6/5/2017 CaspianSeaWikipedia

Coordinates:4140N5040E

CaspianSea
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

TheCaspianSeaisthelargestenclosedinlandbodyofwateron
Earthbyarea,variouslyclassedastheworld'slargestlakeora CaspianSea
fullfledgedsea.[2][3]Itisinanendorheicbasin(abasinwithout Xzrdnizi///
outflows)locatedbetweenEuropeandAsia.[4]Itisboundedby /Hazardezi
Kazakhstantothenortheast,Russiatothenorthwest,Azerbaijan
tothewest,Irantothesouth,andTurkmenistantothesoutheast.

TheCaspianSeapresentlyliesabout28m(92ft)belowsea
levelintheCaspianDepression,totheeastoftheCaucasus
MountainsandtothewestofthevaststeppeofCentralAsia.
Theseabedinthesouthernpartreachesaslowas1023mbelow
sealevel,whichisthesecondlowestnaturaldepressiononearth
afterLakeBaikal(1180m).Theancientinhabitantsofitscoast
perceivedtheCaspianSeaasanocean,probablybecauseofits
saltinessandlargesize.

Theseahasasurfaceareaof371,000km2(143,200sqmi)(not
includingthedetachedlagoonofGarabogazkl)andavolume
of78,200km3(18,800cumi).[5]Ithasasalinityof
approximately1.2%(12g/l),[6]aboutathirdofthesalinityof
mostseawater.
TheCaspianSeaascapturedbytheMODISonthe
orbitingTerrasatellite,June2003
Coordinates 4140N5040E
Contents
Type Endorheic,Saline,Permanent,
1 Etymology Natural
2 Physicalcharacteristics Primary VolgaRiver,UralRiver,Kura
2.1 Formation inflows River,TerekRiver
2.2 Geography
2.3 Hydrology Primary Evaporation
2.4 Environmentaldegradation outflows
3 Nature Catchment 3,626,000km2
3.1 Aquatic
area
3.1.1 Flora (1,400,000sqmi)[1]
3.1.2 Fauna Basincountries Azerbaijan,Iran,Kazakhstan,
3.2 Terrestrial
Russia,Turkmenistan
3.2.1 Flora
3.2.2 Fauna Max.length 1,030km(640mi)
4 History
4.1 Cities Max.width 435km(270mi)
4.1.1 Ancient Surfacearea 371,000km2(143,200sqmi)
4.1.2 Modern
5 Oilextraction Averagedepth 211m(690ft)
5.1 Politicalissues Max.depth 1,025m(3,360ft)
6 Territorialstatus
6.1 Crossborderinflow Watervolume 78,200km3(18,800cumi)
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7 Transport Residencetime 250years

7.1 Canals
8 Seealso Shorelength1 7,000km(4,300mi)
9 References Surface 28m(92ft)
10 Externallinks
elevation

Islands 26+
Etymology Settlements Baku(Azerbaijan),Anzali(Iran),
Aktau(Kazakhstan),Makhachkala
ThewordCaspianisderivedfromthenameoftheCaspi,an (Russia),Trkmenbay
ancientpeoplewholivedtothesouthwestoftheseain (Turkmenistan)(seearticle)
Transcaucasia.[7]Strabowrotethat"tothecountryofthe References [1]
AlbaniansbelongsalsotheterritorycalledCaspiane,whichwas
namedaftertheCaspiantribe,aswasalsotheseabutthetribe 1
Shorelengthisnotawelldefinedmeasure.
[8]
hasnowdisappeared". Moreover,theCaspianGates,whichis
thenameofaregioninIran'sTehranprovince,possiblyindicates
thattheymigratedtothesouthofthesea.TheIraniancityofQazvin
sharestherootofitsnamewiththatofthesea.Infact,thetraditional
ArabicnamefortheseaitselfisBahralQazwin(SeaofQazvin).[9]

InclassicalantiquityamongGreeksandPersiansitwascalledthe
HyrcanianOcean.[10]InPersianantiquity,aswellasinmodernIran,
itisknownas,DaryeKhazaritisalsosometimes
referredtoasMazandaranSea(Persian:)inIran.[11]
AncientArabicsourcesrefertoitasBarGln()meaning
"theGilanSea".
UnliketheMediterraneanandtheBlackSea,
TurkiclanguagesrefertothelakeasKhazarSea.InTurkmen,the towardstheendofthe16thcenturythe
nameisHazardeizi,inAzeri,itisXzrdnizi,andinmodern CaspianSeawasstillnotwellexploredand
Turkish,itisHazardenz.Inallthesecases,thesecondword mapped.1570mapbyFernoVazDourado.
simplymeans"sea",andthefirstwordreferstothehistorical
KhazarswhohadalargeempirebasedtothenorthoftheCaspian
Seabetweenthe7thand10thcenturies.AnexceptionisKazakh,whereitiscalled,Kaspiyteizi
(CaspianSea).

