Environment and Security: Transforming risks into cooperation

Eastern Caspian

47

Environment and Security

such hollows were used as waste ponds for evaporating associated water, filling up with oil residues, surface-active agents and heavy metals. These water sources are con- sequently no longer usable and the popula- tion must rely on mains water, tanker deliv- eries or supplies from desalinization plants. The Turkmenbashy refinery and marine ter- minal, with annual capacity of 10 million tonnes, were significant sources of oil pol- lution from the 1940s to 1980s due to their primitive treatment systems and poor envi- ronmental practices. Large amounts of waste oil and polluted water were discharged into Saymonov Bay, which now contains more than 16 million cubic metres of a mixture of hydrocarbons, chlorine-organic compounds, heavy metals and phenols (Barsuk 2007). Evidence of previously severe oil pollution re- mains in the form of “asphalted paths” along the beaches in Turkmenbashy Gulf. Recon- struction of the refinery and improvements to oil extraction practice have reduced oil pol- lution of the bay and the waters of the Cas- pian, but it still exceeds permissible limits due to inefficient wastewater treatment and the legacy of previous pollution. The nearby area serves as a local tourist attraction due to ease of access and proximity to the city 49 . In other parts of the Caspian, also potentially attractive for tourism, oil contamination af- fects areas near terminals. The growing cargo traffic in the Caspian re- gion, especially transportation of oil by sea, is also increasing environmental risks. Acci- dents or discharge of contaminated ballast waters can harm the marine environment, and require constant monitoring by the au- thorities and interstate bodies 50 . Not only active oil extraction, but also aban- doned wells represent a risk for livelihoods in the region. Experts estimate that leakage from abandoned and flooded oil wells and other seepage significantly contribute to overall oil pollution in the Caspian (CEP 2002). Fluctuat- ing sea levels and wave surges have flooded

oil wells, particularly in the flat coastal areas of Mangystau province, Kazakhstan, causing oil spills as recently as the winters of 2001 and 2003. The Kazakh authorities reacted to this threat by identifying the largest abandoned oil wells, which exceed 150 in number with more than half located in the flooded zone. How- ever the shortage of funds hinders progress and only about 30 priority wells were secured in 2004–6. In Turkmenistan oilfields situated near the shore of the Caspian Sea have been partly flooded, for example in the north- ern Cheleken peninsula and at Kenar which serves as a transfer base for oil delivered to the Turkmenbashy sea port and refinery. In large-scale onshore oil extraction, the use of outdated technologies in the past had a significant environmental impact, with a corresponding effect on livelihoods. This is particularly apparent at Uzen and Senek in Kazakhstan. In spite of clean-up efforts at Uzen and other oil-polluted sites in Kazakhstan, with more than 180 000 tonnes of waste oil ex- tracted and recycled in 2001–7, the extent of historical pollution is decreasing slowly. A similar situation prevails in Turkmenistan es- pecially at Gum Dag and other locations. Oil leakages and accidents continue to pose a threat to the environment (CEP 2007e). Lack of research makes it difficult to estab- lish clear links between these sources of pollution and health problems. Nevertheless the deterioration in public health, and partic- ularly the increased incidence of respiratory diseases and cancer can be partly attributed to the impacts of air pollution. In 2005 there were three times more respiratory diseases among teenagers in Atyrau province than in 2001. Health authorities also reported a threefold increase in neuropathy problems (Granovsky 2003; Akhmetov 2006). There has been additional public concern since large petrochemical plants and a tech- nology park started operations near Atyrau,