The cleanest sea in Russia is the Baltic (beaches of the Kaliningrad region), and the dirtiest are the Caspian and Azov, where it is generally dangerous to swim. Sanitary doctors of Rospotrebnadzor came to this conclusion after summing up the monitoring results for 2016.
Rospotrebnadzor summed up the results of monitoring the quality of coastal water in the seas used for recreation. In Russia, the coastal waters of the Black, Azov, Caspian and Baltic seas, as well as parts of the Sea of Japan washing the Primorsky Territory, are used for recreational purposes.
Sanitary doctors regularly take water samples to assess its sanitary-chemical and microbiological indicators (including the number of pathogens of intestinal infections).
A high proportion of “non-standard” samples indicates that sewage (untreated sewage) from neighboring cities, coastal industrial enterprises and recreation centers is being discharged into the seas. Sanitary doctors “reject” the samples taken based on parameters such as high content of phenols, petroleum products, synthetic surfactants (surfactants), iron, manganese, and chlorides. The samples contain E. coli, enterococci, worm eggs, and in isolated cases even salmonella and the hepatitis A virus.
Another cause of pollution, Rospotrebnadzor notes, is accidents at onshore facilities and sea vessels (including fuel spills during bunkering), as well as uncontrolled pumping of oil-containing water from ships. Spontaneous landfills are set up in coastal areas (including snow dumps after street cleaning).
As noted in the report of Rospotrebnadzor, the main threat to the seas is the rapid growth of cities: at the same time, water supply networks are built much faster than sewer networks (about 2-2.5 times), the capacity of sewage treatment plants is also significantly less than the volume of water consumption of cities.
At the same time, deep-water wastewater discharges have not been modernized for decades: suffice it to say that in the Gulf of Finland, technologies for deep removal of nutrients, as well as disinfection of wastewater with ultraviolet irradiation, began to be introduced only in 2007.
A separate discussion concerns the improvement of beaches. Beaches must meet the strict requirements of GOST “Hygienic requirements for recreational areas of water bodies”: have changing rooms, shade canopies, trash cans, sports and children's playgrounds, and parking for vehicles. In fact, Rospotrebnadzor states that not all have separate ramps for small vessels and jet skis; the boundaries of the swimming area are not fenced with buoys, and rescue towers are not installed or equipped.
The Caspian is being poisoned by oil workers and corrupt officials
The Caspian Sea is of greatest concern to sanitary doctors. For many years, among all Russian waters, the Caspian waters in the Makhachkala region remain the most polluted, where back in 2007 almost 100% of samples taken by sanitary doctors did not meet microbiological standards. Last year - only 31% (in Derbent - 8%, in Kaspiysk - 5%).
We have already talked about the deplorable state of the Caspian seaside: the entire coastline is uncontrollably built up with cottages, recreation centers, and sanatoriums. At the same time, the level of the Caspian Sea has been rising over the past three decades, as a result of which wastewater treatment plants in Derbent and Izberbash have already been disabled.
And nothing has changed! Rospotrebnadzor in its report for 2016 notes that the discharge of untreated wastewater (sewage and surface stormwater) into the Caspian Sea does not stop, the boundaries of sanitary protection zones have not been defined, and there is no approved regime and procedure for economic activity in these zones. Well, the heads of municipalities continue to uncontrollably distribute land for construction in the water protection zone.
Things are also bad with the Sea of Azov. For example, back in 2000 in the Temryuk region, 100% of samples taken by sanitary doctors were recognized as “non-standard”. Now the situation seems to have improved, but not much: last year Rospotrebnadzor “rejected” 16% of the samples taken in the Sea of Azov (and again Temryuk turned out to be the “champion”, while in Yeysk or Slavyansk-on-Kuban everything is fine) . It is worth recalling that in August 2016, the operation of the central beach in the village of Golubitskaya was suspended due to the terrible water quality of the Azov Sea.
Greater Sochi is “growing” with sewerage
In the Primorsky Territory, where people swim in the Sea of Japan, Rospotrebnadzor also noted a significant improvement in water quality in all respects. “Non-standard” samples, of course, exist, but there are fewer and fewer of them every year (the worst situation, of course, is near large cities - Vladivostok and Artyom).
At the same time, as noted in Rospotrebnadzor, only last year the collectors of two districts of Vladivostok - Leninsky and Pervomaisky - were connected to sewage treatment plants.
