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                            Oder River Watershed

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                            Oder River Watershed

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Thank you for visiting my padlet presentation!                                I hope you enjoy learning about the Oder River in Poland!

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                              Oder Watershed Uses

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                              Oder Watershed Uses

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Millions of German and Polish residents rely on the Oder river everyday life! Below are some of the main uses of the watershed.

- Local transportation, due to overpopulation and traffic, locals use more water taxis and boats to get around.
- Cargo trade routes, the Oder River is a large trade route into the Baltic Sea and very important for residents to both ship and receive goods.
- Drinking water, both humans, plants and animals have relied on this water source to survive.
- Recreation, the river has been used for swimming, boating, fishing and other recreational uses.
- Agriculture, is a big industry in Poland, about half of the land in Poland is used for farming.

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                       Popular Agriculture in Poland

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                       Popular Agriculture in Poland

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wheat, rye

barley, buckwheat

potatoes (served with the majority of meals in different forms)

beets, cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, cucumbers

pork (most popular)

beef

*Most traditional Polish foods contain a meat and potato diet. This makes sustainability difficult as population increases. Increased food needs for humans equals more food to feed the animals, which means an increase in crops and soil.

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                Physical Facts of the Oder Watershed

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                Physical Facts of the Oder Watershed

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It is 531 miles long.

The Oder Watershed begins at the Czech Republic Mountain Range of an elevation of 2,100 feet.

The Oder River Watershed ends as it merges with the Baltic Sea.

It drains a basin of 45,975 sq mi.

90% of river resides in Poland, the remainder is located in Germany & the Czech Republic.

The Oder River is surrounded by both industrialized areas & rural agriculture.

The Oder Watershed is highly polluted, impacting the water quality, air quality, the greenhouse gas balance, ecosystems, biodiversity, and soil quality.

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                                Causes of Pollution

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                                Causes of Pollution

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Poor sewage practices, much human and animal waste is directly dumped into the river due to poor management of the sewer system.

Synthetic fertilizer & pesticides merge into the river after flooding & rainfall increasing nitrogen & phosphorus, nitrogen has tripled in the Oder river since 1900.

Soil degradation, caused by over harvesting.

Coal mining is the number one threat to the environment in Poland. It is highly prevalent in the area and causes massive amounts of carbon to enter the atmosphere. Coal provides 80% of electricity in the area.

Flooding & severe weather due to global warming, continues to allow harmful chemicals to impact the river. This nonpoint source makes it difficult to manage and keep the water clean.

Overpopulation, more human activity means increasing fossil fuels. In large cities, such as Warsaw, they are extremely overpopulated.

Transportation and old cars that produce harmful emission.

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Coal Mine, Aerial video, Kleszczow, Poland

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                              Coal Life in Poland

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                              Coal Life in Poland

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The below video is just a glimpse of what it is like to be a coal miner in Poland:

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For Poland's mining region, coal remains a way of life

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                                  Consequences 

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                                  Consequences 

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Heavy pollution has caused many once flourishing cultural, provisional and regulating ecosystem services to diminish or disappear completely.

Due to the increase of nitrogen, the nitrogen fixation process is disrupted and the soil is contaminated, which stunts plant growth and the ability for animals to eat and survive in their natural habitat.

The entire surrounding ecosystem is out of balance, the plants do not grow where they used to (or at all), the animals cannot survive without the natural flora and fauna and therefore can no longer survive.

Water is contaminated, causing disease to humans, plants & animals.

The river can no longer be used for recreational swimming.

Fishing is not safe, nor are there enough fish to catch due to overfishing.

Bacteria has invaded the Oder, producing less oxygen for all water species to survive.

More than 200 animal species have become endangered due to the increase of pollution.

Over 2,500 plants that were once flourishing surrounding the Oder are now endangered.

Habitat loss and fragmentation of Poland’s biodiversity makes surviving in and along the Oder almost impossible.

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                          Air & Water Pollution Facts

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                          Air & Water Pollution Facts

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Annually, over 44,000 Poles are estimated to die prematurely due to poor air quality.

Air quality comparable to smoking 1,000 cigarettes.

Polish residents have been wearing masks far longer than needed in the current COVID pandemic, they wear masks because the air is simply not safe to breathe.

Children are recommended to stay indoors frequently due to air quality.

Water pollution in the Baltic Sea is ten times higher than in the ocean at large.

* Check out this video which focuses on the severity of pollution in Poland.

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                                  Poverty Facts

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                                  Poverty Facts

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2.2 million Polish people live in conditions of extreme poverty (as of 2009).

Over 170,000 Polish children suffer from malnutrition, which slows growth and overall health.

More than 260,000 children begin their days without breakfast.

More than 70,000 children only eat what they receive at school because they lack food at home.

1 in 5 Polish children are malnourished.

Food Availability may be sufficient, but the types of food needed are not, such as the amount of protein in the everyday diet in this area.

Food Access is not balanced, as many living in poverty do not have the means to afford healthy options.

Food Use is an issue because many in poverty do not have the proper education about clean water supply and nutrition.

There are historically very high rates of unemployment, however in more recent years has declined, with the exception of COVID.

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                          Accountability & Lack Thereof

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                          Accountability & Lack Thereof

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Poland should assist in creating, managing and paying for what needs to be done in order to curve the damage that has already been done to the environment due the overuse of coal.

Developing countries should be held accountable for both their citizens and the rest of the world for the decisions made to keep producing emissions at an alarming rate.

Past communism has influenced the lack of effort by the current government to help assist with the pollution threats in Poland.

The work that is being done is very slow to process and underfunded.

