COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on the European Earth monitoring programme (GMES) and its operations (from 2014 onwards)
Date: 2011-11-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, EU programme, European Space Agency, environmental monitoring, space policy, space research, terrestrial ecosystem

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 30.11.2011 
COM(2011) 831 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

on the European Earth monitoring programme (GMES) and its operations (from 2014 
onwards) 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

 
 
 
 
  
 
1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The  European  Earth  monitoring  programme  called  GMES  was  established  by  the  GMES 
Regulation  (EU)  No  911/20101  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council.  GMES  is  a 
flagship  of  the  European  Union  space  policy2  in  line  with  article  189  of  the  Treaty  on  the 
Functioning  of  the  European  Union  enabling  the  EU  to  conduct  space  related  activities. 
GMES  is  also  one  of  the  programmes  to  be  delivered  under  the  Europe  2020  strategy  for 
smart, sustainable and inclusive growth3 and it was included in the industrial policy initiative 
of Europe 2020, given its benefits to a wide range of Union policies.  

In  order  to  respond  to  ever  growing  challenges  at  global  level  Europe  needs  a  well-
coordinated and reliable Earth observation system of its own. GMES is that system.  

GMES  is  a  long-term  programme  built  on  partnerships  between  the  Union,  the  Member 
States, the European Space Agency (ESA) and other relevant European stakeholders. It is also 
a programme where the EU can play a more effective role than individual Member States in 
international  cooperation  through  bilateral  collaborations  with  other  space  faring  nations  or 
participation  to  global  efforts  in  the  field  of  Earth  Observation  (e.g.  the  Group  on  Earth 
Observations). 

GMES  will  deliver  a  better  understanding  of  how  and  in  what  way  our  planet  may  be 
changing, and how this might influence our daily lives. GMES will ensure an uninterrupted 
provision  of  accurate  and  reliable  data  and  information  on  environmental  issues,  climate 
change  and  security  matters  to  decision  makers  in  the  EU  and  its  Member  States.  This 
information  is  needed  by  public  authorities  in  the  Member  States  and  regions  who  are  in 
charge  of  the  policy  conception  and  implementation.  The  Commission  also  needs  this 
information for evidence based policy making and monitoring. GMES will also contribute to 
economic stability and growth by boosting commercial applications in many different sectors 
through full and open access to Earth observation data and information services.  

Since 1998 and until 2013, funding has been allocated to GMES by the EU and the European 
Space Agency (ESA) mainly for development activities. In addition, first operational funding 
has been allocated for the transition to initial operations in the period 2011-2013. As of 2014, 
GMES will enter its full operational phase. 

The European Parliament Resolution of 20 November 2008 on the “European Space Policy: 
how to bring space down to earth” highlighted the importance of the timely implementation of 
GMES.  In  its  Communication  of  4  April  2011  “Towards  a  space  strategy  for  the  European 
Union  that  benefits  its  citizens”2,  the  Commission  highlighted  the  importance  of  having  a 
fully  operational  GMES  programme  by  2014.  At  its  meeting  of  31  May  2011,  the 
Competitiveness Council invited the Commission to present by the end of 2011 a proposal for 
the operations and to clarify the governance of GMES from 2014 onwards. 

In its Communication entitled “A Budget for Europe 2020”4, the Commission indicated that 
given the limits of the EU budget, it was proposed to fund GMES over 2014-2020 outside the 

1 
2 
3 
4 

OJ L 276 , 20.10.2010, p. 1. 
COM (2011) 152 final of 04.04.2011 
COM (2010) 2020 03.03.2010 
COM (2011) 500 final of 29.06.2011 

EN 

2 

   EN 

 
                                                 
multi-annual  financial  framework.  Nevertheless,  the  Commission  is  still  committed  to 
ensuring the success of GMES, and in this context, it has elaborated this Communication in 
view of defining the appropriate governance and long term funding of the GMES programme 
from  2014  onwards.  This  Communication  will  launch  the  debate  with  the  European 
Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee 
of the Regions on the future of the GMES programme. 