In the Leningrad region, it is not recommended to swim in many rivers, which are rejected by Rospotrebnadzor from year to year (Syas, Volkhov, Kobrinka and others), as well as in the waters of the Gulf of Finland (the village of Bolshaya Izhora and Fort Krasnaya Gorka) and the Vyborg Bay (Vyborg itself and Smolyanoy Cape).
As for the Black Sea, which is most popular among Russians, as noted in the Krasnodar department of Rospotrebnadzor, last year water quality indicators improved significantly - there were noticeably fewer “non-standard” samples (and there were none in the Anapa area). Less than 0.3% of samples taken do not meet hygienic standards (while in 2015 there were almost 5%).
The Krasnodar department of Rospotrebnadzor explains this by the fact that the situation was taken under personal control by the deputy plenipotentiary representative in the Southern Federal District Vladimir Gurba: discharges of wastewater after treatment from treatment facilities in the Greater Sochi area have been taken under strict control.
As a result, the share of “non-standard” seawater samples taken in Greater Sochi in 2016 was only 0.1% compared to 11% two years earlier.
On the Crimean seaside the situation is even better, state sanitary doctors: only 2% of the samples taken were “rejected”, including on several beaches of Yalta, Kerch, Sevastopol, Alushta, as well as the village of Nikolaevka. But neither tourists nor local residents believe such data.
“It’s dangerous to swim in Gelendzhik Bay”
Dmitry Shevchenko, deputy coordinator of the public organization “Ecological Watch in the North Caucasus,” has very strong doubts about the data provided by Rospotrebnadzor. In a conversation with Free Press, he noted that it is incorrect to estimate the “gross” indicators of the number of sea water samples taken by sanitary doctors - it is necessary to take into account how far from the coast they were taken, at what depth, at what time of day and year.
— Today, the biggest problem for the coastal waters of the Black Sea is, undoubtedly, municipal pollution. Industrial pollution from various industrial enterprises is more local in nature; it is most pronounced, in particular, in the area of the ports of Novorossiysk and Taman.
While municipal pollution is more widespread and is associated with the discharge of untreated waste into the sea. In the Greater Sochi area, even after the Olympics, during which centralized treatment facilities were modernized, this problem remained relevant.
Many Sochi areas with private buildings even today do not have a centralized sewerage system. People solve this issue as best they can: they buy septic tanks, stack them and build local treatment facilities. But many still discharge raw sewage directly into the sea or into storm drains, which in turn also go to the sea.
“SP”: — Rospotrebnadzor notes in its report that last year the modernization of sewer networks in Greater Sochi continued, which was taken under control at the embassy.
— Modernization is underway, but at an insufficient pace. Most of the deep-sea outlets in the water area were built back in the sixties and seventies of the last century, and are now outdated both physically and morally. And even the engineering condition of the facilities has raised many questions in recent years. Suffice it to remember that in December last year, a huge plastic pipe surfaced off the coast like a whale - part of the deep-water outlet of the Adler sewage treatment plant, built before the Olympics.
“SP”: — So you wouldn’t recommend swimming in the Black Sea?
- I won’t be so categorical. There are areas where the water actually meets all standards. But there are also extremely polluted areas: for example, in Gelendzhik or Anapa bays, in my opinion, going into the water is dangerous to health. The water area near Anapa is shallow, the water is strongly heated by the sun, which allows microorganisms from wastewater entering the sea to multiply more quickly.
Now all the water there is “blooming” due to algae - this is an indicator of the degree of pollution with organic waste. Due to the abundant proliferation of algae that consume oxygen, the water is deprived of its other inhabitants - fish, mollusks, and crustaceans go to other places. That is, ultimately, this leads to an environmental disaster.
The Black Sea is poisoned by a poisonous bacterium. The environmental situation is so catastrophic that hundreds of local residents and tourists turn to doctors every day with complaints of intestinal infection.
On the one hand, everything can be explained by natural causes - dangerous algae began to multiply due to the fact that the water temperature reached an anomalous 29 degrees, and, given the location of the sea, the circulation of water in it is extremely slow, in fact it is a closed reservoir. But experts also name other factors: for example, the excessive activity of officials who, without the necessary base, began to squeeze the maximum out of domestic resorts.
She has few pleasant impressions from her summer holidays: they all fit into a few photographs. 14-year-old Sonya was vacationing on the Black Sea, but this year it was not too kind to her. After just a couple of swims, she came down with an acute infection. According to the girl, the water was warm and dirty, jellyfish and even bottles were floating in it.
