Innovative Earth observation services in support of maritime litter detection and ship source pollution policies

The EU is offering funding opportunities under the Horizon Europe Programme for the call titled "Innovative Earth observation services in support of maritime litter detection and ship source pollution policies." This initiative is part of Horizon Europe's Cluster 4, focusing on advancing Earth observation technologies to improve maritime pollution detection and prevention. The main objective is to enhance the capabilities for detecting potential spills and identifying polluters, contributing to environmental protection of marine ecosystems.

This opportunity aims to support projects that develop and demonstrate advanced technological solutions, particularly space sensors and artificial intelligence methods. Specific use cases include estimating oil spill volume and thickness, detecting oil spills in sea ice, and identifying chemical products and garbage on the sea surface. The deadline for proposals is September 25, 2025, with a single-stage application process opening on May 22, 2025.

Eligible applicants include research institutes, universities, SMEs, public-private partnerships, and consortia from EU member states and associated countries, with potential for participation from international partners. The funding mechanism primarily provides a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, and the indicative funding amount for relevant projects could range from €1 million to €5 million, depending on the specific action type.

Projects funded under this call should align with EU environmental sustainability initiatives and international conventions, particularly the MARPOL convention and the Ship Source Pollution Directive. Successful projects are expected to involve collaboration with the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and contribute to broader EU and UN efforts for ocean conservation and pollution control.

Overall, the call encourages innovative approaches to improve the detection and monitoring of maritime pollution, with a focus on integrating and leveraging data from the Copernicus and Galileo programs for enhanced detection services.

The EU is offering funding opportunities under the Horizon Europe Programme, specifically the SPACE-HADEA (HORIZON-CL4-2025-02) call, to support innovation actions aimed at improving maritime pollution detection and prevention. The call, titled "Innovative Earth observation services in support of maritime litter detection and ship source pollution policies," seeks to enhance the services provided to Member States for detecting potential spills and identifying polluters, thereby contributing to the environmental protection of sea waters and the preservation of marine ecosystems. The indicative deadline for this single-stage call is September 25, 2025.

The scope of the projects should include the development and demonstration of space sensors for various use cases, including: estimation of oil spill volume and thickness, detection of oil spills in sea ice conditions, detection and identification of chemical products, sewage, garbage, and exhaust gas cleaning system residue on the sea surface, monitoring of single-vessel methane emissions, and identification of potential polluters using vessel unique spectral signatures. Projects should also focus on designing and improving artificial intelligence methods for identifying spills, sewage, and garbage on the sea surface to achieve higher levels of timeliness, automation, and confidence in detection.

The context of this funding opportunity is rooted in the MARPOL convention and the Ship Source Pollution Directive (SSPD), which aim to regulate and enforce the prohibition of releases at sea of harmful substances from ships. The revision of the SSPD will expand its scope to discharges under all MARPOL annexes, necessitating further research to adapt current monitoring systems. The R&I activities funded under this call should complement the work already being done by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) through CleanSeaNet and the Copernicus maritime surveillance service.

Applicants are encouraged to consult the Copernicus Security Services Strategic Research Agenda (CSS-SRA) for additional requirements and information. The transfer of research results to operations is a key consideration, with appropriate involvement and/or interaction with EMSA expected. Proposals should also address the conditions for making available, re-using, and exploiting the results, including intellectual property rights. Furthermore, projects are encouraged to contribute to the EU Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030. The integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content should be addressed if relevant to the objectives of the research effort.

The general conditions for this call include admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout, eligible countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, and other eligible conditions such as restrictions for the protection of European communication networks and the use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS for projects using satellite-based earth observation data. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria are described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes. The granting authority can fund a maximum of one project, and the award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are described in Annex D. Submission and evaluation processes are detailed in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual. Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021.

Application forms, evaluation forms, model grant agreements, and guidance documents are available on the Funding & Tenders Portal. Additional documents include the Horizon Europe Main Work Programme 2025, the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, the EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, and various guidance documents related to legal entity validation, financial capacity assessment, and grant management.

The budget overview for the call includes several topics with varying budget allocations and indicative numbers of grants. The opening date for submissions is May 22, 2025, and the deadline is September 25, 2025.

