Cleaning up our seas - EMSA and GÉANT identifying European maritime oil spills

The challenge

As oil spills change very rapidly, speed is of the essence when it comes to alerting authorities in member states about maritime pollution.

The solution

Advanced, real-time monitoring technology is helping to detect and identify oil spills in European waters. Developed by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), the CleanSeaNet service analyses satellite data with powerful software to monitor and collect evidence of polluting vessels, acting as a powerful deterrent and safeguarding the environment. Key to this process is satellite imagery, transmitted by the high speed research networks of GÉANT and its National Research and Education Network (NREN) partners.

Key benefits

Since CleanSeaNet went live in 2007 the number of oil spills detected on the images taken in European waters has decreased by half. While this is due to a range of factors including better ship design and greater environmental awareness, CleanSeaNet is a strong deterrent tool in safeguarding the European maritime environment.

​“Given the need to transmit huge files in extremely tight timeframes, CleanSeaNet values the high speed and high bandwidth provided by GÉANT and Europe’s national research networks. They help us to protect European seas from pollution, delivering the real-time data that underpins CleanSeaNet’s mission.” Olaf Trieschmann, Senior Project Officer, CleanSeaNet