2. 

GMES: A USER DRIVEN EARTH MONITORING PROGRAMME 

GMES is an Earth monitoring programme that allows for the collection of information about 
planet Earth’s physical, chemical and biological systems. GMES services provide benefits to 
a  wide  range  of  users,  from  local  to  international  levels.  They  have  been  designed  to  meet 
user  requirements:  their  scope  has  been  progressively  fine-tuned  through  regular  and 
consistent  interactions  with  user  communities.  Under  the  GMES  Regulation,  a  User  Forum 
has been established to formalise this mechanism.  

GMES  provides  crucial  information  for  managing  our  environment  in  a  more  sustainable 
manner, enhancing the protection of biodiversity, monitoring and forecasting the state of the 
oceans and the atmosphere composition, understanding the drivers and the impacts of climate 
change,  responding  to  natural  and  man-made  disasters,  supporting  the  development  policies 
and strengthening the security of European citizens. It helps to improve decision-making and 
the  implementation  of  a  wide  range  of  Union  policies  (transport,  agriculture,  environment, 
energy,  regional  policy,  humanitarian  aid,  civil  protection,  development  assistance  to  third 
countries  …).  To  address  this  wide  range  of  applications,  GMES  architecture  is  based  on 
three components: one service component that delivers information in support of environment 
and  security  policies,  and 
in  situ 
infrastructures) that provide the data needed for operating the services.  

two  observation  components  (space-based  and 

3. 

EU ADDED VALUE 

In  the  last  thirty  years,  substantial  R&D  efforts  in  the  field  of  Earth  observation  have  been 
made  in  Europe,  through  national  or  international  programmes,  with  a  view  to  developing 
infrastructure  and  applications.  However,  existing  capabilities  are  insufficient  due  to 
infrastructural gaps and lack of guarantees on their availability in the long term. Through the 
establishment  of  a  consistent  political  framework  at  European  level  for  structuring 
communities  of  users,  consolidating  their  needs,  and  organising  the  European  response, 
GMES was designed to ensure the provision of required data and services on a long term and 
sustainable basis, building on top of existing assets.  

The  EU  investment  aims  at  filling  the  observation  gaps,  providing  access  to  existing  assets 
and developing operational services. The European dimension of GMES leads to economies 
of scale, facilitates common investment in large infrastructures, fosters coordination of efforts 
and  observation  networks,  enables  harmonisation  and  inter-calibration  of  data,  and  provides 
the necessary impetus for the emergence of world-class centres of excellence in Europe. 

Harmonisation and standardisation of the geospatial information at European level is a major 
challenge  for  the  implementation  of  a  wide  range  of  Union  policies.  Many  areas  of 
environmental concern – such as climate change mitigation and adaptation policies – require 
thinking globally and acting locally. With GMES, the EU is ensuring its autonomous access 

EN 

3 

   EN 

 
to  reliable,  traceable  and  sustainable  information  on  environment  and  security,  contributes 
through the GEOSS international initiative (Global Earth Observation System of Systems) to 
build global observational datasets and information and increases its influence in international 
negotiations and treaties such as the three Rio Conventions, the post-Kyoto Treaty, and other 
bilateral  or  multilateral  agreements.  GMES  is  recognised  as  the  European  contribution  to 
building the Global Earth Observation System of Systems, developed within the framework of 
the Group on Earth Observations (GEO).  

4. 

COSTS AND BENEFITS 

Since its beginning in 1998 the overall funding allocated to GMES until 2013 by the EU and 
ESA has reached over € 3.2 billion for the develo pment and initial operations of the services, 
and of the space and in situ infrastructures. For the service component, the EU has provided 
funding  resources  of  up  to  €  520  million,  and  ESA  up  to  €  240  million.  For  the  space 
component,  ESA  made  some  € 1,650  million  ava ilable  and  the  EU  €  780  million  (FP7  and 
GMES Initial Operation) including access to space data from national satellites.  