The call includes the following specific topics:

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-11: HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions with a budget of 1,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-12: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 3,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 1,000,000 to 3,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-13: HORIZON Innovation Actions with a budget of 7,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 4,000,000 to 7,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-21: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 18,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 6,000,000 to 12,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-22: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 17,500,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 12,000,000 to 17,500,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-23: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 12,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 10,000,000 to 12,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-24: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 5,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 2,000,000 to 3,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-31: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 6,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 1,000,000 to 5,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 3 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-32: HORIZON Innovation Actions with a budget of 11,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 2,000,000 to 6,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 3 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-41: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 10,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-42: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 3,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-43: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 3,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-44: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 5,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-45: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 12,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-46: HORIZON Innovation Actions with a budget of 5,000,000 EUR and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-71: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 5,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 4,500,000 to 5,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-72: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 8,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 3,500,000 to 4,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-73: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 1,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 800,000 to 1,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 1 grant.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-74: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 6,000,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 2,500,000 to 3,000,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 2 grants.

HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-81: HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions with a budget of 500,000 EUR, contributions ranging from 450,000 to 500,000 EUR, and an indicative number of 1 grant.

This Horizon Europe call aims to foster research and innovation in space-based technologies to improve the detection and monitoring of maritime pollution, aligning with EU environmental directives and international conventions. It encourages the development of advanced sensors and AI-driven methods to enhance the accuracy and timeliness of pollution detection, ultimately contributing to cleaner oceans and healthier marine ecosystems. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and successful projects are expected to involve collaboration with relevant agencies like EMSA and contribute to broader EU and UN initiatives for ocean conservation.

Eligible Applicant Types: While the specific types of eligible applicants are not explicitly listed, the opportunity is open to a wide range of entities eligible under Horizon Europe, including those from non-EU/non-Associated Countries with specific funding provisions. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of a consortium. The Enterprise Europe Network is mentioned, suggesting SMEs are relevant. The mention of LEAR appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment also suggests that organizations with legal entity validation are eligible.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, as indicated by the Type of MGA (Model Grant Agreement) being HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS]. The actions are HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA) and HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA).

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity appears to favor consortia, as the Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium. Partner search announcements are mentioned, suggesting that collaboration is encouraged.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU member states, associated countries, and potentially non-EU/non-associated countries with specific provisions, as detailed in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Target Sector: The primary target sector is space, with a focus on earth observation, maritime, and environmental monitoring. Specific areas include:
- Space sensors
- Oil spill detection and volume estimation
- Detection of chemical products, sewage, and garbage on the sea surface
- Monitoring of methane emissions
- Artificial intelligence for spill identification
- Maritime litter detection
- Ship source pollution policies
- Technologies related to MARPOL Annexes I, II, IV, V, and VI

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity is open to EU member states and associated countries. Non-EU/non-associated countries may also be eligible if they have made specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on development and demonstration, as the scope includes the development and demonstration of space sensors and the improvement of artificial intelligence methods. The emphasis is on innovation actions, suggesting a technology readiness level (TRL) of 5-7, moving towards operational deployment.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call:
- HORIZON-CSA: around €1,000,000
- HORIZON-RIA: ranging from €500,000 to €17,500,000
- HORIZON-IA: ranging from €5,000,000 to €11,000,000

Application Type: The application type is a single-stage open call, as indicated by the "single-stage" deadline model and the "Open For Submission" status.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant to cover eligible costs, as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight into the potential competitiveness.

Co-funding Requirement: The need for co-funding is not explicitly mentioned.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call focuses on innovative earth observation services to support maritime litter detection and ship source pollution policies. It aims to develop and demonstrate advanced technological solutions, particularly space sensors and AI-driven methods, to improve the detection and identification of various pollutants in sea waters. The call is open to a wide range of applicants from EU member states, associated countries, and potentially non-EU/non-associated countries. Funding is provided as a lump sum grant, with varying amounts depending on the specific action type (Coordination and Support Actions, Research and Innovation Actions, and Innovation Actions). The projects should contribute to improved detection services for maritime authorities and enforcement bodies, ultimately leading to better environmental protection of marine ecosystems. The call encourages collaboration and interaction with the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and alignment with relevant EU missions and UN initiatives.