Harmonization of environmental measurement

A wealth of data on the state of the environment is being created in innumerable programmes world-wide. Optimal use of this data requires that information on its existence is available, that it can be readily accessed and — most important — that the data be compiled and classified in a compatible way. Achieving this is the basic aim of harmonization of environmental measurement. Although great care is generally taken to harmonize data collected within programmes, harmonization between programmes remains a major goal for the future.In 1989 UNEP established an office as a basis for the planned Harmonization of Environmental Measurement Project under the auspices of the Global Environmental Monitoring System (GEMS). The office describes the mission, rationale, and objectives of the project and the concepts underlying the harmonization of information on the environment collected at different levels and in different programmes.