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Noise is not only a land problem generated by various forms of transport and construction activities. Underwater noise is a significant pressure for many marine organisms, especially porpoises and fish.

Marine mammals, many species of fish, and some invertebrates communicate via sound to find partners, potential prey, avoid predators and threats, and for navigation.

Sound is only referred to as ‘noise’ when it is likely to have a negative effect on marine life. It can travel long distances underwater because sound travels more effectively through the water than it does through the air. Sound intensity is easy to measure, but the effect of sound is not well understood in many animal species, making underwater noise management a complex task.

How does underwater noise pollute the sea?

Both natural and anthropogenic noise occur in marine waters. The former is short-lived and generated by wind and wave motion, while the latter is continuous or impulsive.

The sources of impulse noise in Polish sea areas are underwater explosions, seismic surveys, sonar operation and, in the future, also activities involving driving piles during the construction of offshore wind farms.

The sources of continuous noise are, however, maritime transport, sea tourism and fishing, and in the future will also be the operation of offshore wind farms.

Anthropogenic underwater noise can cause animals damage to their body integuments and even death, lead to behavioral changes, or mask other sounds that may be relevant to marine organisms. These factors can lead to negative changes at the level of both a given individual and the entire population. An example is the porpoise, which has an evolutionarily advanced echolocation system. As a result of the strong intensity of extraneous sounds, the hearing aid damages him and prevents him from navigating properly (including identifying obstacles) and gaining food.

Due to this strong behavioral response from the harbor porpoise and some fish species, it is very important to protect the marine environment from this pressure. This element, while still poorly defined in terms of threshold values for good and bad marine environment, is still the subject of intense work at European and national level. The issue of monitoring studies is also similar.

How is underwater noise tested?

Currently, there are few noise measurement data available in Polish sea areas, only for relatively short periods. The analyzes so far have used continuous measurements carried out as part of the international BIAS project in the entire Baltic Sea, but they only cover one year (2014). As part of this research, the highest level of underwater noise was recorded in the Pomeranian Bay – the shipping route to Świnoujście and Szczecin. In Poland, since 2015, the CIEP has been conducting a pilot monitoring of underwater (continuous) noise in designated locations, in accordance with the sea water monitoring program. Information on impulse noise is also successively collected, currently only on the basis of data from recorded explosions (data source: Ministry of National Defense). Still, the level of uncertainty and lack of knowledge is high.

Under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive – Underwater noise and other energy sources constitute Feature 11 within the set of status and pressures characteristics analyzed in detail in the Marine Water Action Program (PMM). As part of aPOWM, we respond to these problems by proposing actions aimed primarily at filling the knowledge gap about this pressure, but also specific actions aimed at real reduction of this pressure. The proposed actions include:

• Implementation of the register of sources of impulse noise.
• Development and implementation of guidelines for the neutralization of explosives.
• Development of seasonal noise maps.
• Development and implementation of guidelines for the neutralization of explosives.
• Reduction of underwater noise in NATURA 2000 areas where marine mammals are an object of protection.
• Reducing human disturbance to seals at their breeding site.
• Limiting anthropogenic activity at sea in the Pomeranian Bay, which causes a high level of impulse noise, to months unimportant for porpoises.

Speaking of the Baltic Sea, we see a low salt, relatively shallow and practically inland sea in the heart of Europe, the condition of which is influenced by the inhabitants of the countries included in its catchment area, as well as the specific hydrographic characteristics and climate changes. Startups that could help to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea are those that would provide solutions to cross-sectoral problems, enabling effective action to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea and implementation of solutions also at the international level.

The key problem that the Baltic states, including Poland, have to face is the reduction of agricultural pressure, which is largely responsible for the recurrent blooms of cyanobacteria and the fertilization of the waters of our sea, leading to the deterioration of its condition and, consequently, the death of life in the Baltic Sea.

The role of young, innovative companies in saving the Baltic Sea is also noticed by Polish Waters, as the MamStartUp portal writes about in the article What solutions can help the Baltic Sea? In response to the question of the portal’s editor about how startups could help, the Deputy Director of the Department of Aquatic Environment Management, Joanna Sasal: – Startups promoting innovative solutions in agriculture, helping to reduce the load of nutrients reaching our waters or technological solutions improving the quality of the waters of the sea itself they would undoubtedly help the Baltic Sea. Similarly, those whose task would be to develop solutions for the effective capture of pollutants – e.g. solid waste from the Baltic Sea, including unmarked ghost nets that drift in the water depth or remain anchored on the bottom, posing a threat to entire marine ecosystems. Water management is a network of connected vessels, therefore activities related to supporting the fishing, agricultural and water and sewage sectors in startups would allow not only to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea waters, but also inland waters, which shows how many benefits can be brought by the activities of young entrepreneurs implemented just now. in these areas.

