Our history

The study of the sea coast is held in Russia for centuries. This is evidenced, for example, the first "manual for survey of offshore banks", drawn up by a group of brilliant geologists, geomorphologists of the 19th century and published in 1888 in Saint-Petersburg. In the first half of the twentieth century coastal work continued, but were of local character. Shortly before the Second World War, was created at the initiative and under the leadership of B. F. Dobrynin Commission to study the morphology of the coasts at the research Institute of geography, Moscow state University. The task of the Commission was coordination of the works on complex study of the sea coast [Aibulatov, Feldman, 2003]. The work of the Commission lasted for about five years and was interrupted by the war, and after the abolition of the University's Institute of geography were not renewed.
Intensive development of marine shores in the postwar years has necessitated the creation of the all-Union center for coastal studies, which could take over the coordination of all onshore works. This is Central Coast section, created on the initiative of V. P. Zenkovich in 1952, in which existed from 1939, the Interdepartmental Oceanographic Commission of the USSR [Aibulatov, Feldman, 2003]. The constituent Congress gathered in Moscow at the Polytechnic Museum, supported the idea of creating a section, the Chairman of which was elected Professor V. P. Zenkovich (1984 – P. A. Kaplin, 2004 – L. A. Indrev), scientific Secretary A. A. Aksenov, which subsequently on a post of academic Secretary was replaced by G. A. Orlova (1960), and then by S. A. Lukyanov (1974). The Congress defined the tasks of the section, of which the main was called the cohesion of researchers in bergavinov and coordination of their activities.
In subsequent decades, the Section for the study of seas and reservoirs (Coastal section) are actively engaged in issues of beruhazasi and methodologies of coastal research [Aibulatov, Feldman, 2003], which were considered and discussed at regularly convened all-Union scientific and scientific-practical conferences. Five decades of the last century was organized 19 conferences, which demonstrated high professionalism of coastal investigations in the USSR. Materials most of the conferences are published in the respective collections of reports that in fact contributed to the creation of the scientific school of domestic peregovorov [Zenkovich, 1979], which received an approving assessment of many foreign experts.

However, the activities of the Working group "Sea coasts" (former Coast section) was not limited to the organization of the scientific conferences. Its management Board, which includes and is composed of leading experts in the field of dynamics and morphology of sea coasts, and repeatedly held their assizes to be able to consider and discuss specific issues arising. The first experience of this kind was the session held in Kaliningrad in November 1975 at the invitation of local organisations - Kaliningrad GU and the Department of communal services of the Kaliningrad region administration [Zenkovich, Lukyanova, 1976]. This invitation was due to the alarming state of the resort coast of the Sambiiskii Peninsula, exposed to strong wave erosion and slumping. Section Bureau supported the proposal by V. L. Boldyrev about the transfer of the dumping of pulp Amber mill to the North shore of the Peninsula to solve the question about the sources of supply of this area with sediment. The second complex subject of discussion was the issue of construction in the Northern part of the Latvian coast deep-water port for vessels of large tonnage. Suggestions of LENMORNIIPROEKT on this issue criticized the Bureau member R. J. Knaps, which proved that the implementation of this project will cause an active grass-roots erosion at a distance of 60 km. He proposed another construction site, where the coastal depths greater, and the risk of downstream erosion will be reduced to 10 km. His proposal was approved by the session.
Further, the Bureau of the section repeatedly practiced assizes on the shores of the Black, Azov, far East seas and again in the Baltic. The coastal section actively participated in the discussion and adjustment of major technical projects in the coastal zone of the sea - in particular, General schemes of beruhazasi Baltic, Azov and Black seas, approved by Gosstroy of the USSR, strongly supported and promoted the creation of such scientific and technical associations, as "Groupmanagement" (1981), and later "Krasnoarmeiskaia", Baltberegozaschita "Liberalisasi", which represented the Union of scientific thought and its technical implementation, concentrating in the same hands all the stages of the protection of the coasts from scientific research and technical recommendations to their implementation and subsequent monitoring of their impact on the development of the coastal zone. The coastal section has helped establish a number of research groups in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Estonia has achieved legal prohibition in our country of seizures of beach sediments for construction purposes, helped correct the problem of Pitsunda, participated in the consideration and solution of many other scientific and practical questions. RG "Sea coasts" participated in organization and holding of international symposiums, for example: Coastal Symposium (Tbilisi, 1976) in the framework of the XXIII International Geographical Congress. Symposium on the evolution and dynamics of coasts in the relative sea level fluctuations, Tallinn, 1986; Symposium on "Transgressive coast: learning and economic development", Baku, 1990
At the beginning of XX1 century RG "Sea shore" continues its activities. Currently, its status has not changed: it is part of the Section of Geology, Geophysics and Geochemistry of ocean Board of RAS on problems of World ocean, and United almost all of the existing researchers of the sea coast of Russia. It remained a purely public organization that does not have its funding. In a market economy, this fact is especially noticeable. WG can't order or carry out their own research projects and in this relies on initiative and opportunities of its members. RG provides a synthesis of the results of the operations, the dissemination of relevant information about them, communication between WG members and the exchange of experience through seminars, symposia and conferences, and through release of materials of these meetings. It is the main work of the WG. Often, however, the WG to appeal the administrative authorities at different levels for review, study or scientific evidence of works carried out or planned in the coastal zone. In these cases the work is done by experts-members of the WG of a particular region.