EU FerryBox Project

On this page only a very short overveiw on the European FerryBox Project is given.

More details, especially the Final Report can be found on the project website:

www.ferrybox.org

The EU Science Framework 5 funded the highly successful project “FerryBox” from 2002 to 2005.
The project enabled the cooperation of 11 organisations and established the coordinated use of commercial ferry ships for the collection of scientific data. This has been an important step towards achieving the cost-effective extension of the European marine observational and reporting network envisioned in the EuroGOOS concept.
The 11 partners operated on 9 shipping routes around Europe, from the eastern Mediterranean to the Baltic. Four core parameters were measured on all the routes, alongside other route-specific measurements. Common data quality control and archiving procedures were adopted, and the data from the project period are available from BODC.
Technologically the project was successful in:

• Establishing the operational use of FerryBox systems
• Validating the systems with respect to operability, reliability, and long-term stability
• Evaluating commercially available versions of the four core sensors for temperature, salinity, turbidity, and chlorophyll-a fluorescence
• Proving the scientific value of enhanced FerryBox systems for observations of currents and sediment transport (ADCP), pH, oxygen, nutrients and algal species.

Quality control of the data was a key issue. The different sensors were assessed in such a way that reliable comparisons between the data sets are possible.
The scientific value of the detailed near-continuous observations possible with FerryBox systems was proved in studies which:

• Improved knowledge of the transport of water, particularly in the North Sea and into the English Channel.
  
• Provided a coordinated view of eutrophication and plankton productivity across national boundaries
  
• Used the advanced technology to determine the transport of sediments over long and short spatial and temporal scales
• Validated the benefits of regular FerryBox measurements, improving the numerical model through data assimilation and calibration.
• Demonstrated the mutual benefit of linking remote sensing (satellite) observations with more direct FerryBox measurements.
  

Operational costs of FerryBox systems need to cover the following activities:

• Servicing and maintenance
• calibration and referencing
• system operation and control
• data quality control
• pre- and post-processing
• archiving up to a stage “ready to use for applications”.

The main cost factor is personnel. Across the FerryBox project this was experienced to be around 3–4 person months/year (inclusive of scientist, technicians and support staff) per operational system. An optimisation potential exists when an institution routinely operates more than one FerryBox system. Our limited experience of operating multiple systems suggests an increase by a factor of 0.5 for each additional system above that
for the first system. Associated are costs for consumables, travels and communication which are very much application-dependant and summed up to an average of 5000–10000 EUR per year. For each measuring system the replacement costs for the FerryBox system ought to be taken into account in this cost category. Considering a typical life-time for marine monitoring equipment of 5 years and the aforementioned investment costs for a FerryBox system a budget of 10000–30000 EUR per year should therefore be considered.

Automated systems on ferries or ships of opportunity will play a major role in the near future for ocean and shelf sea observations. The importance of FerryBoxes on ferries and ships of opportunity has been outlined by organisations such as EuroGOOS, and will be important in the context of the European Water Framework Directive and European Marine Strategy.

In this context, the monitoring and understanding of coastal and shelf seas, with their large spatial heterogeneities and temporal variability, will gain very much from these systems.
Authorities, agencies or scientific institutions that consider a potential future implementation of a
ferry system in their research/monitoring should consider the following recommendations:

• In the planning phase a careful assessment should be carried out to judge whether the ferry/ship route meets the objectives of the monitoring or research tasks. For example, will surface measurements from a ship yield enough information to reach the objective or should a combination with buoys be considered?
• In order to choose the appropriate FerryBox system for the planned task, helpful hints can be obtained in the deliverables D-2-1 “Report on the functionality of FerryBox systems” and D-2- 3 “Interim report on the experiences with the FerryBox during operational use” (available from www.ferrybox.com).
• The type of instrumentation, i.e. sensors or analysers, their applicability and their limitations for the intended task and the meaningfulness of the scientific results obtained with these instruments should be assessed in advance.
• The effort/expenditure of the maintenance that depends on the number and type of measured parameters should be carefully considered.
• Even when a FerryBox system is highly automated, the potential user should keep in mind that regular (1–2 days) data checks and regular maintenance/calibrations (weekly to bi-monthly, depending on instrumentation and required accuracy) are needed.