Similar situations happen everywhere. Hospitals in resort towns are packed to capacity: there is only one diagnosis - acute intestinal infection. Many of those who decided to spend their long-awaited vacation on the beaches of Adler, Anapa or Gelendzhik literally find themselves in hospital beds on the second day.
“The situation is simply catastrophic: after swimming in the sea, instead of relaxing, we got an intestinal infection and a trip to an infectious diseases hospital, which turned out to be overcrowded with vacationers. Everyone has the same story: we swam in the Adler Black Sea, where sewage is dumped and is infested with E. coli,”- the petition says.
The situation in resort towns really raises concerns, even health officials do not hide: hospital beds are filled exclusively with vacationers.
On the Sochi beach, as always, there is nowhere to lay a towel. The velvet season is in full swing, and the flow of tourists does not stop. Even these frightening numbers don’t stop holidaymakers: the water temperature is 27 degrees, and two weeks ago it almost reached 30. For the Black Sea, this is an exorbitant figure. However, doctors report: you can swim in such water. And vacationers are happy to follow these recommendations. It’s just that after swimming like this, tourists often have to exchange beach beds for beds in infectious diseases departments.
Another problem typical of coastal towns is the irresponsibility of local residents and businessmen. Numerous hotels, restaurants, shops and residential buildings are simply not connected to the central sewer system. The authorities, of course, are fighting this, but not everyone follows their instructions. In many resort areas, tourists literally swim in their own excrement.
“Very often with my own eyes I see those sewage drains that either flow into the sea with rivers or with storm water. That is, this is due to the fact that there are a lot of mini-hotels, a lot of houses that are rented out, and many simply have their own sewerage system - they simply throw it away,”- says ecologist Vitaly Bezrukov.
And this is a problem that is faced not only in Russia. For example, for the Bulgarians the Black Sea has long turned into a landfill. The bodies of baby dolphins are regularly found on the beaches of the Gold Coast, and no one even tries to disguise the pipes through which waste flows into the sea. In addition, temperatures here are breaking records.
The sea water temperature on the Varna coast is 24 degrees, and this does not have a very good effect on the marine ecosystem. Bacteria multiply very easily in water. In addition, large companies very often break the law by dumping waste into seas around the world, in particular into the Black Sea, near industrial cities.
Now reports of an epidemic of intestinal infection in the Black Sea resorts are coming from almost all countries that have access to it. And if the situation cannot be corrected in the near future, there is a risk of facing an environmental disaster on a regional scale.
Resorts on the Black Sea coast have become incredibly popular over the past few years. Most Russian citizens prefer to spend their holidays on the Black Sea. A pleasant climate, picturesque nature, a warm, gentle sea, beaches with a wide coastline and reasonable prices for holidays are what attract modern tourists.
Recently it became known that E. coli was discovered in the Black Sea. This news literally turned the whole idea of a pleasant holiday upside down and became the cause of mass anxiety, almost panic. Many of those who had already purchased vouchers and tickets began to refuse them, not wanting to spend their entire vacation in a hospital bed. So what do real reviews say on this issue? Was it really discovered in the Black Sea or was it all the machinations of attackers? Let's take a closer look at this issue.
Tourist dissatisfaction
Tourists spending their holidays at resorts on the Black Sea coast are concerned about the sanitary condition of the region. The petition about E. coli in the Black Sea is the fruit of their collective work. So, they complain that after taking water procedures, that is, banal swimming in sea water, they have to become another patient in overcrowded medical institutions. And it’s all because of E. coli in the Black Sea. Vomiting, weakness, diarrhea, loss of strength and a fairly high body temperature - all these symptoms are present to varying degrees in patients at the local hospital.
Hospitals are really overcrowded, patients are lying in the corridor, and all this is in Olympic Sochi, which was literally resurrected from the ashes, in which all the necessary conditions for a family holiday were created. Children are at risk; they are primarily affected by E. coli in the Black Sea. Numerous reviews from tourists and vacationers indicate dirt on the beaches, widespread unsanitary conditions, and the presence of waste and sewage water in the sea. If you look at the reviews of tourists, you will probably find information in each of them about disgusting health, vomiting, and terrible pain after the first contact with water. There is no doubt that E. coli was discovered on the Black Sea coast. Another thing is what are the reasons for such a widespread infection, its massive and active spread, and whether measures will be taken to stabilize the situation.