OldRussiansourcescallittheKhvalynorKhvalisSea(/)afterthenameof
Khwarezmia.[12]InmodernRussian,itiscalled,Kaspiyskoyemore.

Physicalcharacteristics
Formation

TheCaspianSea,liketheBlackSea,NamakLake,andLakeUrmia,isaremnantoftheancientParatethysSea.It
becamelandlockedabout5.5millionyearsagoduetotectonicupliftandafallinsealevel.Duringwarmanddry
climaticperiods,thelandlockedseaalmostdriedup,depositingevaporiticsedimentslikehalitethatwerecovered
bywindblowndepositsandweresealedoffasanevaporitesinkwhencool,wetclimatesrefilledthebasin.
(ComparableevaporitebedsunderlietheMediterranean.)Duetothecurrentinflowoffreshwater,theCaspianSea
isafreshwaterlakeinitsnorthernportions,andismostsalineontheIranianshore,wherethecatchmentbasin

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contributeslittleflow.[13]Currently,themeansalinityoftheCaspianisonethirdthatofEarth'soceans.The
Garabogazklembayment,whichdriedupwhenwaterflowfromthemainbodyoftheCaspianwasblockedinthe
1980sbuthassincebeenrestored,routinelyexceedsoceanicsalinitybyafactorof10.[2]

Geography

TheCaspianSeaisthelargestinlandbodyofwaterintheworldand
accountsfor40to44%ofthetotallacustrinewatersoftheworld.[14]The
coastlinesoftheCaspianaresharedbyAzerbaijan,Iran,Kazakhstan,
Russia,andTurkmenistan.TheCaspianisdividedintothreedistinct
physicalregions:theNorthern,Middle,andSouthernCaspian.[15]The
NorthernMiddleboundaryistheMangyshlakThreshold,whichruns
throughChechenIslandandCapeTiubKaragan.TheMiddleSouthern
boundaryistheApsheronThreshold,asilloftectonicoriginbetweenthe
Eurasiancontinentandanoceanicremnant,[16]thatrunsthroughZhiloi
IslandandCapeKuuli.[17]TheGarabogazklBayisthesalineeasterninlet
oftheCaspian,whichispartofTurkmenistanandattimeshasbeenalake
initsownrightduetotheisthmusthatcutsitofffromtheCaspian.
MapoftheCaspianSea,yellow
Differencesbetweenthethreeregionsaredramatic.TheNorthernCaspian shadingindicatesCaspiandrainage
basin.(Sincethismapwasdrawn,the
onlyincludestheCaspianshelf,[18]andisveryshallowitaccountsforless
adjacentAralSeahasgreatly
than1%ofthetotalwatervolumewithanaveragedepthofonly56
decreasedinsize.)
metres(1620ft).TheseanoticeablydropsofftowardstheMiddle
Caspian,wheretheaveragedepthis190metres(620ft).[17]TheSouthern
Caspianisthedeepest,withoceanicdepthsofover1,000metres(3,300ft),greatlyexceedingthedepthofother
regionalseas,suchasthePersianGulf.TheMiddleandSouthernCaspianaccountfor33%and66%ofthetotal
watervolume,respectively.[15]ThenorthernportionoftheCaspianSeatypicallyfreezesinthewinter,andinthe
coldestwintersiceformsinthesouthaswell.[19]

Over130riversprovideinflowtotheCaspian,withtheVolgaRiverbeingthelargest.Asecondaffluent,theUral
River,flowsinfromthenorth,andtheKuraRiverflowsintotheseafromthewest.Inthepast,theAmuDarya
(Oxus)ofCentralAsiaintheeastoftenchangedcoursetoemptyintotheCaspianthroughanowdesiccated
riverbedcalledtheUzboyRiver,asdidtheSyrDaryafarthernorth.TheCaspianalsohasseveralsmallislands
theyareprimarilylocatedinthenorthandhaveacollectivelandareaofroughly2,000km2(770sqmi).Adjacent
totheNorthCaspianistheCaspianDepression,alowlyingregion27metres(89ft)belowsealevel.TheCentral
Asiansteppesstretchacrossthenortheastcoast,whiletheCaucasusmountainshugthewesternshore.Thebiomes
toboththenorthandeastarecharacterizedbycold,continentaldeserts.Conversely,theclimatetothesouthwest
andsoutharegenerallywarmwithunevenelevationduetoamixofhighlandsandmountainrangesthedrastic
changesinclimatealongsidetheCaspianhaveledtoagreatdealofbiodiversityintheregion.[2]

