RESUMEN
Marine plastic floating on the sea surface is an extensive environmental problem. The present study investigated the transport patterns of marine litter and areas of its accumulation in the Baltic Sea by using a hydrodynamic model coupled with a particle-tracking model. We also studied the extent of marine litter from the main polluting rivers. Mapping of marine plastic debris distribution in 2017-2018 revealed that the largest plastic accumulation area is between latitude 59° N and 61° N, which includes the Northern Baltic Proper, Archipelago Sea, and the Gulf of Finland. The floating plastic spreads from the largest plastic pollution sites River Vistula, Oder and Neman to the waters of all the countries around the Baltic Sea.
Asunto(s)
Monitoreo del Ambiente , Residuos , Residuos/análisis , Plásticos , Contaminación del Agua/análisis , RíosRESUMEN
In this study, the effects of sea ice and wind speed on the timing and composition of phytoplankton spring bloom in the central and southern Baltic Sea are investigated by a hydrodynamic-biogeochemical model and observational data. The modelling experiment compared the results of a reference run in the presence of sea ice with those of a run in the absence of sea ice, which confirmed that ecological conditions differed significantly for both the scenarios. It has been found that diatoms dominate the phytoplankton biomass in the absence of sea ice, whereas dinoflagellates dominate the biomass in the presence of thin sea ice. The study concludes that under moderate ice conditions (representing the last few decades), dinoflagellates dominate the spring bloom phytoplankton biomass in the Baltic Sea, whereas diatoms will be dominant in the future as a result of climate change i.e. in the absence of sea ice.