Of course, not everyone can afford expensive foreign resorts. On the other hand, why go somewhere if our country, due to its advantageous geographical location, has its own access to the warm sea. Every year, hundreds of thousands of tourists from different parts of the country vacation at the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory; military personnel who, due to their profession, do not have the right to leave the Russian Federation, spend their vacation here. We are all interested in ensuring that our resorts create the necessary conditions for a complete, most comfortable and, most importantly, safe holiday.
Possible reasons
The authorities speak rather restrainedly on this issue, trying to maintain calm in the region. Meanwhile, local hospitals continue to receive complaints from tourists and local residents.
Why is there E. coli in the Black Sea? What caused the mass poisoning of vacationers? Are there methods to stop the spread of infection in the region? Rospotrebnadzor presented a report on the above survey of water on the Black Sea coast of Sochi and Adler. According to him, it was not found in the sea; therefore, the cause of such a massive epidemic could be anything, but not an infection. Of course, the authorities refer to overcrowding of the beaches, unsanitary conditions, and non-compliance with basic hygiene requirements by vacationers.
E. coli in the Black Sea may appear as a result of the active discharge of waste and sewage water and garbage into sea water. If you have ever vacationed at the Black Sea resorts of Russia during the season, you probably had the opportunity to appreciate all this “splendor”.
How does infection occur?
Uninterested parties, after their own independent examination, have revealed that E. coli is constantly present in the Black Sea. August is the peak season when infection is widespread. It is at this time of year that local hospitals become overwhelmed with patients.
So, it was possible to reveal that most often infection occurs after direct contact with sea water, namely ingestion of it while swimming. At risk are children aged two years and older, who, due to their age, find it difficult to observe basic protective and hygiene measures. That is why children are frequent patients in the infectious diseases department of local hospitals. As you know, treating an infection in a child has a number of difficulties, can take a long time and lead to serious consequences.
So, annual problems with the sea, or rather the state of sea water, begin at the beginning of the season - June, when the temperature begins to gradually rise. It is under such conditions that the infection begins to appear and subsequently actively spread. The picture is complicated by breakwaters that contribute to water stagnation, as well as the lack of a sewerage system in Sochi, as a result of which all wastewater is sent straight to the sea.
Why Russian resorts
Of course, all tourists and vacationers are interested in the geography of the spread of infection. We all know from our school geography course that the Black Sea belongs not only to the Russian Federation; at least Turkey and Bulgaria offer their guests to visit the Black Sea. E. coli (where it is not present, epidemics do not occur), however, is found only in our country. Why does information about the infection come specifically from Russian resorts? These are the questions that modern tourists ask.
According to experts on this matter, E. coli is a bacterium that can be found in any environment. That is why not a single resort with a massive concentration of vacationers during the season can completely protect itself from such a nuisance. Another thing is that E. coli in the Black Sea (2016 was the year when the current sanitary situation was declared catastrophic) is a consequence of water contamination with feces, processed products, and wastewater. And all these illegal emissions occur again within our state. Here is the answer to the question why E. coli was discovered in the Black Sea.
Moreover, local authorities are trying to squeeze the maximum out of resorts during the season. This is evidenced by the overcrowding of beaches, hotels, inns and holiday homes. Of course, high air temperature promotes the spread of infection, which leads to such a reaction.
A little about the infection
For some tourists, the information that E. coli was found in the Black Sea means nothing. They understand nothing about medicine, have no idea what an infection is, what area of the human body it affects, how it is transmitted. That is why sometimes they cannot identify its presence in their body.
Non-pathogenic varieties of E. coli are part of the intestinal microflora and, accordingly, are present in the body of every person. Pathogenic strains cause infectious and inflammatory diseases, most often of the gastrointestinal tract. They produce enterotoxins that cause diarrhea.
About symptoms
Symptoms of infection include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and fever. Among the main causes of infection, experts highlight failure to comply with basic hygiene standards. At the same time, infection often occurs at resorts during mass gatherings of people.
Treatment
After E. coli was found in the Black Sea, local hospitals and clinics do not stop receiving complaints from vacationers. The infectious diseases departments are literally overcrowded, people are even lying in the corridor on the floor. E. coli has become a big problem in the Black Sea. You should not self-medicate. It is difficult to cope with an infection without the help of doctors; it is better to consult a specialist immediately after detecting the first signs of the disease. Most often, antibiotics, absorbent drugs based on activated carbon, for example, and probiotics are used for therapy.
