Baltic Sea Region Research Articles

Forest Inventory Data Provide Useful Information for Mapping Ecosystem Services Potential

The ecosystem services framework is a convenient approach for identifying and mapping nature’s contributions to people, and an accurate assessment of ecosystem services potential is the first step in the decision support process of well-informed land management planning. The approach we use for forest ecosystem services potential assessment in Latvia is based on the principles of the matrix model and biophysical data of the forest inventory database, and it is comparable to other assessments previously carried out in the Baltic Sea Region. The proposed approach supports spatial planning and may be integrated with assessments of other ecosystems based on the same methodological principles. The evaluation results reflect the high spatial heterogeneity of forest types in Latvia. Future work should include integrating ecosystem services flows and demand into the assessment, developing additional indicators for culturally important ecosystem services, and introducing socio-cultural valuation to account for a broader set of stakeholders and values.

Uncovering neutral and adaptive genomic differentiation among European perch with brackish water and freshwater origin in the western Baltic Sea region

Environmental variation across the range of wild species can lead to local adaptations. The Baltic Sea was formed when the Fenno-Scandian ice sheet retreated around 12 thousand years ago, creating a new brackish water habitat colonised by both marine and freshwater fish species. The European perch (Perca fluviatilis) is a predatory freshwater fish with a large geographical distribution across Eurasia, where it inhabits a wide range of environmental niches. In the Baltic Sea region it has even developed a specialised brackish water perch variant that can tolerate environmental salinity levels, which are lethal to freshwater perch. However, very little is known about the underlying mechanisms facilitating the colonisation and adaptation of perch to the Baltic Sea. Here, we use Genotyping-By-Sequencing data from six freshwater and six brackish water localities to disclose the evolutionary relationship between freshwater and brackish water perch. Our results show that the brackish water perch occurs in multiple distinct genetic clusters. We find that gene flow between brackish water perch with full access to the sea likely led to lower levels of differentiation and higher diversity than in freshwater perch. Selection analyses suggest that genomic adaptation played a role in the colonisation of the Baltic Sea and that the top three regions under selection harbour salinity tolerance genes. We complete by discussing the implications of our findings for management of brackish water perch in the western Baltic sea.

Cloudscapes over the Baltic Sea–Cloud Motifs in Finnish, Swedish, German, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, and Latvian Symbolic Landscape Painting around 1900

The cloud motif, a significant one in the landscape painting of the 1890s and early 1900s, has been usually marginalized by scholars despite the fact that during this (Symbolist) period clouds became independent subjects of landscape painting in many European countries, especially in the Baltic Sea Region. Cloud imagery makes a robust appearance in Scandinavian, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, and Latvian art during the decades around 1900. The variety of symbolic meanings and possible interpretations of cloudscapes was impacted by cultural and literary associations that emerged with European Symbolism. There is a surprising resemblance of cloudscapes executed within the Baltic Sea Region, an examination of which reveals the complexity of artistic influence and the presence and wandering of motifs among artists.

Knowledge Management in the Ecolabnet Project: Practical and Theoretical Utilisation of Eco-innovations

The underlying objective of the paper is to analyse the process of managing theoretical and practical knowledge about eco-innovations, utilising it in ECOLABNET project. A network of project partners consisting of RDI institutions, Intermediary Organisations, and universities was established to promote exchange and dissemination of knowledge on eco-innovative solutions and services among Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the countries of the Baltic Sea Region. The paper presented the principles applied in the knowledge management (KM) process within the project with a particular stress on the research conducted on the group of European SMEs form the Baltic Sea Region (BSR), first stage of ECOLABNET project implementation. The research provided much needed knowledge on the project’s beneficiaries – SMEs form the BSR region and facilitated the adjustment of the offer of the project consortium. Expert knowledge, eco-innovative products and services that have been provided by the network of partners assist SMEs in implementing and commercialising eco-innovative solutions. In this way they significantly contribute to practical application of sustainability principles by expanding the offer of project beneficiaries (SMEs) with environmentally-friendly products and services. In addition, the author also, highlights the advantages of a combined approach including expertise in the form of theoretical knowledge being supported by prototypes of eco-innovations. Their particular role in strengthening the eco-innovative capabilities of the entire network and the overall success of the project have been detailed as well.