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                         Current Solution Programs

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                         Current Solution Programs

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In 1996 alliances formed between Czech Republic, Poland & Germany and they formed the ICPO (International Commission on the Protection of the Odra), to create new and upgraded wastewater treatment plants.

Two years ago, Poland launched their “Clean Air” program between the National Fund for Environment Protection, the Environmental Protection Bank & 16 Environmental Protection Funds in the region, as a necessity because Poland attributes 48,000 deaths per each year due to the poor quality of air. The program is worth $30 billion dollars and is to be in place until the year 2029. The main objective of this program is to significantly decrease the use of coal, specifically for heat purposes.

Extensive fines, incentive programs or new taxes, may be implemented in order to provide the funds to assist with the refugee crisis due to climate change.

Scientific education needs to be more available to underdeveloped countries and developed countries need to listen to the science.

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                        Long-term Sustainability Ideas

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                        Long-term Sustainability Ideas

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Poland is overpopulated, polluted, and many are living in poverty. There are ways to help curve this pollution:

Stop using coal as a main source of energy. Less coal will produce less greenhouse gases/emissions.

Integrate solar power and wind turbines where appropriate.

Create urban farming, rooftop farms, community gardens in overpopulated areas to make healthy options available and to help the atmosphere become cleaner. This would assist in making the air breathable.

Education about food use and education on diet and nutrition.

Create more ride sharing programs to reduce emissions from mass transportation.

Have incentive programs for farmers, such as organic farming.

Clean up the river so fish can be reintroduced to their natural habitat.

Hard path updates such as irrigation flood control would be very beneficial to Poland due the flooding problems.

Soft path updates such as appliances that use less water like toilets would be a great way to start saving water in Poland.

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                           Refugee & Migration Causes

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                           Refugee & Migration Causes

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Global warming, caused by the atmosphere warming due to carbon and other emissions is one major reason human migration will increase.

Agriculture and farmers will be forced to produce crops elsewhere due to soil degradation.

Unhealthy resources, and lack thereof, will cause humans to leave Poland in search of clean air and healthier environment to raise families.

Lack of jobs due to increased pollution will put a strain on the economy and families will have to vacate Poland in order to have a better way of life.

Without clean water and sewer management in place, disease is more prevalent and will cause societies to migrate elsewhere or be forced to live in an extremely unhealthy environment.

Poverty due to lack of clean food, air & water are all issues in Poland near the Oder River.

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                                   Road Blocks

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                                   Road Blocks

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Unfortunately, integration of different types of cleaner energy use in place of coal in Poland is difficult to change for numerous reasons:

The government is slow to assist with funding the clean energy programs.

There is a fear of job loss in the coal industry, lead by the coal mining unions.

Lack of understanding or wanting to understand global warming on the government level.

Different types of energy is expensive and takes a lot of time to switch over, current programs are said to be slow and fragmented.

Some say global warming will increase crop production in Poland because the farming season will last longer due to warmer conditions. Sunflowers & soybeans could potentially become attainable crops, when previously this was not possible with the cooler climate. However this idea does not take into consideration soil degradation due to overexploitation.

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                                   Works Cited

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                                   Works Cited

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Borgen, C. (2017, December 19). Malnutrition and Hunger in Poland. Retrieved December 06, 2020, from https://borgenproject.org/hunger-in-poland/

CDC. (2009, November 01). Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247943294_The_Consequences_of_the_Oder_Flood_in_1997_on_the_Distribution_of_Polycyclic_Aromatic_Hydrocarbons_in_the_Oder_River

Daniel T Cross on October 20, Cross, D., Cross, D., Sustainability Times, & Fagan, L. (2019, October 18). Why air pollution in Poland is the worst in Europe. Retrieved December 06, 2020, from:  https://www.sustainability-times.com/clean-cities/battling-the-scourge-of-air-pollution-in-poland/

Elliot, Cynthia. (2018, December 05). Here’s Poland’s recent History on Climate. Worlds Resources Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.wri.org/blog/2018/12/heres-polands-recent-history-climate-and-how-they-can-steer-future-cop24

Federal Ministry for the Environment. (2016, November 24). Twenty years of cooperation on keeping the Oder River basin clean. Retrieved from:

https://www.bmu.de/en/pressrelease/twenty-years-of-cooperation-on-keeping-the-oder-river-basin-clean/

Klimada. (2013, November 01). Global warming and its impact on Europe and Poland. Adaptation to climate change. Retrieved from: http://klimada.mos.gov.pl/en/climate-change-in-poland/

Oleksyn, J., & Reich, P. (1994, October 22). Pollution, Habitat Destruction, and Biodiversity in Poland. Conservation Biology, 8(4), 943-960. Retrieved from: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2386565

Parczewski, Władysław. (2020, January 04). Oder River. Britannica. Retrieved from: https://www.britannica.com/place/Opolskie

Reuters. (2015, December 03). Poland's pollution problem. Retrieved December 06, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com/video/multimedia/100000004072104/polands-pollution-problem.html

Segeš Frelak, Justyna. (2017, August 5).Migration climate, discourse and policies in Poland. GLOBSEC. Retrieved from:https://www.globsec.org/publications/migration-climate-discourse-policies-poland/

Staniszewska, Maria. (2018, March 03). Odra-source of pollution. Polish Ecological Club.

Retrieved from: https://www.ccb.se/Evidence2017/NCM/Wroclaw_13141117/Odra%20-%20source%20of%20pollution_SM.pdf

Vice. (2019, September 20). Toxic Air Pollution in Poland. Retrieved December 06, 2020, from https://www.facebook.com/VICE/videos/908283292871840