Report of the Working Group on the Effects of Extraction of Marine Sediments on the Marine Ecosystem (WGEXT)

The Working Group on the effects of extraction of marine sediments on the marine ecosystem (WGEXT) met in Faial, the Azores; Portugal between 22nd and 25th April 2013. Sixteen participants from nine ICES Member Countries attended the meeting. The objective of WGEXT is to provide a summary of data on marine sediment extrac-tion, marine resource and habitat mapping, changes to the legal regime, and research projects relevant to the assessment of environmental effects. The data on marine sed-iment extraction will be reported on a yearly base for OSPAR in an Interim Report. The other items will be addressed in the Final Report of the new ICES 3-year reporting period.