TheCaspianSeahasnumerousislandsthroughout,allofthemnearthecoastsnoneinthedeeperpartsofthesea.
OgurjaAdaisthelargestisland.Theislandis37km(23mi)long,withgazellesroamingfreelyonit.IntheNorth
Caspian,themajorityoftheislandsaresmallanduninhabited,liketheTyuleniyArchipelago,anImportantBird
Area(IBA),althoughsomeofthemhavehumansettlements.

Hydrology

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TheCaspianhascharacteristicscommontobothseasandlakes.Itisoften
listedastheworld'slargestlake,althoughitisnotafreshwaterlake.It
containsabout3.5timesmorewater,byvolume,thanallfiveofNorth
America'sGreatLakescombined.TheCaspianwasoncepartoftheTethys
Ocean,butbecamelandlockedabout5.5millionyearsagoduetoplate
tectonics.[14]TheVolgaRiver(about80%oftheinflow)andtheUralRiver
dischargeintotheCaspianSea,butithasnonaturaloutflowotherthanby
evaporation.ThustheCaspianecosystemisaclosedbasin,withitsownsea
levelhistorythatisindependentoftheeustaticleveloftheworld'soceans.
CaspianSeanearAktau,Mangystau
TheleveloftheCaspianhasfallenandrisen,oftenrapidly,manytimes Region,Kazakhstan.
overthecenturies.SomeRussianhistoriansclaimthatamedievalrisingof
theCaspian,perhapscausedbytheAmuDaryachangingitsinflowtotheCaspianfromthe13thcenturytothe
16thcentury,causedthecoastaltownsofKhazaria,suchasAtil,toflood.In2004,thewaterlevelwas28metres
(92feet)belowsealevel.

Overthecenturies,CaspianSealevelshavechangedinsynchronywiththeestimateddischargeoftheVolga,
whichinturndependsonrainfalllevelsinitsvastcatchmentbasin.Precipitationisrelatedtovariationsinthe
amountofNorthAtlanticdepressionsthatreachtheinterior,andtheyinturnareaffectedbycyclesoftheNorth
AtlanticOscillation.ThuslevelsintheCaspianSearelatetoatmosphericconditionsintheNorthAtlantic
thousandsofmilestothenorthwest.

Thelastshorttermsealevelcyclestartedwithasealevelfallof3m(10ft)from1929to1977,followedbyarise
of3m(10ft)from1977until1995.Sincethensmalleroscillationshavetakenplace.[20]

Environmentaldegradation

TheVolgaRiver,thelargestinEurope,drains20%oftheEuropeanlandareaandisthesourceof80%ofthe
Caspian'sinflow.Itslowerreachesareheavilydevelopedwithnumerousunregulatedreleasesofchemicaland
biologicalpollutants.Althoughexistingdataaresparseandofquestionablequality,thereisampleevidenceto
suggestthattheVolgaisoneoftheprincipalsourcesoftransboundarycontaminantsintotheCaspian.

ThemagnitudeoffossilfuelextractionandtransportactivityintheCaspianalsoposesarisktotheenvironment.
TheislandofVulfoffBaku,forexample,hassufferedecologicaldamageasaresultofthepetrochemicalindustry
thishassignificantlydecreasedthenumberofspeciesofmarinebirdsinthearea.Existingandplannedoilandgas
pipelinesundertheseafurtherincreasethepotentialthreattotheenvironment.[21]

TheVladimirFilanovskyfieldintheRussiansectionofthebodyofwaterwasdiscoveredforitswealthofoilin
2005.Itisreportedlythelargestdiscoveryofoilthattheyhavehadin25years.ItwasannouncedinOctober2016
thatLUKOILwouldstartproductioninthisregion.[22]

