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FOREWORD

Systematic studies on anthropogenic impact on water circulation were undertaken by Polish geographers and hydrologists in the 50’s and 60’s in connection with hydrographic mapping. In the 80’s, within the main research programme "Evolution of geographical environment in Poland" co-ordinated by Prof. L. Starkel from the Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization of the Polish Academy of Sciences, a research project concerning natural and anthropogenic changes of water conditions was completed. The results of this work, under the direction of Prof. I. Dynowska, were published in a monograph entitled "Changes of water conditions in Poland as a result of natural and anthropogenic processes" (Kraków 1993).

In the years 1994-95, Prof. H. Maruszczak from the Institute of Earth Sciences of Maria Curie-Sklodowska University initiated preparation of a number of papers describing the present tendencies of anthropogenic influence on hydrochemical conditions and sediment transport in rivers. After World War II the ąuality of surface waters and groundwater was drastically deteriorating in Poland. This was connected with introducing a "planned" socialist economy. This system was characterized by rapid but extremely extensive industrialization and urbanization realized largely at the cost of the natural environment. Therefore, besides some results of planned actions favourable for the environment (e.g. afforestation of waste lands and some arabie lands), pollution of surface waters with sewage was rapidly increasing with fast urbanization and the building of big factories without necessary sewage treatment plants.

The direct or indirect (e.g. connected with agricultural chemization) supply of wastewater, increased the amount of dissolved and suspended load transported by rivers. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of this load allow for the defining of the degree of anthropogenic transformation of river waters and indirectly also of the whole natural environment. Other very big anthropogenic changes were connected with extensive exploitation of groundwater. Therefore, the previously proposed title for this set of papers was: "Anthropogenic impact on groundwater and dissolved and suspended load yields in the Vistula River basin".

The presented results of studies concern also anthropogenic changes of water conditions on a larger historical scalę. Such an approach allows us to estimate morę exactly the character and degree of the environmental degradation resulting from the extensive socialist economy after World War II.