Startups promoting innovative solutions in agriculture, helping to reduce the load of nutrients reaching our waters, or technological solutions improving the quality of the waters of the sea itself, would undoubtedly help the Baltic Sea. Similarly, those whose task would be to develop solutions for the effective capture of pollutants – e.g. solid waste from the Baltic Sea, including unmarked ghost nets that drift in the water depth or remain anchored on the bottom, posing a threat to entire marine ecosystems. Water management is a network of connected vessels, therefore activities related to the support of the fishing, agricultural and water and sewage sectors in startups would allow not only to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea waters, but also inland waters, which shows how many benefits can be generated by projects implemented in these areas. areas.

PGW Polish Waters has prepared a draft program for the protection of sea waters, which includes activities in such areas as agriculture, fisheries and wastewater management. The overriding goal is to plan the most effective actions to minimize the pressure we exert on the Baltic Sea. On the one hand, we have an ecological aspect, and on the other, further restrictions that we must introduce, for example, for farmers or fishermen. The greatest difficulty is the fact that these are sectors that are already subject to high requirements, but still, for example, as in the case of eutrophication – too much pollution comes from agriculture and, secondly, from wastewater treatment plants. Hence the need to introduce measures to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus loads for the protection of the Baltic Sea. The support and operation of scientific communities, academia, think-tanks and startups is an expert solution to the challenges of the good condition of our country’s waters.

Completion of the three-month process of public consultations is the first stage on the way to adopting an update of the marine water protection program in the form of a regulation of the Council of Ministers. Due to the nature of the document, it is consulted inter-ministerial, also with regard to the responses to the comments received during the public consultations and POWM. Cooperation for the protection of sea waters is a process from planning arrangements to the implementation of specific actions for the Baltic after the adoption of the APOWM.

On October 5, public consultations on the draft update of the marine water protection program ended. Work is currently underway to approve the discrepancy table. Proposed responses to comments prepared by experts will be agreed by the Ministry of Infrastructure with competent authorities, including the minister in charge of agriculture, the minister in charge of the environment. After taking into account the comments from the public consultations and the SEA results, the prepared draft aPOWM will be submitted for consultation with the Council of Ministers. Within three months from the agreement with the Council of Ministers, the minister responsible for water management will submit the aPOWM draft to the European Commission.

APOWM public consultation – how did we inform the public?

As part of the public consultations on the aPOWM project, which lasted from July 5 to October 5, 2021, three nationwide conferences were organized. Due to the restrictions prevailing in the country, they were held in a hybrid formula. During the conference, experts presented the assumptions of the project, analyzed the existing pressures and presented the action program proposed in the draft. The conferences were held in coastal cities – Gdańsk, Gdynia and Szczecin, and their on-line formula allowed each interested person to conveniently connect from anywhere. Almost 300 people in total participated in them. The conference broadcasts are available HERE.

The main task of the public consultations of the project was to establish a social dialogue with the stakeholders of the marine water protection program update (aPOWM) and to check whether the problems, goals and recommended actions identified by the experts included in the developed aPOWM project are acceptable to representatives of various social groups. The proposed actions focus on improving the condition and achieving the environmental objectives for the 11 state features and pressures of the Baltic Sea. Indirectly, they will bring positive effects for all residents and tourists visiting coastal areas and have a positive impact on the condition of inland waters throughout Poland, which shows that it will be a benefit for the entire society!

The supporting activity was the promotion of the Protect the Sea project and activities to protect the Baltic Sea during the 8th Maritime Congress in Szczecin and during outdoor events – cleaning the Vistula Spit and the 3rd Eco Float on the Słupia River, in which employees of Polish Waters actively participated. The problem of waste going to the Polish coast and to the Baltic Sea was shown in the project as part of a competition addressed to small entrepreneurs, whose task was to emphasize the importance of responsible attitudes of all of us, when caring for the environment, including the marine environment.

Comments submitted as part of public consultations are a good sign!