Nature
Aquatic

Flora

TherisingleveloftheCaspianSeabetween199496reducedthenumberofhabitatsforrarespeciesofaquatic
vegetation.Thishasbeenattributedtoagenerallackofseedingmaterialinnewlyformedcoastallagoonsand
waterbodies.
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Fauna

TheCaspianturtle(Mauremyscaspica),althoughfoundinneighboring
areas,isawhollyfreshwaterspecies.Thezebramusselisnativetothe
CaspianandBlackSeabasins,buthasbecomeaninvasivespecies
elsewhere,whenintroduced.Theareahasgivenitsnametoseveralspecies,
includingtheCaspiangullandtheCaspiantern.TheCaspianseal(Pusa
caspica)istheonlyaquaticmammalandisendemictotheCaspianSea,
beingoneofveryfewsealspeciesthatliveininlandwaters,butisdifferent
fromthoseinhabitingfreshwatersduetothehydrologicalenvironmentof
Iran'snorthernCaspianHyrcanian
thesea.
mixedforestsaremaintainedby
ArcheologicalstudiesofGobustanpetroglyphsindicatethatthereoncehad moisturecapturedfromtheCaspian
SeabytheAlborzMountainRangeof
beendolphinsandporpoises,[24][25]oracertainspeciesofbeaked
Gilan,Iran.
whales[26]andawhalingsceneindicatesoflargebaleenwhales[27]likely
beingpresentinCaspianSeaatleastuntilwhenCaspianSeawasapartof
oceansystemoruntilQuaternaryormuchmorerecentperiodssuchasuntil
thelastglacialperiodorantiquity.[28]AlthoughtherockartonKichikdash
Mountainassumedtobeofadolphin[29]orofabeakedwhale,[26]might
insteadrepresentthefamousbelugasturgeonduetoitssize(430cmin
length),butfossilrecordssuggestcertainancestorsofmoderndolphinsand
whales,suchasMacrokentriodonmorani(bottlenosedolphins)and
Balaenopterasibbaldina(bluewhales)werepresumablylargerthantheir Mosttadpolegobies(Benthophilus)
presentdescendants.Fromthesameartworks,auks,likeBrunnich's areonlyfoundintheCaspianSea
Guillemotcouldalsohavebeenintheseaaswell,andtheexistencesof basin. [23]
currentendemic,oceanicspeciessuchaslagooncockleswhichwas
geneticallyidentifiedtooriginateinCaspian/BlackSeasregions[27],and
thesepetroglyphssuggestmarineinflowbetweenthecurrentCaspianSeaandtheArcticOceanorNorthSea,or
theBlackSea.[29]

Thesea'sbasin(includingassociatedwaterssuchasrivers)has160nativespeciesandsubspeciesoffishinmore
than60genera.[23]About62%ofthespeciesandsubspeciesareendemic,asare46genera(dependingon
taxonomictreatment).Thelakeproperhas115natives,including73endemics(63.5%).[23]Amongthemorethan
50generainthelakeproper,34areendemic:Anatirostrum,Caspiomyzon,Chasar(oftenincludedinPonticola)
andHyrcanogobius.[23]Byfarthemostnumerousfamiliesinthelakeproperaregobies(35speciesand
subspecies),cyprinids(32)andclupeids(22).TwoparticularlyrichgeneraareAlosawith18endemic
species/subspeciesandBenthophiluswith16endemicspecies.[23]Otherexamplesofendemicsarefourspeciesof
Clupeonella,Gobiovolgensis,twoRutilus,threeSabanejewia,Stenodusleucichthys,twoSalmo,twoMesogobius
andthreeNeogobius.[23]MostnonendemicnativesareeithersharedwiththeBlackSeabasinorwidespread
Palearcticspeciessuchascruciancarp,Prussiancarp,commoncarp,commonbream,commonbleak,asp,white
bream,sunbleak,commondace,commonroach,commonrudd,Europeanchub,sichel,tench,European
weatherfish,welscatfish,northernpike,burbot,Europeanperchandzander.[23]Almost30nonindigenous,
introducedfishspecieshavebeenreportedfromtheCaspianSea,butonlyafewhavebecomeestablished.[23]

Sixsturgeonspecies,theRussian,bastard,Persian,sterlet,starryandbeluga,arenativetotheCaspianSea.[23]The
lastoftheseisarguablythelargestfreshwaterfishintheworld.Thesturgeonyieldroe(eggs)thatareprocessed
intocaviar.Overfishinghasdepletedanumberofthehistoricfisheries.[30]Inrecentyears,overfishinghas
threatenedthesturgeonpopulationtothepointthatenvironmentalistsadvocatebanningsturgeonfishing

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completelyuntilthepopulationrecovers.Thehighpriceofsturgeoncaviar,however,allowsfishermentoafford
bribestoensuretheauthoritieslooktheotherway,makingregulationsinmanylocationsineffective.[31]Caviar
harvestingfurtherendangersthefishstocks,sinceittargetsreproductivefemales.