Fighting the epidemic
Of course, without the intervention of local authorities it is unlikely that the problem will be solved and eradicated. The main problem of the resort is the lack of a unified sewer system. Sochi was put in order, landscaped, some of its areas were literally rebuilt, but the issue with the sewerage system remains open. And all this happens in the main resort and tourist center of the country, which is visited annually by hundreds of thousands of tourists. Of course, in such conditions, sewage and sewage water flow into the sea in unlimited quantities. If you remember your school geography course, you will probably note that the Black Sea, from a sanitation point of view, is not located in the most favorable way, but all because the renewal of water in it occurs at a negligibly low rate - in most cases it stagnates. And under the influence of sweltering heat, it becomes a real hotbed of infections, including intestinal ones.
Great attention should be paid to the tourists themselves, or rather, to accustom them to comply with basic standards and hygiene requirements. First of all, it is necessary to prohibit the sale of drinks and food on local beaches: in the course of numerous studies, it has been found that it is while eating on the beach with dirty hands that infection can occur. It is necessary to eat only in trusted establishments, avoiding all contact with locally produced products presented on the beach.
How to protect yourself from infection
How to go to the sea without catching an intestinal infection? This question is one of the most pressing today, because not everyone is ready to give up their summer vacation.
So, first of all, at resorts you should take care of hygiene, after each sea swim, take a shower, cleansing your skin. A shower not only helps to wash off sea salt from the body, but also removes all contaminants that are definitely present in the water to one degree or another. It is here, at sea, that you should be more attentive and demanding about everything that you eat, what your children eat, be sure to wash your hands before every meal, use sunscreen and spend more time in the fresh air, trying to find a secluded place. Agree, tourists who vacation on the same Black Sea, but choose for their leisure time distant from the center, more secluded, sometimes wild places, almost never receive complaints. Tourists who go to the sea at the height of the season, when the beaches are simply crowded, complain.
What to do for those who have already bought tickets
If you have already purchased vouchers, but are concerned about information about the discovery of infection on the Black Sea coast, do not panic. E. coli in the Black Sea (whether it’s 2016 or another year, it doesn’t matter) is not uncommon. It should be understood that for resort towns in sweltering heat this is the norm. Another thing is how you will feel about it. Don't be afraid or give up on your planned trip. Look: even after numerous warnings, people still continue to come to Sochi and Adler.
You just need to remember a few simple rules:
- avoid swimming during extreme heat - it is under the influence of high air temperatures and prolonged heating of water in the sea near the shore that bacteria begin to accumulate in huge quantities. It’s better to wait a little and go into the sea when the air temperature returns to normal;
- try, if possible, not to swallow water while bathing, explain this to children who are at risk;
- Never use sea water to wash fruits and vegetables;
- observe hygiene standards;
- After each contact with sea water, be sure to wash your hands with soap;
- understand that coastal areas are not intended for urination; there are specially designated places for this - toilets.
Summing up
Of course, it is stupid to deny the presence of infection in the Black Sea when the region’s hospitals are simply overcrowded with infected tourists. However, if each of us takes control of our health and follows simple rules for staying at resorts, we will be able to reduce the likelihood of infection significantly. Of course, government agencies must intervene in the problem, carry out all the necessary measures to eliminate the source of infection, develop a sewerage project, monitor the condition of the beaches and food in the resort area. Only joint efforts aimed at eliminating the problem will lead to maximum results.
Oh sea, sea, who polluted you with dinoflagellate?
I went out to the sea beach - breathed in the fresh breeze... - lost my memory. Or respiratory paralysis may suffice or uncontrollable salivation may begin. The danger of catching such exotic diseases may lie in wait for vacationers on some tropical beaches. Their source is toxic microalgae that produce terrible, sometimes fatal toxins for humans. Dinoflagellates, diatoms... These single-celled organisms make up up to a quarter of all organic matter on the planet, but few people know about them, since they are truly invisible. Just a few years ago, only narrow specialists and coastal residents of the Southern Hemisphere knew about these representatives of the coastal zone. Now this scourge has spread much wider and even moved to our Black Sea and the Baltic. About this, as well as about what else our native resorts can surprise or sadden us in, in the material of the MK correspondent, who talked with a great connoisseur of seaweed, Doctor of Biological Sciences, leading researcher at Moscow State University. Lomonosov, a member of the ancient Moscow Society of Natural Scientists Alexander KAMNEV.