Pursuant to the provisions of the Act on the provision of information on the environment and its protection, public participation in environmental protection and on environmental impact assessments (Journal of Laws of 2020, item 283, as amended), comments could be submitted in various forms : by electronic means, by traditional mail, through a dedicated on-line form, as well as orally for the minutes at the Ministry of Infrastructure.

In total, over 200 comments were received. They concerned not only the document itself and its annexes, but also presented proposals for new actions. Non-governmental organizations, central and local government administration, as well as private individuals were involved in the public consultations. Maritime Offices in Szczecin and Gdynia, WWF Poland Foundation – these are just some of the organizations that got involved in the process of submitting comments.

Thank you for such a large response! Thanks to the involvement of so many units and joint activities, we can have a positive impact on the condition of the Baltic sea. After the work on the approval of the discrepancy table is completed, the proposals of responses to the comments prepared by the experts will be agreed by the Ministry of Infrastructure with the competent authorities. The final shape of the aPOWM project, taking into account the comments from the public consultations and the SEA results, will be submitted for consultation with the Council of Ministers. Finally, the minister responsible for water management will submit the aPOWM project to the European Commission.

The Baltic Sea is an almost inland water body whose waters are influenced by the activities of the inhabitants of the Baltic states. Updating the marine water protection program is a national program that is an element of the EU policy implementing the provisions of the Marine Strategy Directive. Therefore, let us remember that taking care of the Baltic Sea is our common concern.

In the broadcast of Polish Radio – Sygnały Dnia, Przemysław Gruszecki, director of the Department of Water Environment Management in Polish Waters, and Joanna Sasal, deputy director, talked about the program “Protect the Sea”. We cordially invite you to listen!

The nationwide conference “Protect the Sea” organized on October 5 in Szczecin ends the 3-month public consultation on the update of the Sea Waters Protection Program (aPOWM). The draft document, which envisages nearly 60 actions for the protection of the Baltic Sea, supplemented with submitted applications and comments, will finally be adopted by way of a regulation of the Council of Ministers.

The public consultation on the POWM update, which has been running since 5 July 2021, is the most important part of the campaign called “Protect the Sea”. This is the last moment when you can submit comments and proposals to the draft document. Anyone can do it, the easiest way is through a specially prepared form on the website: www.chronmorze.eu.

– It is too early to fully summarize the public consultations on the draft aPOWM document, but we note with satisfaction the increased interest of our society in the protection of the Baltic Sea. We are more and more aware that stopping its further degradation will not only improve the condition of our sea, but will allow us, with large financial outlays, to fulfill the activities to which we are obliged by international regulations. The state of the Baltic Sea is the litmus test of society’s activity throughout the country, therefore the future of the Baltic Sea depends on what we do well not only along the coast – said Paweł Rusiecki, Deputy President for Water Environment Management in the State Water Holding Polish Waters.

Involvement of thousands of people

The long-term goal of the sea water protection program is a clean Baltic Sea, rich in biodiversity. We will be able to achieve this by implementing activities planned in the program, assigned to various institutions. The Ministry of Infrastructure and the Polish Water National Water Management are responsible for their major part and coordination of the whole. All research confirms that the condition of our sea is largely influenced by economic and communal activity on land. As much as 48% of the waste in the Baltic Sea comes from households. Actions taken by dozens of organizations and institutions in various parts of the country to purify aquatic and dependent water ecosystems lead directly to the reduction of littering in our sea. The biological pollutants removed in time will not intensify the progressive eutrophication (overthrow the sea), and each collected amount of waste will reduce the contamination with plastic nanoparticles and other harmful or poisonous substances. Only during the September cleaning action of the Słupia river, over a ton of rubbish was collected. Annually, on a national scale, tens of thousands of people take part in similar actions, including employees of Polish Waters.

