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32

DELTARES, September 2016

AZERBAIJAN

Azerbaijan has more than 9 million inhabitants and more

than half of them live in or around the capital, Baku.

Azerbaijan was able to sustain development for a long

time thanks to proceeds from oil, which account for 81%

of exports.

The country wants to be less dependent on oil in the

future. One option is to encourage agriculture in order to

boost employment and exports, and make the country

more prosperous. But fresh water is needed for agriculture.

Fresh and salt water are close to each other in Azerbaijan:

water-rich mountains supply a number of major rivers with

fresh water. They flow into a large plain with salt

groundwater, a legacy from the times when there

was still a sea here. That has led to the formation of a

freshwater reservoir on top of the salt water.

Rivers like the Kura and Aras take the surplus water from

this reservoir to the sea.

Farmers on the dry salt plain can use the freshwater

reservoir for irrigation. But if they extract more water

than nature supplies, the basin will ultimately turn salt.

Hydrologists from Deltares are determining the effects

of water extraction on the groundwater and helping

to ensure that supplies of fresh water will also be

safeguarded in the future.

For more information:

michiel.vanderruyt@deltares.nl