D1.1 Delivery of the Data Management Plan

The SUMMER project will explore recent findings that suggest that the global ocean’s mesopelagic zone contains 90 % of the planet’s fish biomass. Even if this is correct by only a fraction of this value, the exploitation potential in fishmeal production, nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals is enormous. However, as the role of mesopelagic fish in pelagic ecosystems is not well understood, it is necessary to first  establish methods to accurately estimate their biomass, taxonomic/functional diversity, contribution to the global carbon cycle and potential as a sustainable fishery. Using state-of-the-art tools (e.g. eDNA, acoustics and gut analysis), SUMMER will also investigate environmental repercussions of such exploitation, and quantify the impact of commercial extraction on pelagic ecosystems.

The Data Management Plan (DMP) summarizes the data that will be collected and generated during the project and lays out how, where and under which conditions the data will be disseminated. Preparing and updating the DMP is a requirement of the Open Research Data Pilot in which SUMMER participates. WP1 – Open Science ensures that the data are shared according to the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) principles. This update defines persons responsible for cruise summary reports as well as embargo periods for data publication in open access. Expected data generated from each work package was updated due to COVID-19 issues where necessary.