Agriculture Ministry: Fresh water resources in Azerbaijan declining

“If we do not consider the floods of 2010, fresh water resources have been declining in Azerbaijan since that period,” head of the land-use control department of the Ministry of Agriculture Firudin Taghiyev said, Report informs.

According to Taghiyev, Azerbaijan is in the most vulnerable position in the Caucasus region regarding water resources:

“The reduction in water resources is also reflected in the agricultural sector. Despite the decline in freshwater supplies, the agricultural sector is developing.”

The ministry official noted that according to the water balance, the surface water reserves in Azerbaijan amount to 34-36 billion cubic meters.

“But only 12 billion cubic meters are consumed. Six billion cubic meters of these resources are used for irrigation and agricultural water supply, 2 billion cubic meters - for the production of drinking water and other purposes, 3-4 billion cubic meters - for transport purposes. This shows that if we could store this water in reservoirs, then our water problems could be significantly solved. About 70-80% of the 12 billion cubic meters of water consumed is used in agriculture, directly in irrigation. Therefore, we are working together with relevant departments to improve irrigation efficiency,” Taghiyev said.