We talk to Dr. Katarzyna Błachowiak-Samołyk, professor at the Department of Marine Ecology at the PAS Institute of Oceanology in Sopot, about the impact of human activity on life in the oceans.

Investigations were carried out in the regions of the Hornsund Station, Spitsbergen at summer 1979. The aim of the studies was to determine the effect of the Station on the natural environment around the Station. After taking an inventory of the sources of pollution and in result of the determination of the range of the pressure of anthropogenic factors the whole area under degradation was divided into three parts: an area without possibilities of recultivation, a devastated area and an area of normal natural environment. It was found thąt the main source of the contamination of tundra are fuels derived from mineral oil. The distribution of fuel concentrations in the soil corresponds to the direction of the slope of the ground and the flow of the surface waters. Mechanical transformation of the surface of the tundra is also an outcome of the degradation.

Although the Antarctic has avoided the worst effects of alien species, its future seems endangered due to increasing natural and man-made pressures. Rapid changes in three major environmental variables have occurred in the Antarctic region during the last decades. In the short term terrestrial biota are likely to benefit from reduced environmental stresses, but in the long run the colonization of the region by lower latitude species with greater competitive ability will become increasingly important and can lead to large-scale changes in biological composition and trophic complexity in some existing Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems. Moreover, the recent dynamic climate changes combined with human activities in the Antarctic region might modify the status of several alien species which have hitherto been considered transient or persistent and could, therefore, become naturalized and threaten the native communities on a larger scale than today, or influence the status of naturalized species.

Phytosociological studies carried out in the forests of Silesian Upland and Głubczyce Plateau during the years 1994-2000 showed a widespread distribution of Impatiens parv!flora. It ranges from coniferous and mixed forests to alder carrs, riverside carrs, oak-hornbeam phytocoenoses, and beechwood associations. The optimal conditions for Impatiens parviflora are those found in Ti/io-Carpinetum typicum. Nevertheless, the highest percentage cover of that species occurred in heavily degenerated communities which were the result of clear-felling and tree planting.

During three austral summer seasons cargo, expeditioner clothes and equipment of the Polish Antarctic Expedition were examined for the presence of alien propagules. Detailed inspections were undertaken at the station buildings, searching for any invertebrates. During each austral summer fresh fruits and vegetables were also inspected. A total of 359 invertebrates and their remains were found in cargo transported to Arctowski Station, or caught in the station’s facilities. The majority of samples were classified as cultivation pests (26%), food pests (43%), wood−destroying pests (4%), domestic insects and arachnids (15%). Through supply of the research station a wide range of alien organisms can be accidentally transported and ultimately introduced to the Antarctic. This study has clearly demonstrated that almost all cargo items can be a potential vector for alien organisms. Species from a broad range of biological groups can be transported to the Antarctic and remain in a viable state.

Beach pollution is one of the most common hazards in present-day anthropogenic environments. Even in the remote Svalbard Archipelago, pollution impacts the beach system and can pose environmental threats. The significant increase in human activity observed in Svalbard over the last 20–30 years has resulted in a visible change in the amount of coastal pollution. A 5 km long transect of modern beach developed along Calypsostranda (Recherchefjorden, Bellsund) was surveyed in the summer of 2015 in order to characterize the beach pollution. During the survey 296 pieces of trash were found on beach surface. 82% of found trash was plastic, followed by glass (8%), and metal (5%). The comparison with previous pollution survey showed the significant increase of plastic waste in local beach environment. Similar problem has been recently recorded in other parts of Svalbard suggesting an urgent need for coastal pollution monitoring.

The article presents the results of analyses of changes in the number of ponds in the Wys-koć catchment basin carried out in the years 1980–2003 and the characteristics of ponds excavated in that period. Only water reservoirs of an area less than 2 ha were considered. Analyses were based on topographic maps in the scale of 1:10 000 and aerial photographs taken in 1996. The results indicated that the number of filled ponds increased, especially those located in fields and grasslands. However, forest and wetland ponds were the most resistant to the processes of quantitative degradation because not even a single pond was filled during the analysed period. Over 70% newly excavated water bod-ies were made as an effect of exploitation of mineral and peat resources. However, nowadays ponds are more often created as a result of intentional human activities and are used for fish farming, recrea-tion and as water retention reservoirs used in irrigation of small agricultural and gardening areas.

The freshwater dinoflagellate represent microfossils which are very rarely noted in lake deposits. In Late Holocene sediments of the Lake Młynek, the Iława Lakeland, northern Poland, we identified intense blooms of algae of the genus Palatinus. They occurred primarily in the period of strong human impact during expansion of the Monastic State of the Teutonic Order. The most amazing thing is that samples in which conventional palynological maceration has been used dinoflagellate are represented by armored vegetative forms instead of cysts. During this laboratory processes, especially acetolysis, cellulosic thecae of armored forms should be destructed. This is the second known example of acetolysis resistant thecae of modern dinoflagellate, built by substance other than cellulose. Palatinus blooms were associated probably with the hydrotechnical works made by Teutonic Knights in the catchment, which caused supply and discharge of micronutrients e.g. selenium in the basin.

