BALTIC SEA

BALTIC SEA

Baltic Sea BASINS

Baltic BASINS

BALTIC SEAThe Baltic Sea is a brackish inland

sea, the largest body of brackish water in the world !

BALTIC SEACountries that border on the sea:

* Denmark * Estonia * Finland * Germany * Latvia * Lithuania * Poland * Russia * Sweden

BALTIC SEACountries that are in the drainage basin but do not border on the sea:

* Belarus * Czech Republic * Norway * Slovakia * Ukraine

Population density in the Baltic Sea areaPopulation density in the Baltic Sea areaAbout 16 million people live on the coast, and around 80 million in the entire catchment area of the Baltic Sea.

Baltic Sea area

All the countries around the Baltic Sea are heavily industrialised. More or less intensive agricultureand forestry is also carried out over large areas in the riparian states. Furthermore, the sea is surrounded by a considerable number of cities, towns and harbours. There is abundant sea traffic of pleasure craft, ferries, tankers, cargo vessels carrying oil, chemicals and other environmentally hazardous substances in almost all parts of the sea. Fishing fleets from all Baltic countries, and others, gather to exploit the stocks of commercially interesting species.

Baltic Sea salinity

The Baltic Sea is the largest brackish water basin in the world. Its water is a mixture of salty water from the ocean and fresh water supplied by numerous rivers. In the Southern Baltic Sea salinity is as high as 20 parts per thousand, but it is as low as six ppt in the Northern Baltic Sea. The water is almost fresh in river estuaries, for example near St. Petersburg or Gdańsk.

Baltic Sea ecosystem

coast open seacoast open sea

Impact of human activities

EutrophicationHeavy metalsAlien speciesRadioactivity

EUTROPHICATIONThe availability of nutrients, mainly nitrogen and phosphorus, is one of the primary factors limiting the growth of aquatic plants and algae.

Total nutrient load into the Baltic Sea 1994-2003

HARMFUL SUBSTANCESThe harmful substances that are found in the Baltic Sea are slow to decompose, are bioaccumulative, and are toxic compounds.

They can be divided into chemicals that have been deliberately manufactured for a particular use and into chemicals that are by-products of industrial and combustion processes.

HARMFUL SUBSTANCESThe high population in the countries around the Baltic Sea and activities such as agriculture and industry result in heavy loading of harmful substancesheavy loading of harmful substances into the Baltic. Because of the long residence time of the water and unfavourable conditions for decomposition, like the cold climate and the winter ice cover, harmful compounds tend to accumulate in the flora and fauna.

Information is available on the environmental effects of some well-known toxic organic compounds, such as PCBs, DDT, HCH, dioxins and PAHs, and of some of the heavy metals, such as, mercury, cadmium, lead, copper and zinc.

HARMFUL SUBSTANCESSignificant declining trendsdeclining trends in the investigated biotic matrices are observed as a result of measures taken

to reduce discharges of toxic substances to the environment. The concentrations are still significantly

higher in the Baltic Proper and in the southern Bothnian Sea compared to the other places.

HARMFUL SUBSTANCESSignificant declining trendsdeclining trends

BALTIC SEAThe residence time of water in the central Baltic is 25–30 years !

Save Our Sea !