The natural border of the Russian Federation from the north is the Arctic Ocean. Once it was called the Cold Sea, or the Polar Basin. Today, the ocean includes six seas, which are officially called the Barents, White, Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi. Unfortunately, a difficult environmental situation is developing throughout this natural zone. We will take a closer look at the White Sea. Environmental issues are composed of a number of factors. Among which are climate change, political uncertainty, hunting.
The sea covers an area of more than 90 square kilometers and reaches a depth of 350 m. It is here that the Solovetsky, Morzhovets, Mudyugsky islands are located, which are inextricably linked with the history of our country. On the first of this list is the famous Solovetsky Monastery.
Localization of the White Sea
Although it belongs to the Arctic Ocean, the sea is located inside the mainland, off the northern coast of Russia. Salinity reaches 35%. In winter, it freezes. Through the straits, the Throat, as well as the Funnel, are connected to the Barents Sea. With the help of the White Sea-Baltic Canal, vessels can pass to the Baltic Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Caspian, and the Black. This path was called the Volga-Baltic. Only a conditional straight line imitating the border separates the Barents and White Sea. Sea problems require an immediate solution.
Firstly, animals, including marine ones, are massively exterminated, biological resources disappear. Some representatives of the fauna living in the Far North simply disappeared.
Secondly, the state of the soil is changing, which passes into a thawed state from permafrost. This is a global cataclysm of warming, as a result of which glaciers melt. Thirdly, it is in the North that a number of states conduct their nuclear tests. Such activities are conducted under the label of extreme secrecy, so it is difficult for scientists to understand the true damage and the extent of pollution as a result of atomic impacts. These are the main problems of the White Sea today. A summary of this list is known to the whole world, but little is done to solve them.
The position of Russia and other countries
The first problem - the extermination of animals - was taken under state control at the end of the last century, when a moratorium on the capture of animals, birds, and fish was introduced. This greatly improved the condition of the region. At the same time, it is rather difficult for one state to influence the global problem of melting ice, as well as nuclear pollution. These factors affect the coastal region and the entire White Sea. Sea problems will intensify in the near future due to the planned production of gas and oil in the ocean. This will lead to additional pollution of the ocean.
The fact is that the territories of the Arctic Ocean still do not belong to anyone. A number of countries are busy dividing the territories. Therefore, it is rather difficult to resolve the issues that have arisen. At the international level, two questions have been raised: the economic use of the bowels of the Arctic and the ecological state of the Arctic Ocean. Moreover, the development of oil fields, unfortunately, is a priority. While states with excitement share continental shelves, nature is experiencing more and more problems, bio-balance is disturbed. And the timing when the world community will begin to deal with accumulated issues has not yet been set.
Russia looks at the ecological situation in the state of the Northern Basin as if from the outside. Our country cares only about the coastline of the north and the White Sea. Environmental problems cannot arise in only one area - this is a question that should be approached globally.
What is the priority?
When developing oil fields, people contribute to an even greater deterioration of the environmental situation. Neither the depth of the wells, nor their number, nor the fact that the region can be classified as environmentally hazardous stops it. It can be assumed that large numbers of oil mines will be built at once. Wells will be located at a short distance from each other and at the same time belong to different countries.
The consequences of nuclear testing can be eliminated, and this really needs to be addressed, however, in the north it is quite expensive to carry out cleaning measures due to permafrost conditions. In addition, while countries have not established legal liability for these areas. The environmental problems of the White Sea are best studied. They briefly tried to be presented by a committee under the Russian Emergencies Ministry, predicting the main development trends.
Permafrost
The border of the Siberian permafrost in its western part is constantly shifting due to global warming. Thus, according to the Ministry of Emergencies of the Russian Federation, in 2030 it will shift by 80 km. Today, the volume of eternal icing is reduced by 4 cm per year.
This can lead to the fact that on the territory of Russia in fifteen years the housing stock of the north can be destroyed by 25%. This is due to the fact that the construction of houses here takes place by driving piles into the permafrost layer. If the average annual temperature rises at least a couple of degrees, then the bearing capacity of such a foundation is reduced by half. Underground oil storage facilities and other industrial facilities are also in danger. Roads and airports can also suffer.
When glaciers melt, there is another danger associated with an increase in the volume of northern rivers. A few years ago it was assumed that their volume by the spring of 2015 would increase by 90%, which would cause heavy floods. Floods are the cause of the destruction of coastal areas, and there is also a risk when driving along highways. In the north, where the White Sea, the problems are the same as in Siberia.
Deep transformations
Ecology is also dangerous for methane gas released from the soil during the melting of deep glaciers. Methane increases the temperature of the lower atmosphere. In addition, gas adversely affects the health of people, local residents.
In the Arctic over the past 35 years, ice volume has decreased from 7.2 million to 4.3 million square kilometers. This means a reduction in permafrost by almost 40%. The thickness of the ice was reduced by almost half. However, there are positive aspects. At the south pole, melting ice causes earthquakes due to the spasmodic nature of melting. In the North, this process is happening gradually, and the general situation is more predictable. To ensure the safety of residents of the northern territories, the Ministry of Emergency Situations decided to equip two expeditions to Novaya Zemlya, the Novosibirsk Islands and the ocean coast.
New dangerous project
The environmental situation is also greatly affected by the construction of hydraulic structures, such as, for example, power plants. Their construction refers to large-scale environmental impact.
On the territory of the White Sea is Mezenskaya TPP - a tidal power station - affecting both the aquatic and the geographic and ecological environment of the land part. The construction of PES primarily leads to a change in the natural circulation of water. During the construction of the dam, part of the reservoir turns into a kind of lake with a different fluctuation and course.
What are ecologists afraid of?
Of course, in the process of designing the complex, engineers are already able to predict the impact on the local biosystem, the White Sea. Sea problems, however, are more often manifested only during industrial operation, and engineering surveys work on the ecology of the coastal area.
When the PES starts working, the wave energy decreases, as well as the effect on the drift of ice fields, the flow regime changes. All this will lead to a change in the structure of sediments on the seabed and coastal zone. It should be noted that the geography of deposition plays an important role in the biocenosis of the system. During the construction of the power plant, the mass of coastal sediments will be transported to the depth in the form of a suspension, and the whole White Sea will suffer from this. Ecological problems are toughened up, because the shores of the northern seas are not environmentally friendly, therefore, when they reach the depths, the coastal soil causes secondary pollution.