Innovative Urban Blue Space Design in a Changing Climate: Transition Models in the Baltic Sea Region

Waterfront areas in cities are subject to constant changes. The desire to integrate the transformed waterside areas with the urban fabric involves shaping high-quality public spaces related to water, which are often referred to as urban blue spaces (UBS). The aim of the research was to examine the transformation processes of urban waterfront areas in the Baltic Sea Region and identify emerging transition models and types of blue public spaces. The methodological framework of this study is based on qualitative analysis of urban form with respect to coastal and riverine waters. An introductory analysis of 50 cases of transformations was conducted, and 12 were selected for further investigation: Tallinn, Pärnu (Estonia), Copenhagen, Køge, Aarhus (Denmark), Helsinki, Turku (Finland), Stockholm, Malmö, Luleå, Sundsvall, and Ystad (Sweden). As the outcome of the study, the authors indicate that the existing hard land–water interfaces were transformed into soft transition zones where new types of blue public spaces were created with different relationships to water. Synergies were identified between public space design, flood protection measures, and climate adaptation schemes. Finally, the findings highlight the need to verify the existing planning regulations and make them more flexible and effective in guiding the sustainable waterfront design processes.

Compound drought and heatwave events in the eastern part of the Baltic Sea region

Droughts and heatwaves are natural phenomena that can cause severe damage to the economy, infrastructure, human health, and agriculture, among others. However, in recent years, it has been noted that their combined effect, known as compound drought and heatwave events (CDHE), often results in even greater harm. The main aim of this study was to identify CDHEs in this region during summers from 1950 to 2022 and assess the frequency and intensity of these events. To this end, the periods of droughts and heatwaves that occurred between 1950 and 2022 were determined, and the recurrence, extent, and intensity of these phenomena were evaluated. In this study, 1-month Standard Precipitation Index (SPI) values calculated for each summer day were used to identify droughts, while heatwaves were defined as a period of five or more consecutive days when the daily maximum air temperature (Tmax) was higher than the 90th percentile of Tmax. Precipitation and Tmax data (with a spatial resolution 0.25° x 0.25°) were obtained from the European Centre of Medium-Range Weather Forecast ERA-5 reanalysis dataset. The study showed that in most of the eastern part of the Baltic Sea region, the number of drought days had decreased from 1950 to 2022, while the number of heatwave days had increased significantly. In total, ten CDHEs were identified during the summers of 1950–2022. Eight of these events were recorded in 1994 or later. However, a statistically significant increase of CDHEs was found only in a small part of the study area.

Introduction

The goal of this Special Issue is to promote a deeper, more nuanced understanding of the Baltic Sea Region as a nexus of artistic exchange during the long nineteenth century, and to inspire further research on this understudied and ideologically isolated subject [...]

Identification of challenges and problems in the implementation of the circular economy in the Baltic Sea Region

The article presents results of the first phase of the project CCI: Circular Economy and Place, which identified challenges and problems in the process of developing and implementing an economy model in the Baltic Sea Region that meets the assumptions of the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan. The comparison of project's original assumptions with the identified conditions made its authors realise the need to restructure methods and ways of action (in the second phase), making the prospect of achieving the fundamental goal more realistic: reducing the gap in the ability to run a circular economy in the peripheral Baltic Sea Region compared to the centre of the European Union. The desirability of analysing the conclusions formulated after the first phase of the project is justified by the importance of macroregional conditions in processes of the EU mechanisms implementation, which are supposed to be identical for all parts of the European Union.

A cross-national study of internationalisation barriers with reference to SME value chain

Research background: The study responses to the internationalisation issue, one of the essential factors of SMEs growth. Particularly to companies' efforts towards setting international cooperation and circumstances obstructing these struggles. The study takes into consideration that internationalisation in specific areas of company's operations differs noticeably. Similarly, different barriers may arise depending on the areas of the company's value chain that are the focus of the enterprises' internationalisation strategies. Purpose of the article: This study aims to identify barriers to internationalisation regarding various areas of a company's value chain. The study employs the Value Chain Model by Porter. Methods: The field data was collected using a questionnaire survey on a sample of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) located in countries in the Baltic Sea region (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland). A multiple regression analysis was performed to determine the impact of barriers on internationalisation. Finding & value added: The study indicates three areas that are most often the subject of internationalisation in SMEs: operations, outbound logistics and marketing and sales. Barriers differ between value chain areas; however, cultural differences and competition are perceived as the most important hindering factors by companies experienced in internationalisation. At the same time, barriers regarding knowledge and finance diminish when companies becoming more experienced in internationalisation in particular value chain areas. This study is one of few employing the value chain framework to examine internationalisation.