After  2013,  full  continuity  of  all  GMES  components  will  include  their  full  deployment, 
maintenance, evolution and upgrades and will require an estimated budget of € 5 841 million 5 
for  the  period  between  2014  and  2020,  of  which  €  1091  million 6  for  the  services,  €  350 
million7  for  the  in  situ  component  and  €4  400  million  (ESA  estimates)  for  the  space 
component, including access to contributing missions. GMES has not shown cost overruns in 
the past and is not likely to have cost overruns in the future since it is based on a structure that 
allows, if necessary, reprioritisation of the content and objectives of its different components 
in order to remain within foreseen costs.  

According  to  a  cost  benefit  analysis8,  GMES  is  expected  to  deliver  benefits  worth  at  least 
twice the costs of investments for the period up to 2020 and four times the costs up to 2030. It 
represents  a  huge  potential  for  economic  growth  and  job  creation  with  the  development  of 
innovative services and commercial applications in the downstream sector. 

Earth  observation,  is  a  domain  where  the  EU  plays  an  important  role  that  is  recognised 
worldwide. If the EU investment is not guaranteed, the level playing field for Member States 
and  European  companies  risks  being  lost  to  the  emerging  nations  (e.g.  Brazil,  India,  Russia 
and China) that are investing heavily in Earth observation.  

5. 

FUNDING 

On  the  basis  of  the  Commission  Communication  entitled  “A  Budget  for  Europe  2020”,  the 
Commission has proposed that GMES should be funded outside the financial framework from 
2014 onwards.  

5 
6 
7 

8 

EN 

2011 prices 
Figures based on precursor services (projects funded by FP7) 
Figures  based  on  EEA  estimates 
http://gisc.ew.eea.europa.eu/gisc-project 
Figures  based  on  Booz  &  Company,  Cost  Benefit  Analysis  for  GMES,  final  version,  19  September 
2011. 

the  FP7-funded  GISC  project 

frame  of 

the 

in 

4 

   EN 

 
                                                 
Among  the  possible  GMES  funding  solutions,  the  Commission  considered  three  options:  a 
specific GMES fund (similar to the model chosen for the European Development Fund), an 
enhanced  cooperation  option  (which  would  involve  Member  States  with  a  strong  interest  in 
the  programme)  and  finally,  the  option  of  industry  participation  where  responsibilities  and 
funding  would  be  shared  with  economic  actors.  In  its  assessment  the  Commission  does  not 
favour  the  latter  two  options  since  on  one  side  enhanced  cooperation  would  put  the  EU-27 
dimension  of  the  programme  at  risk  and,  on  the  other  side,  the  experience  gained  with  the 
Galileo  project  has  already  shown  that  attracting  and  retaining  the  private  sector  will  be 
difficult in the short term and not in line with the public good dimension of the programme. 

It is therefore proposed to set up a specific GMES fund with financial contributions from all 
27 EU Member States based  on their gross national income (GNI). The management of the 
fund will be delegated to the Commission. This will require an intergovernmental agreement 
between the EU Member States meeting within the Council. An outline of the agreement is 
presented in Annex I of this Communication. Management of the fund will be done under a 
set  of  financial  rules  to  be  adopted  by  the  Council  on  the  basis  of  a  proposal  from  the 
Commission. 

In order to ensure continuity of the programme, certain provisions of the internal agreement 
should be applied on a provisional basis from 1 January 2014 pending ratification by the 27 
Member States. 

Following the cost estimate detailed in chapter 4, the maximum financial envelope needed for 
the GMES activities (2014-2020) is € 5 841 million 5.  

6. 

