During the seventeenth meeting of the Helsinki Convention, which took place in 1986, an important decision was made that Baltic Sea Day should be celebrated annually The date March 22 was chosen for a reason, because it was on this day in 1974 that this convention was signed It is worth noting that on the same day, ecologists around the world celebrate another important environmental holiday - World Water Day
Previously, this natural pearl on the territory of modern Russia was called the “Varangian Sea” This name lasted until the 18th century The deepest point in the Baltic Sea is at a depth of 470 meters, and the average depth is 51 meters
The Baltic Sea today serves as an important transport corridor that connects Russia, Asia and Europe It washes the shores of nine countries at once - Russia, Estonia, Sweden, Poland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Denmark and Finland Over the past few decades, environmentalists have argued that there is a huge amount of garbage in the sea, and it urgently needs cleaning, otherwise a real environmental disaster will occur with irreparable consequences
In order to attract public attention to the important issue of preserving the environment on this most beautiful object on the planet, Baltic Sea Day was established In connection with this holiday, various scientific and educational conferences are held in different countries Also, activists and defenders of this natural wealth carry out various environmental events
Traditionally, this day is celebrated on a particularly large scale in St Petersburg, where numerous public organizations involved in environmental protection have taken the organization and initiative into their own hands The authorities and business actively assist in holding various kinds of events
International video conferences, environmental exhibitions, competitions in schools and universities have already become traditional, the purpose of which is to reveal the environmental problems of the Baltic Sea In addition, the city hosts a large-scale international environmental forum, which is called “Baltic Sea Day” At this forum there are always vigorous and serious discussions of all existing problems of this natural wealth, as well as methods for solving them, and an exchange of experience between representatives of different countries The St Petersburg forum is attended not only by famous ecologists and representatives from the Baltic region, but also by well-known environmentalists from the USA and Canada Everyone unites around the main goal - the preservation of a unique natural object - the Baltic Sea