NEAR (North-East Asian Regional)-GOOS is a regional pilot project of GOOS in the North-East Asian Region, implemented by China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation as one activity of IOC Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific (WESTPAC). NEAR-GOOS was conceived in 1995 and initiated in 1996 upon the formal adoption of the NEAR-GOOS Implementation Plan and Operational Manual by the 29th Executive Council of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission following a recommendation from the WESTPAC Regional Sub commission of IOC earlier in the year. It became one of the first regional pilot projects of GOOS .

The primary aim of NEAR-GOOS in its first phase was to facilitate the sharing of oceanographic data gathered by agencies of the partner countries using the Internet, to support the daily mapping of conditions in the marginal seas bordered by the partner countries (5). Although it was anticipated that this should eventually lead to improvement in the availability of information and ocean services for all kinds of beneficial purposes (in particular maritime weather and storm forecasting, fishing operations, pollution monitoring and coastal management), it is important to note that these flow-on outcomes were not specific goals for the first phase.



The most important successes of NEAR-GOOS in its first phase have been:
i. The consolidation of a functional two-mode ‘distributed’ Internet-based database structure in the partner countries as a workable model for the enhancement and coordinated handling of oceanographic data at national level;
ii. The linking of this structure with two Regional Databases that are responsible for the receipt and merging of data concerning the NEAR-GOOS region as a whole, thus creating a regional database system which is part of GOOS;
iii. The adoption and practice of a free and open data exchange policy, predating the formulation of such a policy for GOOS as a whole;
iv. The implementation of coordinated and approved data exchange management training for regional participants.

As it enters its second phase greater attention needs to be placed on how NEAR-GOOS should be strategically developed to deliver benefit and utility of its ocean data-gathering effort to its member states. This might involve a greater range of data types and the deriving of generic ‘products’ such as model analyses and synthesized maps. For this to be possible, it will also require more direct involvement of the agencies concerned and the recruitment of a wider range of organizations and disciplines.

The mission of NEAR-GOOS in its second phase is “to develop a comprehensive and sustained ocean observing network in the North-East Asian regional seas and coastal regions, especially focussed on observations, monitoring and other activities that cannot be easily implemented by countries acting independently. This network will embrace a wide range of data types and will be accompanied by pilot observing experiments, trials and demonstrations, training and useful products for use by the participating members and as a contribution to the GOOS and other global observing initiatives.”

Committee shall consist of representatives of all member countries. Each country shall designate two members, preferably with one person coming from the operational meteorological/oceanographic community. The Committee shall elect a Chairperson among the members. The Chairperson of the Coordinating Committee will act as NEAR-GOOS Coordinator. The Committee shall meet to the extent possible in regular annual sessions at the expense of the participating countries. Other countries and appropriately affiliated organizations can attend the sessions as observers. In case a Member is unable to attend, his or her government will try to send a suitable replacement, so that there is continuity of representation. The Committee currently consists of:
Dr. Shaohua Lin (NMDIS, China)
Dr. Zhi Chen (NMEFC, China)
Mr. Satoshi Sato (JODC, Japan)
Mr. Yoshiaki Kanno (JMA, Japan)
Dr. Hee-Dong Jeong (KODC, Rep. of Korea), Chairperson of the Committee
Mr. Ok-Soo Kim (NORI, Rep. of Korea)
Dr. Vyacheslav Lobanov (POI, Russia)
Dr. Eugeny Karasev (FERHRI, Russia)

The general Terms of Reference for the Committee is to:
i. Coordinate the development of applications in operational oceanography that demonstrate the usefulness of regional collaboration;
ii. Encourage the increase the volume of quality-controlled data available to the NEAR-GOOS Community through the respective national and regional databases, where possible with the smallest time delay possible;
iii. Inventory and analyse existing activities relevant to NEAR-GOOS including operational systems and programmes, organizations, scientific programmes, services and products, commercial interests, and training and capacity building;
iv. Coordinate to produce integrated comprehensive data sets and data products that conform to the principle of end-to-end data management;
v. Prepare a NEAR-GOOS Strategic Plan that highlights the direction of NEAR-GOOS over the next five years that incorporates the economic, social and environmental protection needs of the region with a clear approach to enhancing the coordinating mechanism of NEAR-GOOS;
vi. Publicise and disseminate NEAR-GOOS plans and information to regional governments and the general public;
vii. Recommend scientific and technical activities to support NEAR-GOOS implementation by coordinating new pilot projects and providing linkages to existing projects and programmes;
viii. Produce guiding documents for the near real time data collection and exchange in the NEARGOOS region;
ix. Advise and consider sources of funding for pilot project development with various funding agencies and in consultation with pilot project leaders;
x. Liaison with national NEAR-GOOS committees, J-COMM, GOOS Project Office and other GOOS-related bodies as appropriate;
xi. Develop linkages with existing relevant organizations, programmes and projects in the region.

On-going/upcoming activities

Activities carried out during May 2008-May 2010

Online publications