GOVERNANCE 

The  governance  of  the  GMES  programme  requires  political  coordination  and  supervision, 
management  of  tasks  and  budgets,  and  technical  coordination  of  the  implementation.  From 
2014 onwards, an appropriate governance scheme has to be put in place to accommodate the 
needs of the operational phase. 

6.1. 

Political supervision and management 

It is considered that the Commission should remain responsible, on behalf of the Union, for 
the  overall  political  coordination,  including  the  negotiation  of  international  agreements,  the 
consultation  of  user  communities  based  on  the  experience  gained  with  the  existing  user 
forum, the adoption of the work programmes, ensuring links with sectoral policies, defining 
security and data policy aspects, and international cooperation aspects. However appropriate 
arrangements  are  necessary  to  accommodate  the  increase  of  programme  management 
activities  in  the  operational  phase,  requiring  the  involvement  of  specialized  staff  that  are 
difficult  to  recruit  within  Commission  central  services.  Setting  up  a  new  agency  in  the 
allowed time frame is not considered realistic so these tasks could be delegated to an existing 
European body. The possibility to delegate the management of the overall programme to the 
European  Space  Agency  was  discussed  but  seems  not  appropriate  for  several  reasons:  first, 
ESA is a research & development agency; second, ESA is a space agency whereas a large part 
of GMES goes beyond activities in space; and third, taking into account the fact that GMES 
should  benefit  citizens  across  the  EU,  the  Commission  favours  a  Community  approach  that 
involves all 27 Member States. Consequently, also in order to allow future synergies with the 
management  of  the  Galileo  programme,  certain  tasks  relating  to  programme  management, 

EN 

5 

   EN 

 
such as evaluation, negotiation and follow up of contracts, could be delegated to the European 
Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Agency (GSA). 

It  is  proposed  that,  under  the  political  supervision  of  the  Commission,  the  programme 
management activities entrusted to the European GNSS Agency do not include operations and 
are  related  to,  inter  alia,  the  management  of  funds  allocated  to  the  programme  and  the 
supervision of the implementation of tasks. The administrative costs of the European GNSS 
Agency related to the management of the GMES programme should be covered by the GMES 
fund mentioned in chapter 5. 

6.2. 

Technical coordination and implementation of the operations 

In  support  to  the  Commission,  the  technical  coordination  of  services  could  be  entrusted  to 
European  entities  having  appropriate  knowledge  and  expertise  in  related  fields.  The  quality 
control  and  validation  of  products  related  to  the  implementation  of  sectoral  policies  will 
remain the responsibility of the Commission. 

(1) 

The operations of the GMES service component would include:  

(a)  Operational activities:  

i) 

Global  systematic/routine  activities  for  monitoring  and  forecasting  the 
state of the Earth’s subsystems at regional and global levels covering in 
particular  marine  environment,  atmosphere  and  air  quality,  global  land 
and climate change monitoring services; 

ii)  Regional/local  on-demand  activities  covering  in  particular,  emergency 
management, security and pan-European land monitoring services. 

(b)  Development activities consisting in improving the quality and performance of 
existing  services,  developing  new  service  elements  and  fostering 
the 
downstream uptake. 

The  technical  coordination  of  the  land  monitoring  service  may  be  entrusted  to  the 
European Environment Agency (EEA). 

The technical coordination of the emergency management services may be entrusted 
to the European Emergency Response Centre (ERC) 

The  technical  coordination  of  the  atmosphere  service  may  be  entrusted  to  the 
European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF).  

The technical coordination of the other services (climate change, marine environment 
monitoring,  and  security)  is  under  preparation  in  order  to  ensure  timely  and  high 
quality  services  in  line  with  the  specific  needs  they  are  meant  to  cover.  For  their 
implementation,  the  Commission  services  and  other  European  entities  (for  instance 
the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), the European Union Satellite Centre 
(EUSC),  the  European  Agency  for  the  Management  of  Operational  Cooperation  at 
the External Borders (FRONTEX) or the European Defence Agency (EDA) could be 
involved. 

