Geoecological Issue of Coastal Krast Aquifers of Croatian Adriatic Coast

Problem zaslanjenja priobalnih krških vodonosnika u Hrvatskoj pobuđuje interese istraživača već više od pola stoljeća. Krajem 20. stoljeća javlja se veći interes, kada rastući gradovi i turizam traže sve više i više pitke vode i jedino rješenje postaje preeksploatacija. U radu je objašnjena dinamika miješanja slane i slatke vode u krškom podzemlju, odnosno priobalnim izvorima i vruljama, te je kroz odabrane primjere navedena mogućnost istraživanja i sanacijskih zahvata. Pojava i razvoj podmorskih i priobalnih izvora slatke vode najvećim dijelom je posljedica kolebanja razine mora koja je izazvana klimatskim promjenama na prijelazu iz pleistocena u holocen.The salinization issue of Croatian coastal karst aquifers has been the interest of researchers for more than half a century. At the end of the 20th century due to the urbanization and the growth of tourism, which have caused a higher demand of potable water, the issue has increased significantly. The only solution is over-exploitation of springs. The paper explains the dynamics of mixing salt and fresh water in karstic underground, i.e. coastal and submarine springs, and through selected examples shows given possibilities to explore rehabilitation interventions. The occurrence and development of coastal resources and fresh water springs are mostly the result of sea level fluctuations caused by the climate change during the evolution from late Pleistocene to Holocene geologic timescale