OSPAR Commission

The OSPAR Commission is the forum through which Contracting Parties cooperate. It normally meets once a year, usually at the end of June. The annual meeting is hosted by one of the Contracting Parties.

The Commission is supported by five main committees, some of which are in turn supported by working groups. In addition, the Heads of the Delegations of the Contracting Parties meet regularly to prepare the meetings of the Commission, to advise on management and to oversee the development and implementation of the agreements made by the Commission. The Commission is also supported by meetings of the Group of Jurists and Linguists and the Committee of Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen. You can access a more detailed OSPAR organogram showing the latest organisational structure along with the intersessional correspondence groups.

The meetings of the OSPAR Commission, the main committees and the working groups are also attended by observers from observer organisations. These observer organisations include other intergovernmental organisations working in similar fields, and international non-governmental organisations. The non-governmental observer organisations include industry and trade organisations, organisations of regional and local authorities and environmental campaigning groups.