The Pomeranian Bay and the Szczecin Lagoon are endangered, as is the entire Baltic Sea

The main sectors of the economy and human activity directly dependent on the sea are shipping, fishing, tourism and leisure. The Szczecin Lagoon and the Pomeranian Bay are reservoirs of great importance for the Polish maritime economy. Navigation tracks run through the Pomeranian Bay, leading to the large Szczecin-Świnoujście port complex, as well as to the smaller ports of the Szczecin Coast and Słowiński Coast. – On the shores of the bay there are numerous attractive spas and holiday resorts, for which the purity of the waters is an important factor in their development. It is also a key parameter for the Szczecin Lagoon – an area with still high fishing efficiency – emphasized President Rusiecki. Also, the hydrographic conditions of the Baltic Sea have a negative impact on its self-cleaning capacity, which translates into low salinity of the reservoir and difficult water exchange with the North Sea (a minimum of 25 years is required for this). The effects of this are clearly visible in the coastal area administered by the Regional Water Management Authority of Polish Waters in Szczecin. – The Zalew Szczeciński is particularly vulnerable to degradation. This reservoir is constantly supplied with fresh, rich in nutrients and other pollutants, the waters of the Oder, one of the largest rivers in the entire basin. At the same time, the outflow and inflow take place through only three straits, similar to the exchange of the waters of the Baltic and the North Sea through the Danish Straits of little capacity, which noticeably affects the condition of its waters – explained Przemysław Gruszecki, Director of the Water Environment Management Department at PGW WP.

Rescue for the Lagoon and the Bay

Out of 59 activities planned in the aPOWM project, 8 are directly related to the Szczecin Lagoon and the Pomeranian Bay. The actions to save biodiversity in these reservoirs are particularly noteworthy: reduction of underwater noise in NATURA 2000 areas, where marine mammals, including porpoises, are the object of protection, reduction of activities at sea in the Pomeranian Bay, which causes high noise levels; reduction of accidental by-catches of porpoises and reduction of the woolly crab population. In addition, there is a harmonization of the activities of ports, e.g. in the field of creating a comprehensive system to prevent the formation of lost so-called ghost nets and exploring the feasibility of implementing the International Maritime Organization (IMO) guidelines on the control practice and handling of fouling organisms on board ships.

The aPOWM project also plans to prohibit the discharge of untreated sanitary sewage from passenger ships and to build infrastructure for their collection in Szczecin and Świnoujście, and to establish zones free from permanent interferences in the spatial development plans for sea areas and Natura 2000 protection plans. List of all activities with their justification is available in the draft document on the website: www.chronmorze.eu.

The briefing for journalists was opened by Małgorzata Bogucka-Szymalska, Deputy Director of the Water Management and Inland Navigation Department at the Ministry of Infrastructure

The Ministry of Infrastructure and the State Water Holding Polish Waters cordially invite you to the third and last conference as part of public consultations on the draft program for the protection of sea waters (aPOWM). On October 5, in Szczecin, representatives of the government administration and experts will meet to discuss the results of work on the document aimed at maintaining and improving the condition of the Baltic Sea. We invite all of you to register and take part in the discussion.

On August 31, the public consultation on the strategic environmental impact assessment of the aPOWM project ended, and on October 5, the public consultation on the program draft itself will be officially concluded.

All information about the form of submitting applications and comments to the project can be found in the CONSULTATIONS tab. We still count on your vote on the protection of the Baltic Sea!

The sea water protection program is an important element of the marine strategy implemented in accordance with the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the Water Law Act. During the conference, the key results of analytical and design works as well as proposals for remedial measures to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea and its protection will be presented. The conference will also be an opportunity to summarize the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment procedure for the draft aPOWM document.

We invite you to participate in the conference and online debate. Registration and the meeting agenda are available at: https://chronmorze.eu/en/conferences/.

Let’s save the sea together!

Over 350 people, including a dozen or so employees of Polish Waters, took part in cleaning the estuary section of the Słupia River as part of the 3rd edition of Eco Rafting organized by the Alpha Team Association from the budget of the City of Ustka. Employees of Polish Waters helped to clean the 8-kilometer section of the Słupia River from about 1 ton of rubbish and educated participants about the importance of protecting the Baltic Sea and inland waters as part of the Protect the Sea project!

The Słupia River drains its waters directly to the Baltic Sea. In addition, its catchment area divides territorially the water regions administered by the RZGW Szczecin and Gdańsk, which manage the waters of the Baltic coasts. Employees of Polish Waters from five administrative units were involved in the cleaning action of Słupia: the National Water Management Authority, the Management of the Basin in Gdańsk, the Water Supervision Authority in Słupsk (RZGW Gdańsk) and the Management of the Basin in Koszalin and the Water Supervision in Sławno (RZGW Szczecin), showing that for the condition of our waters and the Baltic Sea is our common concern!

