HISTORY OF THE CREATION OF HYDROTECHNICAL STRUCTURES ON THE SMALL ADZHALYK ESTUARY (BLACK SEA)

Problem Statement and Purpose. The deep-water port “Pivdennyi”, located in the Small Adzhalyk Estuary of the Odesa region, is one of the largest and most important transport hubs of Ukraine on the Black Sea coast. Its construction became part of the process of anthropomorphogenesis, which led to changes in the natural landscapes of the coast and the geosystems of the estuary bottom. The development of the port of Pivdennyi with a complex of port and coastal protection hydraulic structures was accompanied by changes in the natural environment, including morphological and ecological processes in the Small Adzhalyk Estuary. The relevance lies in the importance of studying this process in the context of its impact on the natural system of the estuary and the sea coast. Ports as anthropogenic objects on the Black Sea coast are considered in articles from different positions. In Shuisky’s works, ports are considered as complex anthropogenic systems of the coast and their impact on the coastal zone of the sea. Ports are considered as objects of disturbance of the development of the coastal zone of the sea, at the same time, changes in the water area of the estuaries themselves are not considered. The articles consider issues of economic activity. The novelty of this work lies in its emphasis on the estuary water area, which is currently being actively developed. The latter is relevant for the Hryhorivskyi Estuary because it determines, among other things, the modern development of the port. The history of the creation of hydraulic structures in the estuary was not considered, or analyzed as part of an already functioning port complex (Region). In the context of the history of the growth of anthropogenic load during the transformation of the natural environment of the port water area of the estuary, the process of anthropomorphogenesis was not generalized. Data & Methods. When writing the article, the following materials were used: cartographic, Internet sources, articles, space images. In accordance with the source materials, the following methods were applied: analytical, historical-cartographic. The cartographic sources were navigational maps of the Ukrainian State Cartography. Space images were obtained from the Google Earth service. The publications and Internet sources used are listed in the list of sources used. Results. The construction of breakwaters and piers has led to a change in the direction of currents in the estuary. In particular, a decrease in the speed of water flows in some areas has led to an increase in the accumulation of sediments, which gradually changes the morphology of the estuary bottom. This affects flora and fauna, as sediments can interfere with the access of oxygen to the lower layers of water, which is critical for the preservation of the ecosystem. The creation of hydraulic structures has disrupted the natural dynamics of water masses and led to changes in the distribution of water salinity and temperature. This has affected the species diversity in the estuary, in particular the population of fish and marine invertebrates, which are sensitive to changes in the aquatic environment. In addition, increased human activity in the region has led to increased water pollution, which negatively affects the ecological state of the coast. The history of the creation of hydraulic structures of the Pivdennyi port is a vivid example of anthropomorphogenesis, which encompasses the change in the natural landscape of the sea coast as a result of human activity. The development of the hydraulic infrastructure has allowed the creation of one of the most powerful ports in the Black Sea region, but this has led to changes in the natural processes and ecosystem of the Small Adzhalyk Estuary. Further development of the port must take into account environmental aspects and requires environmental protection measures to preserve the marine ecosystem.