Multi‑criteria Analysis of the Competitiveness of Major Baltic Sea Container Terminals

The rapid growth in the volume of international container transport requires that the entire transport chain become more competitive, including maritime container terminals. The aim of the article is to identify the number and location of major Baltic container terminals and to perform a multi‑criteria analysis of the competitiveness of maritime container terminals in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR). In our study, we perform the AHP multi‑criteria analysis with subjective criteria weights, as well as the entropy method with objective criteria weights. Thus, we can evaluate the competitive advantages of each of the specified terminals in the region. We are among the first to study the competitiveness of individual maritime container terminals in the BSR. Thus, our research adds to the literature that has yielded results on the competitive advantage of the Baltic seaports.

FACTORS INFLUENCING ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTIONS AMONG THE STUDENTS IN THE BALTIC SEA REGION COUNTRIES

This research presents a comparison of the impact of personal and environmental factors on the entrepreneurial intention of students living in Baltic Sea region countries. Data on students’ intentions to start their own businesses was obtained from 10054 respondents studying in Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden by implementing Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey (GUESSS) in 2021. Data analysis was conducted using modified Krueger’s (2009) entrepreneurial intention model based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). Six hypotheses were tested using the data received from all respondents and the data of individual sub-samples broken down by gender, level of study, the field of study, and country of residence. A positive relationship with students’ entrepreneurial intentions was clarified and the selected hypotheses were proved by analysing all variables of all sub-samples, except for three in the case of Lithuania and two in the case of Sweden and Finland due to insufficient level of statistical significance.

The BALTEX/Baltic Earth program: Excursions and returns

The Baltic Sea Experiment (BALTEX) started in 1993 as part of the Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX). It was later organized into three programs: BALTEX I, BALTEX II, and Baltic Earth. Here, we examine in a brief overview the overall BALTEX achievements, including program goals, risks encountered during the research journey, and knowledge development when finalizing the programs.During three decades of climate and environmental studies of the Baltic Basin within the BALTEX/Baltic Earth programs, significant steps have been taken towards improved scientifically constructed knowledge and efforts to disseminate this knowledge to neighboring sciences and the public. These programs have illustrated the need to actively navigate the European research arena while remaining an independent science network. The well-organized International Baltic Earth Secretariat and many dedicated scientists made the research excursions safe and successful. The learning process relates to improved knowledge of the dynamics of the atmosphere–ocean–land climate system in the Baltic Sea region, the cycling of carbon and other substances, the region's anthropogenic climate and environmental changes, and how global warming and regional human activities can be detected outside natural variability.

Last interglacial seasonal hydroclimate in the North Sea–Baltic Sea region

The Last Interglacial (LIG) experienced substantial changes in seasonal insolation compared with the present day, which may have affected the hydrography and water-mass exchange in the North Sea and Baltic Sea region. Here we investigate the effects of solar radiation and greenhouse gas (GHG) forcing on the regional climate by analyzing model simulations of the LIG (127 ka BP), pre-industrial (PI, 1850 CE), and present-day (PD, 1990 CE) climates. We also interpret the reconstructed seasonal bottom water conditions using benthic foraminifera and geochemistry data.Our simulations reveal that during the LIG, the Baltic Sea region (including the Kattegat and the Danish Straits) experienced more saline and colder bottom waters than those in the PD, in agreement with the reconstruction data. This can be attributed to lower GHG levels and enhanced water exchange of cooler, saline North Sea water into the Baltic Sea during the LIG. The thermocline was stronger during the summer months in the LIG, mainly due to the higher sea surface temperature (SST) compared to that of the PD resulting from increased summer insolation.Further, the temperature anomalies (LIG–PD) show significant inverse correlations with the precipitation–minus–evaporation (P–E) at the Baltic Sea entrance. However, the P–E balance appears to have had minimal impact on salinity changes in the North Sea, the Baltic Proper, and the open sea area. Our findings indicate that monthly surface and bottom water salinity anomalies of LIG-PI exhibit strong positive correlations with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) anomalies in the Baltic entrance region. During the LIG, a more positive phase of the NAO index in autumn played a crucial role in wind-driven major inflows and led to more intensive water exchange in the North Sea–Baltic Sea region compared to the late Holocene.