The 8th International Maritime Congress was a place of expert debate on water transport, innovative technologies, ecology and protection of marine ecosystems. The panel discussion presented the synergy effects of activities for the protection of the waters of the Baltic Sea thanks to the cooperation of government institutions in the project of updating the program of protection of sea waters.

The Synergy of actions for the protection of the waters of the Baltic Sea on the example of cooperation between government institutions opened a block of discussions and presentations on ecology. The speakers of the panel were: Małgorzata Bogucka-Szymalska – Deputy Director of the Water Management and Inland Navigation Department, Ministry of Infrastructure, Joanna Sasal, Deputy Director of the Water Environment Management Department at State Water Holding and Marek Duklanowski, Director of the Regional Water Management Board in Szczecin.

The marine waters protection program is a cross-sectoral document which has to reconcile interests from many areas. To this end, in order to ensure consistency with other studies and to use expert knowledge, the President of PGWWP appointed a monitoring team for the development of program updates. In addition to representatives from the ministries indicated in the Water Law Act, there are also experts from, among others, GDOŚ, CIEP or NMFRI. Activities in the program concerning such areas as agriculture, fisheries and wastewater management. The overriding goal of the program is to plan the most effective activities in order to minimize the pressure we exert on the Baltic Sea. On the one hand, we have an ecological aspect, and on the other, further restrictions that we must introduce, for example, for farmers or fishermen. The greatest difficulty is the fact that these are sectors that are already subject to high requirements, but still, for example, as in the case of eutrophication – too much pollution comes from agriculture and, secondly, from wastewater treatment plants. Hence the need to introduce measures to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus loads.

Director Bogucka-Szymalska opened the panel, presenting the assumptions for the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, implemented by the Water Law Act, and the update of the sea water protection program developed by PGW Polish Waters. She also presented how the implementation of various EU directives influences the state of the Baltic Sea waters. She emphasized the importance of inter-ministerial arrangements and cooperation in this regard and discussed the effects of many years of work to improve the condition of Polish waters, including measures related to the organization and investments in the water and sewage sector, which, apart from agriculture, is the main source of nutrients reaching the Baltic Sea. She pointed out that the actions included in aPOWM also refer directly to the need to reduce the amount of nutrients in our sea.

In her presentation, Deputy Director Joanna Sasal drew attention to the cooperation of Polish Waters with other institutions in the development and implementation of the sea water protection program, presenting the number of corrective measures included in the program, the implementation of which is to lead to improvement, and ultimately to good condition of the Baltic Sea. She emphasized that nearly 80% of pollutants end up in the sea from land, they come from us – humans. Hence, it is important that we, both the inhabitants of coastal areas and those in the south, take care of, for example, what we do with our waste or what cosmetics we use. Any garbage thrown into the river will end up in the sea. The microplastics contained in the cosmetics are also not retained in sewage treatment plants, but together with the treated sewage they are discharged into waters or soils and then transported to the sea, posing a great threat not only to us, but also to the marine fauna and flora. She presented soft-educational activities accompanying the works on the aPOWM project, the aim of which is to draw attention to the problem of the degradation of the Baltic Sea and the responsibility of the entire society for its condition and actions for its protection.

On September 4, on the beach near Mikoszewo, a cleaning action took place on the Vistula Spit. It was attended by employees of Polish Waters. On the banks of the Vistula Lagoon and the estuary section of the Vistula, several dozen bags of waste left by sunbathers and thrown by the water on the shore were collected.

The cleaning action of the Vistula Spit, organized by the Plastics Europe Polska Foundation, joined the forces of Polish Waters, Stegna Commune, Mikoszewo Sołectwo, students of the Primary School. On the Amber Trail in Mikoszewo, the Blue Patrol of the WWF, friends from the Volunteer Fire Department Mikoszewo and the Maritime Office in Gdynia. Cleaning was an opportunity to learn about the activities of Polish Waters in the Lower Vistula water region. Investments carried out in the immediate vicinity of Mikoszewo were particularly popular: the reconstruction of the Przegalina Water Junction and the bathymetric studies of the Vistula estuary. All participants of the action received commemorative gifts.

