1. Caspian Sea Basin CE397: Transboundary Water Resources L. White

3. Littoral states 113,800 (2)2,400Iraq 22,450 (12)37,600USA 94,390 (4)7,000Iran 51,220 (7)9,300Russia 273 (53)5,500Turkmenistan 2,709 (28)6,300Kazakhstan 586 (41)3,500Azerbaijan Oil (proved reserves in 10 6 bbl)GDP per capita (USD)Country

4. Oil and natural gas basins

5. Pipeline politics

6. Environmental Issues Present –Discharge and spills from oil and gas drilling –Untreated waste –Agricultural run-off –Overfishing Potential –Construction of new pipelines and infrastructures –Rise of the Caspian Sea –Political instability of the region

7. Caspian Environment Programme Aim of the CEP (1998): “Environmentally sustainable development and management of the Caspian Sea environment, including living resources and water quality, so as to obtain the utmost long-term benefits for the human populations of the regions, while protecting human health, ecological integrity, and the region’s sustainability for future generations.”

8. Legal issues Currently: no multilateral agreement as to how to divide the seabed and the waters. Main problems: –Iran claims that bilateral agreement between Iran and USSR is still valid –Hinders development of legal framework for environment –Sea or lake ?

9. Legal issues Many bilateral treaties (to share seabed and/or waters) Until general agreement, “median line” convention signed by Ru, Az and Kz Iran disagrees. It wants to equally divide the sea (20 % each) Tk disagrees. Method does not take into consideration geographical peculiarities

10. Legal issues Turkmenistan proposes the 45- mile division Rest of the sea is open for shipping Iran still wants 20 % of the sea

11. How would the lack of strict environmental regulations affect international companies (used to complying with laws) investing in the Caspian Sea Region ? How would competition against local companies be affected ? Discussion

12. Fishing constitutes the primary interest of Russia in the Caspian Sea whereas Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are focused on oil production. The latter are less concerned about environment degradation than the former. Given these divergent objectives, how could we provide the littoral states with coherent and practical environmental regulations ? Discussion

13. One of the major investors in the region is the US. However, US law prohibits US companies to directly trade with Iran. How canceling the embargo would modify the geopolitical landscape in the region ? Discussion

14. As the new littoral states (mainly Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan) move toward free markets, is the state of the environment in the Caspian Sea more likely to improve or degrade ? Why ? Discussion

15. To what extent can we trust international organizations when it comes to environmental protection ? Discussion