(2) 

The operations of the GMES space component would include: 

EN 

6 

   EN 

 
(a)  Operational  activities:  operations  of  the  dedicated  space  infrastructure  (i.e. 
Sentinel  missions);  access  to  third  party  missions;  distribution  of  data; 
technical  assistance 
federating  service  data 
requirements, identifying observation gaps, contributing to the specification of 
new space missions.  

the  Commission 

for 

to 

The operational activities of the GMES space component may be entrusted to:  

(1) 

(2) 

The European Space Agency (ESA), ad interim, for the high resolution 
imagery observations over land and target-specific areas; 

The  European  Organisation  for  the  Exploitation  of  Meteorological 
Satellites  (EUMETSAT)  for  the  systematic  and  global  observations  of 
the atmosphere and oceans. 

(b)  Development activities: design and procurement of new elements of the space 
infrastructure;  provision  of  technical  support  to  the  Commission  for  the 
translation  of  service  requirements  into  specifications  of  new  space  missions 
with  the  support  of  space  infrastructure  operators;  coordination  of  the 
including  developments  aiming  at 
development  of  space  activities, 
modernising and complementing the GMES Space Component. 

The  development  activities  maybe  entrusted  to  the  European  Space  Agency,  with 
technical engagement of relevant European Commission services. 

(3) 

The operational activities of the GMES in situ component would include: 

(a)  Coordination  of  the  provision  of  in  situ  data  to  GMES  services  with  ad  hoc 

administrative arrangements with the in situ operators; 

(b)  Coordination of the provision of third party in situ data at international level; 

(c)  Provision  of  technical  assistance  for  the  translation  of  GMES  service  data 
requirements  into  specifications  of  in  situ  observation  infrastructure  and 
networks; 

(d) 

Interaction  with  in-situ  operators  to  promote  consistency  of  development 
activities related to the GMES in-situ component. 

The technical coordination of the GMES in-situ component may be entrusted to the European 
Environment Agency (EEA) within the terms of its mandate. 

For all the three components the implementation of GMES operations should be entrusted to 
operating  entities  through  public  procurement  schemes,  service  level  agreements  or  grants 
where appropriate. 

6.3. 

Data and information policy 

The GMES data and information policy will continue to build on the principle of a full and 
open  access  (subject  to  legal  and  security  restrictions)  and  taking  into  account  existing 
legislation (e.g. directive on the re-use of public sector information and INSPIRE) to achieve 
the objectives defined in Regulation 911/2010, namely:  

EN 

7 

   EN 

 
(1)  promoting the use and sharing of GMES information and data; 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

strengthening  Earth  observation  markets  in  Europe,  in  particular  the 
downstream sector, with a view to enabling growth and job creation; 

contributing  to  the  sustainability  and  continuity  of  the  provision  of 
GMES data and information; 

supporting 
communities.  

the  European 

research, 

technology  and 

innovation 

7. 

CONCLUSIONS 

The present Communication responds to the request of the Competitiveness Council of the 31 
May 2011 to present by the end of 2011 a proposal for the operations and a clarification of the 
governance  of  GMES  in  the  period  from  2014  to  2020  and  it  launches  the  debate  with  the 
other institutions. It also paves the way for the long-term, sustainable governance and funding 
of the GMES programme.  

EN 

8 

   EN 

 
Annex 

Outline for an INTERNAL AGREEMENT9 

between the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States, meeting within 
the Council, on the financing of the European Earth monitoring programme (GMES) 
under the multiannual financial framework for the period 2014 to 2020 

– 

– 

– 

– 

FINANCIAL RESOURCES of the GMES fund 

The  Member  States  agree  to  set  up  a  European  Earth  monitoring  programme  fund, 
hereinafter referred to as the "GMES Fund". 