Source: http://geoserwis.gdos.gov.pl/mapy

In the coastal strip between the lower section of the Vistula and the Vistula Lagoon, there are areas of natural value, under legal protection, in order to preserve the natural wealth, valuable ecosystems and landscapes. These include the following nature reserves: Mewia Łacha and Kąty Rybackie, Natura 2000 habitat areas: Ostoja w Ujście Wisły PLH220044, Zalew Wiślany and Mierzeja Wisła PLH280007, bird areas Natura 2000: Ujście Wisły PLB220004 Lagoon of the Vistula PLB280010 and Landscape Park of the Mierzeja Wiślana Spit. The waste lying on the Baltic coast poses a threat not only to the condition of inland and marine waters, but also poses a direct threat to the surrounding fauna, flora and even people, therefore actions to reduce the presence of waste in the environment are a long-term challenge. The organization of the cleaning of coastal areas promotes good practices and appropriate social attitudes, at the same time making people sensitive to the problem of the degradation of the waters of the Baltic Sea.

Photo: Ewa Wolińska

Halting the degradation of the Baltic Sea and its active protection depends primarily on what is happening on land. As much as 99.7% of our country lies in the Baltic basin, flows into it by the two largest rivers in the entire basin: the Vistula and the Oder. Additionally, we are one of the most populous countries in this area. It will be possible to reduce the problem of cyanobacteria bloom and water pollution if we reduce the amount of waste flowing into the Baltic Sea through rivers. As many as 48% of them come from households.

The purpose of the marine water protection program and its update is to ensure the good status of the marine environment. Cleaning the shores of rivers and beaches, developing a strategy to reduce the leakage of waste from sewage systems to waters or equipping municipalities with beach cleaning equipment are selected activities in the updated document. 

The sea water protection program, updated by Polish Waters, is aimed at ensuring the good condition of the marine environment. Broken by storms and abandoned fishing nets are deadly traps for the inhabitants of the Baltic Sea, so marking fishing nets and catching them as part of the cleaning action are actions that will reduce the amount of ghost nets in the waters of our sea, thus helping to protect the species and marine ecosystems of the Baltic Sea.

Photo: Ewa Wolińska. More info: https://gdansk.wody.gov.pl/aktualnosci/1112-pracownicy-wod-polskich-zadbali-o-czystosc-mierzei-wislanej

On August 31 in Gdynia, the second conference was held as part of the update of the marine water protection program (aPOWM). Preventing degradation of the marine environment, limiting pollution and restoring ecosystems are part of the activities for the Baltic Sea, indicated in the consulted document.

– This is a key document in the protection of the waters of the Baltic Sea. The activities planned therein are to bring us closer to achieving their good condition – said Małgorzata Bogucka-Szymalska, Deputy Director of the Maritime Economy and Inland Navigation Department at the Ministry of Infrastructure.

The aPOWM project involves nearly 60 activities to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea waters, from soft measures – cleaning beaches from rubbish (a program of fishing nets – ghosts, cleaning river banks, cleaning beaches by lakes, equipping municipalities with modern beach cleaning equipment, by combating underwater noise to systemic solutions to stop the eutrophication of the reservoir.

– The Baltic Sea is a specific sea, extremely sensitive to the effects of human activity. We must remember that as much as 99.7% of Poland lies in the Baltic basin and is fed by the two largest rivers in the entire basin: the Vistula and the Oder. Improving the cleanliness of the Baltic Sea depends on what we do onshore: in every home, enterprise, institution and farm – said Przemysław Gruszecki, Director of the Department of Water Environment Management at State Water Holding Polish Waters.

Waste depositing in the Baltic Sea is becoming a growing problem. The waters flowing into the Baltic Sea carry not only nutrients. What flows through them is largely the effect of washing away all kinds of rubbish thrown into them and illegal landfills in river valleys. As much as 70% of the mass of waste is plastic, which flows into the river and travels with the current, sometimes settling on the shore or its bottom, but a significant part of it ends up as far as the sea. The plastic often breaks down into small pieces, releasing harmful microplastics. One of its sources is plastic bottles. Studies show that those who drink water in plastic bottles every day, may consume more than 22 times more (90,000) microplastics per year than people who drink the same amount of tap water (4,000).

In addition to the development of planning documents required by EU and national regulations, State Water Holding Polish Waters put a lot of emphasis on educational activities, such as the campaign “Water is not a rubbish” or the competition, addressed to small entrepreneurs.

The conference was attended by specialists from the Ministry of Infrastructure, the Polish Water Authority and experts. Thanks to the online transmission, representatives of environmental organizations, offices, as well as private individuals could participate in the discussion by asking questions in the chat.

Let’s save the sea together!