Between June 22 and 25, specialists from the Geography and Hydrology Laboratory of the Northern Water Problems Institute (NWPI KarRC RAS) carried out fieldwork at Sorokskaya Bay of the White Sea. It is a continuation of the multidisciplinary studies of the White Sea estuarine areas and coastal waters under climate change and human impact, performed within a state assignment. Researchers are focusing on the Kem and Nizhny Vyg rivers as the main waterways feeding the White Sea in its Karelian part.

– As pinpointed by Academician Alexander Lisitsyn, river estuaries are "marginal filters" that collect over 90% of all suspended particulate matter transported from land. The material carried by rivers from the catchment towards the oceans accumulates here, so estuaries can be regarded as indicators of what is happening and will happen inside the sea, – said Aleksey Tolstikov, Head of the Geography and Hydrology Laboratory, NWPI KarRC RAS.


Expedition member Sergey Sidorov in the Nizhny Vyg estuary

During the expedition, the scientists assessed physical and hydrochemical processes at four sites in the marine and riverine zones, as well as in the mixing zone of saline and freshwater: they measured temperature and water salinity during flood and ebb tides, and took samples for nitrites, nitrates, ammonium nitrogen, phosphates, and other elements, including heavy metals. It was important for the researchers to do same-day samples: for the analysis to be correct, they must be delivered to the laboratory within 24 hours. The samples are currently undergoing laboratory treatment.

On the way back, the geographers also took samples from Lake Vygozero. "We need to study the entire Vyg system comprehensively in order to understand what and from where the river carries into the sea", – emphasized the project leader.


In Sorokskaya Bay of the White Sea

According to Aleksey Tolstikov, there has been no critical changes over the four years of observations in Sorokskaya Bay. However, despite the decline in industry and population outflow from the White Sea region in recent decades, the expected tangible improvement in the environmental situation in this part of the sea has not occurred. It is crucial to continue monitoring, e.g. to create the background for planning industry intensification and tourism development in the republic’s coastal areas. In this context, the Kem and Nizhny Vyg rivers are essential elements from the perspective of the economy, tourism, and environment of northern Karelia.

This March, the scientists took a field trip to Sorokskaya Bay of the White Sea together with colleagues from the Marine Hydrophysical Institute (MHI) of RAS. Read more about this expedition here.

Photos provided by expedition participants