Terrestrial

Flora

ManyrareandendemicplantspeciesofRussiaareassociatedwiththetidalareasoftheVolgadeltaandriparian
forestsoftheSamurRiverdelta.Theshorelineisalsoauniquerefugeforplantsadaptedtotheloosesandsofthe
CentralAsianDeserts.Theprincipallimitingfactorstosuccessfulestablishmentofplantspeciesarehydrological
imbalanceswithinthesurroundingdeltas,waterpollution,andvariouslandreclamationactivities.Thewaterlevel
changewithintheCaspianSeaisanindirectreasonforwhichplantsmaynotgetestablished.

TheseaffectaquaticplantsoftheVolgaDelta,suchasAldrovandavesiculosaandthenativeNelumbocaspica.
About11plantspeciesarefoundintheSamurRiverDelta,includingtheuniquelianaforeststhatdatebacktothe
Tertiaryperiod.

Fauna

Reptilesnativetotheregionincludespurthighedtortoise(Testudograeca
buxtoni)andHorsfield'stortoise.

TheAsiaticcheetahusedtooccurintheTransCaucasusandCentral
Asia,butistodayrestrictedtoIran.[32][33]
TheAsiaticlionusedtooccurintheTransCaucasus,Iran,and
possiblythesouthernpartofTurkestan.[32][33]
TheCaspiantigerusedtooccurinnorthernIran,theCaucasusand
CentralAsia.[32][33]
ThePersianleopardisfoundinIran,theCaucasusandCentral IllustrationoftwoCaspiantigers,
Asia.[32][33] extinctintheregionsincethe1970s.

History
TheearliesthominidremainsfoundaroundtheCaspianSeaarefromDmanisidatingbacktoaround1.8Maand
yieldedanumberofskeletalremainsofHomoerectusorHomoergaster.Morelaterevidenceforhuman
occupationoftheregioncomefromanumberofcavesinGeorgiaandAzerbaijansuchasKudaroandAzykh
Caves.ThereisevidenceforLowerPalaeolithichumanoccupationsouthoftheCaspianfromwesternAlburz.
TheseareGanjParandDarbandCavesites.

NeanderthalremainsalsohavebeendiscoveredatacavesiteinGeorgia.DiscoveriesintheHutocaveandthe
adjacentKamarbandcave,nearthetownofBehshahr,MazandaransouthoftheCaspianinIran,suggesthuman
habitationoftheareaasearlyas11,000yearsago.[34][35]

TheCaspianareaisrichinenergyresources.Oilwellswerebeingdugintheregionasearlyasthe10thcenturyto
reachoil"foruseineverydaylife,bothformedicinalpurposesandforheatingandlightinginhomes."[36]Bythe
16thcentury,Europeanswereawareoftherichoilandgasdepositsaroundthearea.EnglishtradersThomas
BannisterandJeffreyDuckettdescribedtheareaaroundBakuas"astrangethingtobehold,forthereissuethoutof

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thegroundamarvelousquantityof
oil,whichservethallthecountryto
burnintheirhouses.Thisoilis
blackandiscallednefte.Thereis
alsobythetownofBaku,another
kindofoilwhichiswhiteandvery
precious(i.e.,petroleum)."[37]

CaspianSeamapfrom1747withthe
DeadKultukas'BlueSea'
Inthe18thcentury,duringtherule
ofPeterItheGreat,FedorI.
Soimonov,hydrographerand
pioneeringexploreroftheCaspian
Seachartedtheuntilthenlittle
knownbodyofwater.Soimonov
drewasetoffourmapsandwrote
the'PilotoftheCaspianSea',the
firstreportandmodernmapsofthe CaspianSea(BahrulKhazar).10th
Caspian,thatwerepublishedin centurymapbyIbnHawqal
1720bytheRussianAcademyof
Sciences.[38]

Today,oilandgasplatformsareaboundingalongtheedgesofthesea.[39]

Cities

Ancient
The17thcenturyCossackrebeland
pirateStenkaRazin,onaraidinthe
Hyrcania,ancientstateinthenorthofIran
Caspian(VasilySurikov,1906)
Anzali,GilanProvinceofIran
Astara,GilanProvinceofIran
Astarabad,MazandaranProvinceofIran
Tamisheh,MazandaranProvinceofIran
Atil,Khazaria
Khazaran
Baku,Azerbaijan
Derbent,Dagestan,Russia
Xacitarxan,moderndayAstrakhan Baku,thecapitalofAzerbaijanisthe
largestcitybytheCaspianSea.
Modern

Iran: Gomishan
AliAbad GonbadeKavus
AstanehyeAshrafiyeh Gorgan
Astara Jooybar
Babolsar Kordkuy
BandarAnzali Lahijan
Bandaregaz Langrud
BandarTorkaman MahmudAbad
Behshahr Neka
Chaloos Nowshahr
Fenderesk Nur

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Ramsar Russia:
Rasht Astrakhan
Rudbar DagestanskiyeOgni
Rudsar Derbent
Sari Izberbash
Tonekabon Kaspiysk
Azerbaijan: Makhachkala
Astara Turkmenistan:
Baku Trkmenbay(formerlyKrasnovodsk)
Gobustan Hazar(formerlyeleken)
Khudat Esenguly
Khachmaz Garabogaz(formerlyBekda)
Lankaran
Masalli
Nabran
Neftchala
Shabran
Siyazan
OilRocks
Sumqayit
Kazakhstan:
Atyrau
Aktau

Oilextraction
Theworld'sfirstoffshorewellsandmachinedrilledwellsweremadein
BibiHeybatBay,nearBaku,Azerbaijan.In1873,explorationand
developmentofoilbeganinsomeofthelargestfieldsknowntoexistinthe
worldatthattimeontheAbsheronpeninsulanearthevillagesof
Balakhanli,Sabunchi,RamanaandBibiHeybat.Totalrecoverablereserves
weremorethan500milliontons.By1900,Bakuhadmorethan3,000oil
wells,2,000ofwhichwereproducingatindustriallevels.Bytheendofthe
19thcentury,Bakubecameknownasthe"blackgoldcapital",andmany
skilledworkersandspecialistsflockedtothecity.

Bythebeginningofthe20thcentury,Bakuwasthecentreofinternational
oilindustry.In1920,whentheBolshevikscapturedAzerbaijan,allprivate
propertyincludingoilwellsandfactorieswasconfiscated.Afterwards,
therepublic'sentireoilindustrycameunderthecontroloftheSoviet OilpipelinesintheCaspianregion.
Union.By1941,Azerbaijanwasproducingarecord23.5milliontonsof September2002.
oil,andtheBakuregionsuppliednearly72%ofalloilextractedinthe
entireUSSR.[36]

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In1994,the"ContractoftheCentury"wassigned,signallingthestartof
majorinternationaldevelopmentoftheBakuoilfields.TheBakuTbilisi
Ceyhanpipeline,amajorpipelineallowingAzerbaijanoiltoflowstraight
totheTurkishMediterraneanportofCeyhan,openedin2006.

Politicalissues

ManyoftheislandsalongtheAzerbaijanicoastcontinuetoholdsignificant
geopoliticalandeconomicimportancebecauseofthepotentialoilreserves
foundnearby.BullaIsland,PirallahIsland,andNargin,whichwasusedas
aformerSovietbaseandisthelargestislandintheBakubay,allholdoil
reserves.
Caspianregionoilandnaturalgas
ThecollapseoftheUSSRandsubsequentopeningoftheregionhasledto infrastructure.August2013.
anintenseinvestmentanddevelopmentscramblebyinternationaloil
companies.In1998,DickCheneycommentedthat"Ican'tthinkofatimewhenwe'vehadaregionemergeas
suddenlytobecomeasstrategicallysignificantastheCaspian."[40]

AkeyproblemtofurtherdevelopmentintheregionisthestatusoftheCaspianSeaandtheestablishmentofthe
waterboundariesamongthefivelittoralstates.ThecurrentdisputesalongAzerbaijan'smaritimeborderswith
TurkmenistanandIrancouldpotentiallyaffectfuturedevelopmentplans.

MuchcontroversycurrentlyexistsovertheproposedTransCaspianoilandgaspipelines.Theseprojectswould
allowWesternmarketseasieraccesstoKazakhoiland,potentially,UzbekandTurkmengasaswell.Russia
officiallyopposestheprojectonenvironmentalgrounds.However,analystsnotethatthepipelineswouldbypass
Russiacompletely,therebydenyingthecountryvaluabletransitfees,aswellasdestroyingitscurrentmonopolyon
westwardboundhydrocarbonexportsfromtheregion.[41]Recently,bothKazakhstanandTurkmenistanhave
expressedtheirsupportfortheTransCaspianPipeline.[42]

U.S.diplomaticcablesdisclosedbyWikiLeaksrevealedthatBPcoveredupagasleakandblowoutincidentin
September2008atanoperatinggasfieldintheAzeriChiragGuneshiareaoftheAzerbaijanCaspianSea.[43][44]

Territorialstatus
Asof2000,negotiationsrelatedtothedemarcationoftheCaspianSeahadbeengoingonfornearlyadecade
amongthestatesborderingtheCaspianAzerbaijan,Russia,Kazakhstan,Turkmenistan,andIran.Thestatusof
theCaspianSea[45]isthekeyproblem.Accesstomineralresources(oilandnaturalgas),accessforfishing,and
accesstointernationalwaters(throughRussia'sVolgariverandthecanalsconnectingittotheBlackSeaandBaltic
Sea)alldependupontheoutcomesofnegotiations.AccesstotheVolgaRiverisparticularlyimportantforthe
landlockedstatesofAzerbaijan,Kazakhstan,andTurkmenistan.ThisconcernsRussia,becausethepotentialtraffic
woulduseitsinlandwaterways.Ifabodyofwaterislabelledasasea,thentherewouldbesomeprecedentsand
internationaltreatiesobligingthegrantingofaccesspermitstoforeignvessels.Ifabodyofwaterislabelled
merelyasalake,thentherearenosuchobligations.Environmentalissuesarealsosomewhatconnectedtothe
statusandbordersissue.

AllfiveCaspianlittoralstatesmaintainnavalforcesonthesea.[46]

AccordingtoatreatysignedbetweenIranandtheSovietUnion,theCaspianSeaistechnicallyalakeandwas
dividedintotwosectors(IranianandSoviet),buttheresources(thenmainlyfish)werecommonlyshared.Theline
betweenthetwosectorswasconsideredaninternationalborderinacommonlake,likeLakeAlbert.TheSoviet
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sectorwassubdividedintothefourlittoralrepublics'administrative
sectors.

Russia,Kazakhstan,andAzerbaijanhavebilateralagreementswitheach
otherbasedonmedianlines.Becauseoftheirusebythethreenations,
medianlinesseemtobethemostlikelymethodofdelineatingterritoryin
futureagreements.However,Iraninsistsonasingle,multilateralagreement
betweenthefivenations(asthisistheonlywayforittoachieveaonefifth
shareofthesea).AzerbaijanisatoddswithIranoversomeoilfieldsthat
bothstatesclaim.Occasionally,Iranianpatrolboatshavefiredatvessels
sentbyAzerbaijanforexplorationintothedisputedregion.Thereare
similartensionsbetweenAzerbaijanandTurkmenistan(thelatterclaims
thattheformerhaspumpedmoreoilthanagreedfromafield,recognized
bybothpartiesasshared).
SouthernCaspianEnergyProspects
TheCaspianlittoralstates'meetingin2007signedanagreementthatbars (portionofIran).CountryProfile
anyshipnotflyingthenationalflagofalittoralstatefromenteringthe 2004.

sea.[47]

Negotiationsamongthefivelittoralstateshavebeenongoing,amidstebbs
andflows,forthepast20years,withsomedegreeofprogressbeingmade
atthefourthCaspianSummitheldinAstrakhanin2014.[48]

Crossborderinflow

UNECErecognizesseveralriversthatcrossinternationalborderswhich
flowintotheCaspianSea.[49]Theseare: CaspianSea,Azerbaijan

River Countries
AtrekRiver Iran,Turkmenistan
KuraRiver Armenia,Azerbaijan,Georgia,Iran,Turkey
UralRiver Kazakhstan,Russia
SamurRiver Azerbaijan,Russia
SulakRiver Georgia,Russia
TerekRiver Georgia,Russia

Transport
AlthoughtheCaspianSeaisendorheic,itsmaintributary,theVolga,isconnectedbyimportantshippingcanals
withtheDonRiver(andthustheBlackSea)andwiththeBalticSea,withbranchcanalstoNorthernDvinaandto
theWhiteSea.