A Digital Collaborative Platform for the Silver Economy: Functionalities Required by Stakeholders in a Multinational Baltic Sea Region Project

This article develops functionalities for a digital collaborative platform, called the Digital Silver Hub, which aims to serve as an ecosystem for the quadruple helix actors (private sector, public sector, academic institutions, and senior citizens) to participate in knowledge exchange, collaboration, and co-creation of innovative technological solutions to facilitate the elderly population. In service of that, we have conducted 30 interviews from the partner heads of an EU-funded project as well as quadruple helix actors from each region in the Baltic Sea Region (Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Lithuania, Denmark, and St. Petersburg) to deeply understand the functionalities that are needed to be offered by the platform. A deductive thematic analysis has been conducted to analyse these functionalities in terms of collective intelligence (CI) components (namely staffing, processes, goals, and motivation) based on a most recent generic CI model. The functionalities were further evaluated by experts working in the field of science and technology in the silver economy. Overall, this article offers insights into the functionalities that are required for a digital collaborative platform to support the elderly population and facilitate co-creation among quadruple helix actors, as well as provides a foundation for future work on designing and implementing such a platform.

PREREQUISITES FOR THE CREATION OF THE "FROM FARM TO SCHOOL" MODEL IN THE KLAIPEDA REGION: THE STUDY OF TARGET GROUPS’ EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS

The focus of the article is on school meal programs that are common throughout the world and are implemented to promote students’ healthy eating habits and bring added value to their learning outcomes. In recent years there has been increasing emphasis on the possibility of improving school meals by including locally grown products, thus contributing to the development of local economic systems. This model has acquired the name "Farm to School" in practice of some countries and, according to its supporters, emphasizes public procurement of locally grown food as a key market opportunity for farmers. The article has been prepared within the BSR Food Coalition project (funded by Interreg Baltic Sea Region Program, contract #S002). The project seeks to create the conditions for the emergence of the "From farm to school" model in the Baltic States. The study presented in the article aims at disclosing the conditions and opportunities for the promotion and use of foods produced by local farmers in general education schools in Klaipeda region, Lithuania as well as at defining necessary educational efforts to increase healthy nutrition, develop general health habits, and agricultural and food system literacy within general education schools and their communities. To achieve the aim the surveys with project target groups (school administration, students and their parents) have been carried out in Klaipeda region. The objectives of the survey were to gather data on target groups’ perceptions of local school food procurement and to disclose their opinion, needs and expectations related to model development. The findings of the study would be helpful for designing the further steps of collaboration between schools and local farmers in Klaipeda region. .

Seasonality and Strain Specificity Drive Rapid Co-evolution in an Ostreococcus-Virus System from the Western Baltic Sea

Marine viruses are a major driver of phytoplankton mortality and thereby influence biogeochemical cycling of carbon and other nutrients. Phytoplankton-targeting viruses are important components of ecosystem dynamics, but broad-scale experimental investigations of host-virus interactions remain scarce. Here, we investigated in detail a picophytoplankton (size 1 µm) host’s responses to infections by species-specific viruses from distinct geographical regions and different sampling seasons. Specifically, we used Ostreococcus tauri and O. mediterraneus and their viruses (size ca. 100 nm). Ostreococcus sp. is globally distributed and, like other picoplankton species, play an important role in coastal ecosystems at certain times of the year. Further, Ostreococcus sp. is a model organism, and the Ostreococcus-virus system is well-known in marine biology. However, only few studies have researched its evolutionary biology and the implications thereof for ecosystem dynamics. The Ostreococcus strains used here stem from different regions of the Southwestern Baltic Sea that vary in salinity and temperature and were obtained during several cruises spanning different sampling seasons. Using an experimental cross-infection set-up, we explicitly confirm species and strain specificity in Ostreococcus sp. from the Baltic Sea. Moreover, we found that the timing of virus-host co-existence was a driver of infection patterns as well. In combination, these findings prove that host-virus co-evolution can be rapid in natural systems.

