Summary
The Oder estuary is the mouth of the Oder (Polish: Odra) river, one of the largest rivers in the Baltic region. It is located at the southern Baltic Sea (border between Germany and Poland).
Oder Lagoon. The coastal zone is dominated by the discharge of the river Oder (Odra) into the Szczecin (Oder) Lagoon. The large (687 km²) and shallow (average depth 3.8 m) Szczecin (Oder) Lagoon, is the key element of the Oder estuary region. The lagoon is subdivided into the “Kleines Haff”, located mainly on the German territory, and the “Wielki Zalew” on the Polish territory. The Wielki Zalew covers about 60 % of the lagoon area and volume.
Pomeranian Bay. The lagoon is connected to the Pomeranian Bay via three outlets. The bay is part of the Baltic Sea. The bay is influenced by the Oder River water, but intensive windinduced mixing and large-scale currents in the Baltic Sea dominate this system.
Oder River. is one of the most important transboundary rivers in the Baltic region. Many larger cities and industries are located in the river basin. The basin is under intensive agricultural use. Other major river basin – coastal area issues are flooding, shipping and technical measures as well as species migration.
Human activities are tourism, agriculture, fishing and shipping. Impact responses are eutrophication, nutrient loading, bio-chemical pollution, habitat destruction, biodiversity loss.
For additional information
Systems Approach Framework (SAF)
Contribution following the SAF sequence, that is the system design volume followed by the system formulation volume, the system appraisal volume and finally the system output volume.
Date: 2007-2011
SPICOSA local applications aim to bridge the gap between coastal stakeholders across various aspects of local economy, policies, uses, conflicts and impacts to enable the dialogue that may lead to sustainability.
Coordination by Gerald Schernewski, Baltic Sea Research Institute Warnemünde, Germany / Leibniz-Institut für Ostseeforschung