Much of global trade takes place by sea and for fast fashion, cheap electronic gadgets and exotic fruit, large cargo ships must traverse thousands of nautical miles and burn fuel in large quantities.
The sea plays an important role in the economy of all maritime nations. One of the bodies of water with the heaviest traffic in the world is the Baltic Sea, on which roughly 22,000 ships sail every year. Around 12,000 of them are fishing vessels, followed by thousands of cargo ships and tankers.
Unfortunately, it is precisely because of human activity that wildlife have less and less room in the Baltic Sea – the increasingly heavy traffic and the noise accompanying it drive away fish and sea mammals. The wind farms planned at sea or on the coast, meanwhile, force birds to change their ancestral migration routes. The behaviour of mammals is influenced by large bridges and dams, which can also prove catastrophic to migrating birds. The nutrients which accrue in open-sea fish farms, however, influence the Baltic Sea as a whole. The fish and wind farms specifically planned for the sea, however, in addition to historical activities, are playing more and more of a role in the economy of the Baltic Sea. So that these new activities cause as little damage to the environment as possible, the countries on the Baltic Sea have started to plan their maritime territory.
Monitor the shipping traffic on the Baltic Sea in real time >>>