Ecology

EXPEDITION TO STUDY MNEMIOPSIS

An expedition is expected to sail off shortly to study the composition of Mnemiopsis in Caspian waters and its impact on the feeding base of fish. The expedition is being initiated by the Azerbaijan scientific research institute of fishing economy.

As a result of the appearance of the medusa-shaped organism called Mnemiopsis Leydyi in the Caspian Sea in 2000, the feeding base of local inhabitants of the Caspian started shrinking. Most of the expedition-related expenses have been assumed by the mentioned institute, while equipment has been provided by the Caspian Ecological Program (CEP) in the form of a grant. The two-week expedition will stretch along the Azerbaijan coastline - from Yalama (on the border with Russia) till Astara.

ECOLOGISTS BLAME SPRAT EXTINCTION ON OIL OPERATIONS

The scientific research expedition carried out by the Astrakhan-based Caspian Science and Research Fishery Institute on board the "Prognosis" vessel has discovered a massive concentration of dead sprats in the northern and southern Caspian (excluding Iran's southern coast). The highest density of the dead fish was registered in an area from Bautino, Kazakhstan, to northern Turkmenistan.

The water and fish analysis has shown an increased water pollution of the basin. According to the Caspian Ecological Program's Russian center, the concentration of hydrocarbons in the Caspian exceeds the norm by an average of 19 times, while reaching extremely high benchmarks in the vicinity of Oil Rocks. Pollution with hydrocarbons in the northern Caspian is four times lower.

Although Russia has been concealing information concerning the situation in the Terek and Volga rivers, competent sources say there are small oil refineries on the Terek, which dump huge quantities of hydrocarbons into the Caspian. It is therefore, no wonder that the number of dead sprats in that area was particularly high. Especially dangerous are flooded oil wells in Kazakhstan, where restoration is nearly impossible due to the loss of necessary documentation following the break-up of the Soviet Union. The Astrakhan scientists are determined to push ahead with the research throughout the Caspian.