| Scientists began to doubt whether there is life in the Baltic The Baltic Sea is either dead or in agony. This sad conclusion was made by researchers from the environmental commission working under the Swedish government, reported the French newspaper Libération. In their opinion, pollution of the Baltic with human waste could soon lead to the irreversible destruction of the entire ecological system of this reservoir. Already, areas of the seabed over an area of several tens of square kilometers are practically lifeless due to the fact that the water here contains too little oxygen. Scientists suggest that the process of dying of the Baltic has advanced so far that it is unlikely that it will be possible to restore the sea’s ecosystem.
The main enemy of life in the Baltic Sea, writes Libération, has become eutrophication. This is what scientists call water pollution due to chemical compounds that cause rapid growth of phytoplankton - tiny algae that float freely in the water column. In moderate quantities, phytoplankton are an essential part of the ecosystem because they feed on many marine animals and fish, among other things. But when these algae fill the entire reservoir, it becomes cloudy and the sea “blooms.” In addition, the water loses oxygen, and many animals and bottom plants begin to suffocate and die. The living sea becomes a dead, muddy broth.
In order to start the eutrophication mechanism, you need heat and phosphorus and nitrogen compounds, which algae feed on. The most common fertilizers, which farmers add to the soil in large quantities in the spring, are best suited for this. These chemicals are then washed out of the ground by water, found their way into rivers, and dissolved into the sea. The Vistula, Oder, Neman, Neva and other rivers annually supply tens of thousands of tons of this poisonous “food” to phytoplankton. And in the spring the sea begins to bloom wildly.
Of course, fertilizers end up in all the seas and oceans of the planet, but the Baltic is especially unlucky. The water in this inland sea changes very slowly, since it is connected to the Atlantic only by a narrow strait between Denmark and Sweden. Therefore, almost all fertilizers washed away from the fields and vegetable gardens of Poland, Germany, Russia and five other countries of the Baltic region remain in this relatively small and almost fresh body of water. For phytoplankton “jelly” this is simply an ideal situation.
But not only phosphorus and nitrogen poison the Baltic - a wide variety of dirt is thrown into the water from the shores and ships passing on the sea in gigantic quantities. Things have gotten to the point where the famous Baltic fish has become dangerous to the health of the people who eat it. At least, this is what the European Union thinks: for example, herring and salmon caught in Baltic waters are prohibited from being sold on the European market. This fatty fish contains too many dioxins - compounds unsafe for health. The EU, however, had to make a special exception for the Swedes and Finns: in order for local fishermen to somehow adapt to the new requirements, they can sell Baltic fish on their domestic market until the end of 2006.
But not only the Baltic region suffers from the influence of people on the environment. Europe's other large inland sea, the Mediterranean, is also experiencing dramatic climate changes. As reported by the Spanish agency ANSA, researchers from Italy said that the water in this region is steadily warming. It is argued that the Mediterranean Sea is even sharply ahead of the pace of the notorious global warming: if on average the water of the World Ocean warms up by 0.15 degrees per year, then to the south of Europe it is much faster - by 0.75 degrees. For the ecological system, such a sharp change in climatic conditions is extremely dangerous, since the flora and fauna of the Mediterranean basin may not have time to adapt to the rapid heating of the environment. Moreover, scientists are not yet able to determine the reasons for such a rapid heating of the largest inland sea of the Old World. Vladimir DZAGUTO |
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