Division

THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM

THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC

THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND

THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS

THE KINGDOM OF NORWAY

THE KINGDOM OF SWEDEN

Hereinafter referred to as ‘The Members’

and

THE SWISS CONFEDERATION

Hereinafter referred to as ‘The Observer’

WHEREAS the Members are convinced that addressing climate change arising from anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) is a global challenge and that research and continuous, long-term observations are required to enhance understanding of GHG emissions, sinks, their impacts on Earth systems and management options;

CONSIDERING that observing essential climate variables, including GHG, is required to support the work of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC);

EMPHASISING that the UNFCCC calls on its Parties to promote and cooperate in systematic GHG observation via the cooperation with the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS), the climate observing component of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS);

CONSIDERING the importance of the national GHG research and its observing capacities, and the need for establishing coordination at the European level, as an Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) Research Infrastructure;

WHEREAS the Members wish to enable research to improve understanding of the regional budgets of GHG sources and sinks, their human and natural drivers and the controlling mechanisms, by developing high-precision and long-term GHG observations;

WHEREAS the Members wish to provide access to the ICOS data for wide user communities, to link research, education and innovation promoting technological developments and to provide independent data to contribute to analysis of emission inventories;

REQUESTING the European Commission to establish the infrastructure ICOS as a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ICOS ERIC),

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS: