Publication Abstract

Hydrobiological variability in the ICES area, 1980-1989

R.R. Dickson, P. Malkki, G. Radach, R. Saetre and M.P. Sissenwine (eds)

In October 1987, during the 75th Statutory Meeting in Santander, the Council endorsed the conclusion of its Consultative Committee that annual publication of Annales Biologiques was no longer feasible within the available budget, and Volume 41 for the year 1984 became the last in this distinguished series.

From the expressions of regret recorded by many Standing Committees at the discontinuation of this series (Proces-Verbal, 1987), it is plain that the Annales had been providing a compilation of information that was of some considerable value and not readily available elsewhere, and in such a situation, where the scientific justification remains but the costs of compilation and publication prove prohibitive, there was thought to be great point in seeking to meet the same scientific pur-pose via a different and more affordable route.

On the advice of a small working party, consisting of the Chairmen of the Hydrography, Marine En-vironmental Quality, and Biological Oceanography Committees, together with the Hydrographer and Environment Officer, and taking note also of the dis-cussions of this question within the main Fish Com-mittees, the Consultative Committee recommended that the essential purpose of Annales Biologiques might be met by promoting three quite different activities within ICES:

(a) actively solicit interpretative papers on time series of data on physical, chemical and biological en-vironmental parameters for publication in the IOC Time Series on Ocean Measurements;

(b) promote symposia or theme sessions on "Overviews of the Decade" following the approach of NAFO. The first of these decadal overviews, which could be published by ICES in the Cooperative Research Report series, should be held in 1990 or 1991 to cover the decade of the 1980s;

(c) give a high priority to the transfer of environmental data from member countries to the ICES permanent data bank and to quality control exercises that enhance data comparability in time and space.

Reference:

R.R. Dickson, P. Malkki, G. Radach, R. Saetre and M.P. Sissenwine (eds), 1992. Hydrobiological variability in the ICES area, 1980-1989. ICES marine Science Symposium, 195: 514pp.