The sea is the sea. Even in the best of times, when there was no such tourist boom, it required a respectful and careful attitude: do not swim on wild beaches, do not swim behind buoys, do not overheat in the sun. Now, when up to several million vacationers are expected in Anapa during the summer season (with the norm being 150–200 thousand, the waste of which, in principle, can be handled by the existing infrastructure), draw your own conclusions...
Toxic Aleksandrium has settled in the Black Sea
Experts advise treating an overpopulated sea coast in much the same way as we treat a polluted city: to compensate as much as possible for its possible negative impact. In the metropolis, doctors recommend using a shower, walks in parks, going out of town and a balanced diet, and on the coast you should try to walk more, be attentive to what you put in your mouth, even more carefully than before, control the time you spend near the water, be sure to use sunscreen and hats. Using a shower after swimming in sea water is also advisable - in the shower you wash off not only the salt, but also pollutants, which, alas, are now almost everywhere. But maybe there is still an opportunity to choose a cleaner place in advance?
“Recently, a lot of untreated sewage has been entering the Black Sea,” answers Kamnev. - Therefore, the best advice is to choose places away from towns and cities. It is better to relax on organized beaches, avoid wild, untested ones.
- And if you compare the conditions in Crimea and the North Caucasus?
Still, the climatic conditions in Crimea differ from the North Caucasus: the humidity is different, the water in Crimea is different, more flowing due to the ruggedness of the coastal zone. The Black Sea has several currents: surface and internal. One comes from Turkey, and the other, on the contrary, to Turkey. These currents actively wash our Russian shores.
- Sometimes the water near the shore is brown. How to determine why?
Many banks have a clayey base. And therefore, after a storm or rain, part of this clay, as well as coastal runoff, ends up in the sea, and the water becomes brown. Sometimes, due to flowering in the coastal zone, the water acquires a greenish tint.
But there is a more serious reason that can affect the color of the water. Sometimes it changes color a little when microalgae (diatoms) begin to multiply in it. Some of them release toxins into the air, causing serious illnesses in vacationers - from stomach disorders to amnesia. These mainly live in the Atlantic, Indian, Pacific oceans, in the seas of Southeast Asia, in the Mediterranean Sea, but recently they have moved to our shores.
- Can you tell us more about them?
The ancient Indians who lived on the sea coast knew about the presence of a toxic “substance” in water that kills fish and brings health problems to humans. The group of toxic algal exometabolites includes substances with very different chemical structures and mechanisms of action. For example, amnesic toxins, based on domoic acid and its derivatives, are produced by diatoms of the genus Nitzschia. I breathed in such a breeze and got amnesia - a memory disorder.
Some dinoflagellates, such as Gymnodinium breve, are particularly dangerous when in bloom. Brevetoxin, which is a powerful neurotoxin, is released into the atmosphere. In this case, damage occurs when inhaling air in the coastal zone. Brevetoxin in excessive quantities causes drooling, severe runny nose, spontaneous bowel movements and muscle paralysis. Death as a result of receiving a large dose of a toxic substance occurs as a result of respiratory arrest...
- What a horror! I wonder if travel companies warn tourists about this?
Unfortunately, no one here is seriously addressing this issue. There are cases of poisoning, but do people attribute them to algae? Most often they are blamed on some exotic viruses or insects. Many, on the contrary, strive to the southern coast of the United States, to Florida. In our country this is considered prestigious, despite the fact that the ocean there is sometimes teeming with dinoflagellates. So-called red tides, when people don't swim or fish, are common there.
- Do microalgae make them red?
Yes. But depending on the species, the tides can be either brown or yellowish. They are typical for South America, Japan, New Zealand, and Australia. Fishermen suffer greatly from such tides. Back in the early 90s, one-time losses to individual fishing companies amounted to up to $500 million due to invisible plankton. It has been observed, for example, that threads of the diatoms Chaetoceros convolutes and C. coucavicornis clog the gills of fish, leading to mass mortality in fish farms. Some dinoflagellates, such as Prymnesium parvum, P. patelliferum, Gymnodinium mikimotoi, etc., secrete hemolysins. In fish, they damage the gill epithelium, causing hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells - N.V.). But the saddest thing is that recently we have begun to notice some dinoflagellates off our shores in the Black Sea and the Baltic. The genus Alexandrium, which secretes paralytic toxins, the main chemical component of which is saxitoxin, a sodium channel blocker, has moved here, apparently from the Mediterranean Sea. It causes respiratory paralysis (muscle weakness) and in acute cases is fatal.
