Environmental Monitoring Services

Environmental monitoring programmes are used to determine environmental conditions, decide on the need for initiatives and evaluate the effects of initiatives. NIVA is currently responsible for several large national monitoring programmes and many smaller local programmes. We are continually developing and perfecting our monitoring methods.

Environmental Monitoring:

• provides knowledge and perspectives about environmental conditions
• produces a factual basis for determining sustainability policies, public management and commercial development and contributes to an increased focus on the environment
• provides data for environmental research, making it possible to detect and find ways of dealing with environmental problems
• is necessary for the development, evaluation and follow-up of goals, countermeasures and tools in environmental policies

NIVA Monitors:

• biological, physical and chemical parameters in watercourses and coastal areas
• the effects of eutrophication, contaminants, acidification and physical interventions such as watercourse regulations, road construction and mining
• the effects of climate changes on aquatic environments
• the flow of nutrients and contaminants from rivers to the coast

Customized Monitoring
Monitoring programmes are planned with respect to the objectives of the monitoring. Monitoring on a large scale, for instance the impact of acid precipitation, requires sampling from many sites with only a few samples a year from each site. On the other hand, monitoring changes at a particular site can require more frequent sampling over a long time period.

We also detect and survey new environmental contaminants through nationwide environmental monitoring initiatives.

Monitoring is also an important part of obligations set out in the EU Water Framework Directive. The goal is for Norway to achieve favourable ecological conditions in all its water resources.