AnotherCaspiantributary,theKumaRiver,isconnectedbyanirrigationcanalwiththeDonbasinaswell.

Severalscheduledferryservices(includingtrainferries)operateontheCaspianSea,including:

alinebetweenTrkmenbay,Turkmenistan(formerlyKrasnovodsk)andBaku.
alinebetweenBakuandAktau.
severallinesbetweencitiesinIranandRussia.
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6/5/2017 CaspianSeaWikipedia

TheferriesaremostlyusedforcargoonlytheBakuAktauandBakuTrkmenbayroutesacceptpassengers.

Canals

Asanendorheicbasin,theCaspianSeabasinhasnonaturalconnectionwiththeocean.Sincethemedievalperiod,
tradersreachedtheCaspianviaanumberofportagesthatconnectedtheVolgaanditstributarieswiththeDon
(whichflowsintotheSeaofAzov)andvariousriversthatflowintotheBaltic.Primitivecanalsconnectingthe
VolgaBasinwiththeBaltichavebeenconstructedasearlyastheearly18thcenturysincethen,anumberofcanal
projectshavebeencompleted.ThetwomoderncanalsystemsconnectingtheVolgabasinwiththeoceanarethe
VolgaBalticWaterwayandtheVolgaDonCanal.

TheproposedPechoraKamaCanalwasaprojectthatwaswidelydiscussedbetweenthe1930sand1980s.
ShippingwasasecondaryconsiderationitsmaingoalwastoredirectsomeofthewaterofthePechoraRiver
(whichflowsintotheArcticOcean)viatheKamaintotheVolga.Thegoalswerebothirrigationandstabilizingthe
waterlevelintheCaspian,whichwasthoughttobefallingdangerouslyfastatthetime.In1971someconstruction
experimentswereconductedusingnuclearexplosions.

InJune2007,inordertoboosthisoilrichcountry'saccesstomarkets,Kazakhstan'sPresidentNursultan
Nazarbaevproposeda700kilometre(435mile)linkbetweentheCaspianandBlackseas.Itishopedthatthe
"EurasiaCanal"(ManychShipCanal)wouldtransformlandlockedKazakhstanandotherCentralAsiancountries
intomaritimestates,enablingthemtosignificantlyincreasetradevolume.Althoughthecanalwouldtraverse
Russianterritory,itwouldbenefitKazakhstanthroughitsCaspianSeaports.Themostlikelyrouteforthecanal,
theofficialsattheCommitteeonWaterResourcesatKazakhstan'sAgricultureMinistrysay,wouldfollowthe
KumaManychDepression,wherecurrentlyachainofriversandlakesisalreadyconnectedbyanirrigationcanal
(KumaManychCanal).UpgradingtheVolgaDonCanalwouldbeanotheroption.[50]

Seealso
BakuOilFields
Caspianpeople
Ekranoplan,agroundeffectplanewhichwasdevelopedontheCaspianSea.
EpochofExtremalInundations
FrameworkConventionfortheProtectionoftheMarineEnvironmentoftheCaspianSea
ShahDenizgasfield
SouthCaucasuspipeline
SouthernGasCorridor
TengizField
TransCaspianGasPipeline
TransCaspianOilPipeline
WildlifeofAzerbaijan
WildlifeofIran
WildlifeofKazakhstan
WildlifeofRussia

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Externallinks
NamesoftheCaspianSea(http://www.iranchamber.com/geography/
LookupCaspianSeain
articles/names_of_caspian_sea.php) Wiktionary,thefree
CaspianSeaRegion(http://www.parstimes.com/caspian/) dictionary.
Target:CaspianSeaOil(http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalgu
errillas/2004/07/long_term_gg_ta.html)JohnRobb,2004
WikimediaCommonshas
DatingCaspiansealevelchanges(https://web.archive.org/web/20110 mediarelatedtoCaspian
724171008/http://www.caspage.citg.tudelft.nl/project.html) Sea.
CaspianSeaIsDying(http://www.payvand.com/news/10/nov/1032.h
tml)
IIKSSinternationalinstituteofkhazar(caspian)seastudies(http://www.iikss.com/en/)

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Categories: CaspianSea EndorheiclakesofAsia InternationallakesofAsia InternationallakesofEurope

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AzerbaijanIranborder IranTurkmenistanborder KazakhstanTurkmenistanborder
KazakhstanRussiaborder AzerbaijanRussiaborder IranSovietUnionrelations Lowestpoints

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