- What prompted them to move to us?
Most likely, they are carried along by currents, but a favorable environment is created due to changes in the temperature regime of our seas, they become warmer. In addition, the level of organic compounds in them increases every year due to sewage discharged directly into the sea. We also cannot exclude the possible appearance of new bacteria in our seas. It’s sad that these microalgae travel through trophic (food) chains into shellfish, and people can become seriously poisoned after tasting seafood in a seaside restaurant. Of course, toxins are not always released by microalgae, but only during certain periods. But it is imperative to study them and classify them. In most countries of the world, especially in those where mariculture is developed, a legislative framework on aquatic toxins has existed for quite a long time. Maximum concentration limits have been determined, and the content of these substances is constantly monitored. Alas, there is nothing like this in Russia yet. But some types of plankton threaten humans with more than just one-time poisoning. For example, algae of the genus Dinophysis and Prorocentrum, even in small quantities (about tens of thousands of cells per liter), are a tumor promoter, producing okadaic acid. Sometimes it can cause mild digestive upset in a person. A day or two, and it passes, but many do not even suspect a more serious “gift” for a long time. Hepatotoxins from a number of freshwater blue-green algae are also dangerous. In addition to damaging liver tissue, these toxins can cause serious dermatitis.
After all that has been said, the sea somehow no longer attracts. What should those who have already taken trips to the resort do, but are very afraid of catching some kind of toxin there?
There is no need to be afraid. We must live and enjoy life. I myself am going to the same Anapa any day now, where I will swim and scuba dive. In order to protect yourself as much as possible from possible encounters with toxic microalgae, you need to know that most often their number near the coast increases after outbreaks of extreme heat. If possible, it is better to wait a few days after the temperature peaks and only then go into the water. You should also try not to swallow sea water while swimming, and not wash fruits and vegetables in it, so that toxins do not enter the gastrointestinal tract. The second point is compliance with hygiene rules. Many people habitually wash off sea salt in the shower after bathing. This procedure is also necessary to wash away toxins. In addition to taking a shower, I would recommend gargling with drinking water and washing your hands with soap after swimming in the sea. Well, I would like to remind everyone once again that the coastal zone of our seas is not intended to cope with natural needs; there are toilets for this. The cleanliness of our seas largely depends on improving our culture, maintaining prudence and initiatives of city administrations to improve urban wastewater treatment systems. By the way, so far in our coastal zone the situation with diatoms is much better than off the coast of the USA or Japan. Luckily, we don't have red or yellow tides yet. And this is despite the fact that our seas have less antiseptic properties due to their low salinity. If you do not take measures to cleanse them, this advantage can be lost.
It is undesirable to soar from under the water into the sky
Well, thank you, at least you calmed me down a little. Now let me ask you a question as an experienced diver teaching children to scuba dive. At what age can you start scuba diving?
Interesting question. First, I will note that, having decided to go underwater diving, every person should visit an ENT doctor and get confirmation that diving is not contraindicated for him, that is, there are no problems with the ears, in the presence of which it is impossible to dive to depth.
Let's assume that permission has been received from the doctor, then we will determine the age. There are regulatory frameworks that are written for different levels of training, and they have their own age categories. If we go down to our everyday level, it is optimal to start working in the sea with scuba gear from the age of 10. Many American schools adhere to this. But my personal belief is that you can start earlier, from 6–8 years old. Only the depth should be reasonable. For example, at 1.5 meters a child will definitely not get injured. But at the same time, high-class specialists must work with it. Another important tip: if you, while relaxing at sea, decide to sign up for a dive with your child, then keep in mind that this should be done at least a day or two before the plane flight - the body will have to recover after scuba diving.
While we are just learning the culture of handling the sea, for example, the Japanese, due to lack of territory, are already beginning to build sea cities and are gradually going under water. How will they solve the issue of waste disposal? How will they protect their underwater homes from waste from neighboring countries? It is already clear that the future will require all of humanity to reconsider its attitude towards the cradle of life, to radically change its philosophy, to realize that we are all really “cooking” on Earth in a single cauldron called the World Ocean.
