Environment and Security: Transforming risks into cooperation

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Eastern Caspian

Environment and Security

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and the high expectations placed on rev- enue from hydrocarbon extraction have prompted renewed environmental concern. Annually thousands of tonnes of petroleum hydrocarbons are discharged into the Cas- pian Sea by the Volga river alone from land- based sources (CEP 2007). Overall, rivers draining into the Caspian Sea carry more than 50% of total oil pollution. Further ex- ploration of coastal and offshore fields may increase pollution. High concentrations of phenols and oil by-products, which may damage biodiversity, are already being ob- served in the northern part of the Caspian, mainly at the mouth of the Volga. The fall in fish stocks and the decline in the region’s

aesthetic appeal and water quality, along with other negative factors, may wreck its prospects for further development, espe- cially in fishery and tourism. The northern Caspian Sea, which is the main habitat for sturgeon, seal and waterfowl, once enjoyed the status of a protected area. However the situation changed in 1993 when a Kazakh government decision 44 allowed the geological exploration and development of oil deposits in the area (especially Tengiz). Given the rich biological diversity and vul- nerability of the shallow northern Caspian in the event of an accident, the environmen- tal impact of oil pollution in this area could

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