Gulf of Finland and the total Baltic Sea. Standard interfaces between all modules were defined and validated. Emphasis was placed on the coupling between the observation and the prognostic modules to conduct a real-time assimilation of the complex data and information received. The work was carried out in accordance with ISO standards for quality of projects as well as national Russian standards. In addition to the collection and processing of new data, the information concerning the environmental conditions in the Neva Bight was distributed.To fulfill this important component of the project, the construction of a complex system for the collection, processing and distribution of data concerning the environmental conditions in the Neva Bight was necessary. The data stemming from different sources originated from either remote sources (i.e. space borne optic, IR, radar & ground radar), in-situ sampled data sources or produced by the numerical model forecasts of hydrological and environmental conditions which were then given to the Information Analytic Centre (IAC). The numerical models, which were especially adapted to the Neva Bight, as well as the observation tools, have to cover the whole area of the Neva-Ladoga system and the Gulf of Finland. By taking this area as a whole all potential influences on the Neva Bight proper are considered. The work has been developed and tested using the operational structure of the State Scientific Centre of the Russian Federation Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute - the "Server" Centre - as a basis. On the basis of the INCO funding it was also possible to involve the scientific-research sub-divisions as well as have the participation of specialists and technical expertise which are represented by the HYMNE Consortium This support also enabled contributions from the Scientific-Technical Center "INTERNAVIGATION" and the operational sub-divisions of the Main Administration of the Russian Ministry of Emercom for the Saint-Petersburg and Leningrad region. The work to provide the information arising from this project was carried out in accordance with the ISO standard for quality of projects and national Russian standards. The anthropogenic load will increase in the Neva Bay as well as in the Neva-Ladoga system, the Gulf of Finland and the central part of Baltic Sea because of developments in the port system of the Gulf of Finland and the recommenced work on the Saint Petersburg flood-protection scheme in the area of Kotlin island. Therefore, it is necessary to take into consideration the essential hydro-meteorological links within these areas of water when creating a monitoring system for the Neva Bay. For this reason, the SRS "Ladoshskaya" takes is especially important for the control of hydrometrical, ice conditions and pollution in the Neva-Ladoga system by oil and other chemically dangerous substances. It is also important because it has the possibility of laying out stationary and mobile control radio-navigation and radar systems, as well as having the means for making in situ measurements of environmental parameters and coordinating the measurements by means of a telecommunications connection with the informative-analysis center of the Main Administration of the Russian Ministry of Emercom for the Saint-Petersburg and Leningrad region. To ensure accurate navigation, the prevention and/or removal of accident situations in the area of the Neva Bay and the Gulf of Finland, including pollution of the water environment by oil and other by-products of sea port infrastructures, is the main reason for establishing a system for ship-traffic control (STC). In this regard it will be necessary to use data from 17 coastal radar stations, together with a telecommunications system, navigation means and the facilities for measuring environmental parameters such as STC in the complex monitoring scheme for the Neva Bay. Fields of science engineering and technologymechanical engineeringvehicle engineeringaerospace engineeringsatellite technologyengineering and technologycivil engineeringtransportation engineeringport and harbor engineeringengineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringremote sensingengineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringinformation engineeringtelecommunicationsradio technologyradarnatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesenvironmental sciencespollution Programme(s) FP5-INCO 2 - Programme for research, technological development and demonstration on "Confirming the international role of Community research,1998-2002" Topic(s) Data not available Call for proposal Data not available Funding Scheme CSC - Cost-sharing contracts Coordinator GKSS - FORSCHUNGSZENTRUM GEESTHACHT GMBH EU contribution No data Address MAX-PLANCK-STRASSE 21502 GEESTHACHT Germany See on map Total cost No data Participants (7) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all ARCTIC AND ANTARCTIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE - STATE RESEARCH CENTER OF RUSSIAN FEDERATION Russia EU contribution No data Address Bering Street 38 199397 SINT PETERSBURG See on map Total cost No data CARSTEN BROCKMANN CONSULT Germany EU contribution No data Address Max-Planck-Str. 1 21502 GEESTHACHT See on map Total cost No data FINNISH INSTITUTE OF MARINE RESEARCH Finland EU contribution No data Address 3A,Lyypekinkuja 3A 00931 HELSINKI See on map Total cost No data INDEPENDENT CONSULTING & INVESTIGATION CENTER Russia EU contribution No data Address Zheleznovodskaya 17b 102242 MOSCOW See on map Total cost No data RUSSIAN STATE HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL UNIVERSITY Russia EU contribution No data Address Malookhtinsky Ave. 98 195196 SINT PETERSBURG See on map Total cost No data SAINT PETERSBURG ELECTROMECHANICAL UNIVERSITY "LETI" Russia EU contribution No data Address Street Prof. Popova 5 197376 SINT PETERSBURG See on map Total cost No data UNIVERSITY OF DUNDEE United Kingdom EU contribution No data Address Nethergate DD1 4HN DUNDEE See on map Total cost No data