The Last Mile Concept for the Bydgoszcz Logistics Hub

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to discuss the last mile concept for the proposed Bydgoszcz Logistics Hub in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie region, and thus to present the forecast distribution of goods within the last mile from and to the Hub, and to indicate the role that it could play in the region.Method: The development of the last mile concept for the Bydgoszcz Logistics Hub was based on secondary data. The first two stages of work, not discussed in this article, included case studies of 6 successfully operating foreign and domestic transhipment terminals and an analysis of the supply and demand for transport in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship. The third stage, the results of which are presented in this article, involved the identification of the most important national centres generating supply and demand for transport within a radius of 280 km from the Hub. Data, allowing to estimate the potential demand for the fright transport on the analysed routes and their costs depending on the mode of transport, came mainly from the Central Statistical Office, the Railway Transport Office, the General Board of National Roads, the National Bank of Poland and Port of Gdynia and Gdańsk Authorities.Results: The data show that in the period covered by the forecast (2019-2034), the most important change in the transport model of the Hub service area will be a significant increase in inland waterways transport of the Vistula River.Conclusions: The forecast operation of the last mile for the Bydgoszcz Logistics Hub justifies the reloading, storage and forwarding of goods in the area of the Bydgoszcz-Toruń agglomeration. The construction of the Bydgoszcz Logistic Hub will bring improvement to the already existing road links leading to the most important logistic centres, located, on the one hand, in the Tricity seaports, on the other hand, in large economic centres in Poznań, Łódź and Warsaw.Keywords: Baltic Sea Region, combine transport, logistics hub, last milePaper type: Research paper

Long-term trends in abundance, phenology, and morphometrics of Little Stint Calidris minuta during autumn migration in southern Sweden, 1946–2020

The Little Stint Calidris minuta is an Arctic wader species that migrates through the Baltic Sea region towards wintering areas in North and West Africa and the Mediterranean region. We use a 75-year trapping series, comprising 4,791 Little Stints on autumn migration, from Ottenby Bird Observatory in Sweden to illustrate long-term trends in abundance, phenology, and morphometrics. Numbers of trapped juveniles dropped from median 31 (mean 74) in 1946–1999 to median 1.5 (mean 3.5) birds in 2000–2020, while the number of adults was generally low and without trends. Rolling window analyses showed that the drop in juveniles started around 1984, and from 1993 onward the median never exceeded seven juveniles/year (25 %-quantile: 0–1; 75 %-quantile: 4–55). Moreover, adult birds advanced their passage on average 0.48 days per year, passing 26 days earlier in 2020 than in 1946. Earlier migration of adults and decreased numbers of juveniles suggest low reproductive output in recent decades. Morphometric data of recaptured birds show that Little Stints on stopover at Ottenby gain fuel at a speed close to the theoretical maximum, strongly indicating that the conditions at the trapping site remain favourable for foraging waders.

Forecasting Future Procurement Potential of Swedish Forest Biomass Using Forest Inventory Data

In the last 20 years the use of forest biomass for energy production and sawlog and pulpwood production has increased by 68%, 11% and 31% in Sweden. As Sweden is trying to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, the high demand for biomass can also be expected in future. Therefore, a method to project the amount of spatially available biomass assortments for industries was developed. Available amounts of different forest assortments were estimated and visualised in a web-based tool using forest inventory data and nationwide projection analyses of available biomass for 2035–2039. In this interval, the greatest amount of available biomass and roundwood will be in Northern Sweden. Results also indicate that already existing harvesting intensity is very high compared to the available biomass in the future. The industry can expect noticeably more available biomass in the coming 100 year period. With increased competition between large pulp mills and biorefineries, the supply areas can exceed 200 km to satisfy raw material demand. The long distance and high volume supply chain requirements will demand further improvement in transportation solution nationally and cross-border in the Baltic Sea Region.

Strong surface winds in Storm Eunice. Part 1: storm overview and indications of sting jet activity from observations and model data

Strong surface winds in Storm <i>Eunice</i>. Part 1: storm overview and indications of sting jet activity from observations and model data