The world's largest lake is disappearing – and it's taking ecosystems and livelihoods with it

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🗞️ Driving the news: The Caspian Sea, the world’s largest inland body of water, is shrinking at an accelerating pace due to climate change and habitat degradation, with significant impacts on ecosystems and coastal livelihoods

🔭 The context: Satellite and hydrological data show a long-term decline in water levels, exacerbated by rising regional temperatures and reduced river inflows, primarily from the Volga River
• Coastal zones in Azerbaijan, including parts of the Absheron Peninsula, are visibly receding

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Falling water levels threaten biodiversity, including the endangered Caspian seal, sturgeon populations, wetlands, reed beds, and critical bird habitats
• Food security and local fisheries are directly affected, forcing fishermen to travel further offshore under harsher conditions

⏭️ What’s next: Regional cooperation under the Tehran Convention, encompassing Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan,is essential to monitor, manage, and mitigate environmental impacts
• Experts stress coordinated action to address both climate-driven evaporation and human pressures

💬 One quote: “The continued decline in the level of the Caspian Sea is a matter of serious concern for all five Caspian littoral states… Altering the Sea’s delicate hydrological balance.” — Mahir Aliyev, Coordinator of the Tehran Convention Secretariat

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