During thirty three expeditions to the Polish Arctowski Antarctic Station signifi− cant influences of human activity upon the environment have been recorded. Introductions of alien species, shifts of bird and seal breeding areas and decreases in both bird and seal populations, are the most obvious effects of human pressure. Though numbers of visits by tourists have increased during this period, impacts from expeditioners appear to be the main cause of changes. In particular, increasing numbers and mobility of summer groups at the station are the likely most influential factors.

Genetic-environmental controls of the tolerance of forest trees to industrial pollution arc discussed on the example of the Scots pine. Within the pine population under study, various responses to man-made stress were observed in individual specimens, which gave rise to the hypothesis about a genetic origin of the phenomenon. The research procedure was preceded by an assessment of the environmental conditions which focused especially on the pollution of the atmosphere and pedosphere as a background for estimating the level of variation and examining the genetic structure of specimens sensitive to, or tolerant of, the pollution. The analysis covered a pine population coming from natural forest regeneration growing in the zone of direct impact of pollution from the Miasteczko Śląskie Zinc Works. Two groups of trees were distinguished: S (sensitive) and T (tolerant), characterized by different genetic parameters. The observed tendencies (slower cell division rates, lower values of the mitotic index than in the control group, a high level of chromosomal aberrations) indicate a direct effect of the pollution on the genetic material of the trees.

The paper concerns the transformation of water resources induced by the construction and functioning of the Brest Fortress defence structure and presents the current water resources resulting from these changes. The study was conducted by analysing historical materials: maps, plans and written documents. Hydrographic changes were analysed for five study periods covering almost 200 years, from 1823, presenting the hydrographic network before the construction of fortifications, up to 2018, when most of these structures ceased or were repurposed. Hydrographic changes were analysed in detail for the area of the Terespol Fortification. The analysis revealed that almost 80% of the wetland area had disappeared after intensive drainage works, and several dozen originally small and isolated areas had been incorporated into a vast drainage network. One of the consequences of these activities was the creation of significantly transformed artificial catchments within the study area.

The paper presents the division of Holocene into four palynostratigraphical units: early, Holocene, middle Holocene, late Holocene - older part, and late Holocene - younger part. It stresses that the best defined border is that between the Late Glacial and early Holocene, and all other "borders" have the character of broad transitional zones. The attention is also paid to the complex of changes starting between 4000 and 3000 BP connected with the retreat of hazel and oak and expansion of hornbeam and beech with fir spreading in the south and spruce in the north-east of Poland. From ca. 6000 BP on the human activities cause increasing changes in vegetation that are difficult to be distinguished from those generated by natural factor.

The marshes are the most abundant water sources and ecological rich communities. They have a significant impact on the ecological and economic well-being of the communities surrounding them. However, climatic changes directly impact these bodies of water, especially those marshes which depend on rainwater and flooding for their survival. The Al-Sannya marsh is used as the example of marshes in Southern Iraq for this study between 1987–2017. The research takes place throughout the winter season due to the revival of marshes in southern Iraq at this time of year. The years 1987, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2007, 2014, 2017 are the focus of this study. Satellite imagery from the Landsat 5 (TM) and Landsat 8 (OLI) and the meteorological parameters affecting the marsh were acquired from NASA. The calculation of the areas of water bodies after classification using satellite imagery is done using the maximum likelihood method and comparing it with meteorological parameters. These results showed that these marshes are facing extinction due to the general change of climate and the interference of humans in utilising the drylands of the marsh for agricultural purposes. The vegetation area can be seen to have decreased from 51.15 km2 in 2000 to 8.77 km2 in 2017.

Vegetation changes in the Lower San Valley near Jaroslaw are reconstructed from the Younger Dryas to the present time on the basis of palynological analysis of the peat core. The pollen profile came from a an old riverbed and was supplemented by radiocarbon datings. The Younger Dryas and early Preboreal vegetation was characterised by a high proportion of forest communities with pine (Pinus sylvestris and P. cembra) and birch (Betula), while patches of open area were dominated by the steppe with Artemisia. Climatic amelioration during the Preboreal chronozone led to the rapid spread of elm (Ulmus), which was probably a dominant taxon on the lowest terraces of the valley. Terrestrialization of the water body existing in the palaeomeaner and the subsequent beginning of peat accumulation caused a deterioration in pollen preservation. Hence, the interpretation of the profile section spanning the period between the Boreal and Subatlantic chronozones was seriously disturbed due to selective corrosion and the overrepresentation of Pinus sylvestris type and Filicales monolete sporomorphs. Between ca. 336 and 1152 AD fluctuations in woodland cover were recorded. Important components in those forests, despite the domination of Pinus sylvestris, were Quercus, Carpinus betulus, Fagus sylvatica and Abies alba. The first pollen grains of cereals (Cerealia type) were found before ca. 1605-1414 BC and may be attributed to the agricultural activity of the Neolithic and/or early Bronze tribes. Periods of strong deforestation caused by humans were probably related to the time when the Tarnobrzeska Group of the Lusatian Culture and the Przeworska Culture were active. The first groups of Slavs did not significantly influence the environment, but the subsequent development of those groups led to more visible deforestation, which was triggered after the establishment of Jaroslaw in the 11 th century AD.