International Relations

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World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Objectives

Membership

Structure

Activities

Environment Canada's Involvement

The purposes of WMO are to facilitate international cooperation in the establishment of networks to obtain systematic observations of weather, water, climate, chemical constituents of the atmosphere (e.g., greenhouse gases) and other environmental parameters. WMO promotes the rapid exchange of meteorological information, the standardization of meteorological observations and the uniform publication of observations and statistics. It also furthers the application of meteorology to aviation, shipping, water problems, agriculture and other human activities, promotes operational hydrology and encourages research and training in meteorology. WMO programs help protect human life and safety and improve economic activity. WMO provides the authoritative scientific voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth's atmosphere and climate.

As of December 2003, there were 187 members, comprising 181 member States and six member Territories, all of which maintain their own Meteorological and Hydrological Services. Members are grouped in six regional associations (Africa, Asia, South America, North and Central America and the Caribbean, South-West Pacific and Europe). WMO has formal agreements with UNEP and other UN organizations such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization-Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO-IOC), the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN/OCHA), secretariats of environmental conventions and protocols such as the UNFCCC, the UN Convention to Combat Desertification and the Montreal Protocol, the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR), the IPCC and the International Council for Science (ICSU).

The World Meteorological Congress is the supreme body of WMO. It meets every four years to determine policies and approve the program, budget and regulations. The Executive Council, composed of 36 members, meets at least every year to prepare studies and recommendations for Congress and to guide the work of its Constituent Bodies during the intercongressional period. WMO Constituent Bodies include eight Technical Commissions which facilitate collaboration on telecommunications, data processing, standards, research and other issues. WMO also has regional representation. Canada is a member of WMO Regional Association IV (North and Central America and the Caribbean).

There are eight scientific and technical programs which the Technical Commissions support:

Through the World Weather Watch, National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) share data, weather forecasts and warnings so that disasters are avoided or mitigated.

Through the World Climate Program (WCP), the climate is assessed, data archived, and seasonal to decadal predictions are made by which human impacts are assessed. The WCP supports the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS), encompassing all components of the climate system, atmosphere, biosphere, cryosphere and oceans, and the World Climate Research Program conducted jointly with UNEP, IOC and ICSU. WMO is engaged in other environmental monitoring, such as air quality and chemical constituents of the atmosphere, through the Atmospheric Research and Environment Program.

WMO also monitors air quality and chemical constituents of the atmosphere through the Atmospheric Research and Environment Program.

The Hydrology and Water Resources Program engages WMO as the only UN agency involved in operational hydrology that deals with difficult issues surrounding transboundary waters, water scarcity and the onset of droughts.

Through the WMO programs on Education and Training and Technical Cooperation, Member States assist in the transfer of knowledge and technology between NMHSs in developed countries and those in developing countries to enhance institutional capacity, improve global data collection and processing and transfer technology.

The Applications of Meteorology Program assists nations in aviation, marine, agriculture and public weather services and the Regional Program reflects these activities on a smaller geographical scale.

Canada is committed to contribute to the programs of WMO through systematic observations of the earth-atmosphere-ocean system (including the cryosphere) and to archive this information for use in research and the compilation of statistics. Dr. Marc Denis Everell, ADM of MSC, is the Permanent Representative of Canada with WMO. He is an elected member of the WMO Executive Council and a member of several panels. Canada is represented regularly at meetings of WMO Policy Organs (WMO Congress and Executive Council) and other Constituent Bodies (e.g. Technical Commissions and Regional Association IV) by staff and occasionally staff from other federal departments, academia and the private sector.

Environment Canada is a key partner in global efforts to understand the ocean-atmosphere system with the goal of enhancing our collective abilities to protect humankind from the environment and to inform humankind of their effect on the environment. Environment Canada uses international mechanisms to promote the interchange of ideas and expertise to advance our knowledge of inter alia, climate variability and change, ozone depletion, transboundary air and water issues, environmental emergency response, and environmental predictions including flood forecasting and weather warnings. Canada's expertise and participation in the work of the Organization is actively sought. Environment Canada's Canadian Meteorological Centre provides data to the world for the geographic region of Canada and surrounding waters. It also acts as a Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC) for Environmental Emergency Response, and is designated a Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre by ICAO. The World Ozone and UV Data Centre is housed at MSC headquarters in Downsview. Environment Canada maintains a monitoring network consisting of land stations, ocean observing platforms, aerological stations, and a sophisticated Ice Service. Environment Canada also maintains the Baseline Air Chemistry Observatory at Alert -Nunavut, where a broad range of measurements are conducted as part of the Global Atmosphere Watch network.