A social campaign has been organized in Poland against the international inland waterway E-40 (Ogólnopolskie Towarzystwo Ochrony Ptaków, 2019, otop.org.pl/naszeprojekty/pilnujemy/stop-dla-drogi-wodnej-e40), which will be constructed through Poland, Belarus and Ukraine, stimulated by a December 2018 report (Grygoruk et al., 2018, ratujmyrzeki.pl/dokumenty/E40_raport_2019.pdf). The construction of the waterway would connect the ports of Gdansk on the Baltic Sea in Poland and Kherson on the Black Sea in Ukraine, and would include parts of the Vistula, Bug, Pina, Prypec and Dnieper rivers. The plan for the E-40 waterway is a threat to the ecosystems of some of the largest and unregulated rivers of Poland and wider Europe. A development strategy for inland waterways was introduced in 2016 to adapt Poland's rivers to the criteria of international standards for inland waterways (Świerczewska-Pietras, 2018, Prace Komisji Geografii Przemysłu Polskiego Towarzystwa Geograficznego, 32, 38–53.). In addition, the act relating to Poland's ratification of the European Agreement on Main Inland Waterways of International Importance came into force in February 2017 (Lawicki et al., 2017, Oryx, 51, 397–397).
The construction of this Baltic–Black Sea waterway would affect many European rivers, especially in Poland, with the strongest impact on the Bug and Vistula. The plans include the construction of an artificial channel to connect the Bug and Vistula Rivers, which would be the main source of water for this channel. The construction of the channel would have an impact on important river valleys, including Tysmienica and Wilga, and the main impact would be the water required for operating the channel. This would particularly affect the Bug, which is unregulated along its entire length. The duration of river floods would be reduced by c. 20% and the frequency of severe droughts in the nearby area would increase (Grygoruk et al., 2018, op. cit.). The exploitation of the channel, and particularly the operation of its floodgates, would significantly reduce the levels of groundwater in most adjacent areas (Grygoruk et al., 2018, op. cit.). The fall in the water level of the Bug would diminish its ability to self-purify industrial and municipal sewage that comes from Ukraine (Starodubet et al., 2018, Remote Sensing for Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Hydrology XX, 107830P, published online 10 October 2018).
Almost all of the planned length of the E-40 in Poland passes through protected areas and it is estimated that the inland waterway would have an impact on 1,064 km2 of these areas, including 12 Natura 2000 areas, one national park, four landscape parks and 23 nature reserves. Important animal species are also threatened: Eurasian oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus (IUCN, NT), black-tailed godwit Limosa limosa (IUCN, NT), Eurasian otter Lutra lutra (IUCN, NT), common ringed plover Charadrius hiaticula (IUCN, LC), Mediterranean gull Larus melanocephalus (IUCN, LC), and aquatic warbler Acrocephalus paludicola (IUCN, VU). The construction of the planned inland waterway could also result in a reduction of tourism and a consequent loss of income for local people.