The GMES Fund shall consist of: 
(a)  An  amount  of  up  to  EUR  5  841  million5  contributed  by  Member  States  in 
compliance with the contribution keys based on Member States' gross national 
income (GNI)  

(b)  Any  other  voluntary  contributions  from  other  entities  (e.g.  a  new  State 
acceding  to  the  EU,  a  third  country  wishing  to  participate  to  the  programme, 
international  organisations,  and/or  any  other  voluntary  contributions)  may  be 
added to the amount indicated in point a. 

The  GMES  Fund  shall  be  available  from  the  entry  into  force  of  the  multiannual 
financial framework. 

The  total  amount  of  resources  of  the  GMES  fund  shall  cover  the  period  from  1 
January 2014 to 31 December 2020.  

USE OF THE FINANCIAL RESOURCES  

– 

The GMES fund shall comprise actions in the following fields: 

(a)  Operations of the GMES: 

i. 

ii. 

iii. 

iv. 

v. 

service  component  (atmosphere  monitoring,  climate  change  monitoring 
in support of adaptation and mitigation policies, emergency management, 
land monitoring, marine environment monitoring, security) 

space  component  ensuring  sustainable  spaceborne  observations  for  the 
services areas referred to in point (i) 

support for in-situ data collection  

data access 

support take-up of services by users 

vi.  measures to ensure the protection of infrastructure. 

9 

The Annex here proposed aims to provide only the main elements and to suggest the main headings for 
an Internal Agreement, based on the current European Development Fund-type agreement (OJ L 247, 
p.32 of 9.9.2006). It does not prejudge the outcome of any discussion with Member State on a final text. 

EN 

9 

   EN 

 
 
                                                 
(b)  Support  measures  aiming  to  cover  costs  linked  to  the  programming  and 
implementation  of  the  GMES  fund.  The  resources  for  support  measures  may 
cover expenditure associated with: 

i. 

ii. 

the preparation, follow-up, monitoring, accounting, audit and evaluation 
activities directly necessary for the programming and implementation of 
the resources of the GMES fund managed by the Commission; 

the  achievement  of  these  objectives,  through  development  policy 
activities, studies, meetings, information, awareness-raising, training and 
publication activities; and 

iii. 

any  other  administrative  or  technical  assistance  expenditure  that  the 
Commission may incur for the management of the GMES fund. 

IMPLEMENTATION 

– 

– 

The  agreement  will  provide  for  implementation  as  concerns  programming, 
management and implementation of the GMES fund, harmonising as far as possible 
Union and GMES fund procedures. In this regard, a regulation will be adopted by the 
Council on a proposal from the Commission. 

The  agreement  will  provide  for  a  financial  regulation  laying  down  rules  for  the 
establishment and financial implementation of the resources of the GMES fund, and 
the presentation and auditing of the accounts. This regulation will be adopted by the 
Council on a proposal from the Commission. 

– 

The Commission shall be assisted by a committee (the "GMES Committee").  

(a)  The  Committee  shall  consist  of  Representatives  of  the  Governments  of  the 
Member  States;  it  shall  be  chaired  by  a  Commission  representative  and  its 
secretariat shall be provided by the Commission. 

(b)  The GMES Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure, including its voting 

rules and tasks, on the basis of a proposal from the Commission. 

(c)  The  GMES  Committee  may  meet  in  specific  configurations  to  deal  with 
concrete issues, notably those relating to security (the "Security Board").' 

FINAL PROVISIONS 

– 

– 

– 

Each  Member  State  shall  approve  this  Agreement  in  accordance  with  its  own 
constitutional requirements. The Government of each Member State shall notify the 
General  Secretariat  of  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  when  the  procedures 
required for the entry into force of this Agreement have been completed.  

This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following 
the notification of the approval of this Agreement by the last Member State. 

This  Agreement  is  concluded  for  the  same  duration  as  the  multiannual  financial 
framework 2014-2020. 

EN 

10 

   EN