Mukhtar Babayev: "Monitoring of river pollution levels underway in liberated territories"

"Up to 40% of Azerbaijan's mineral water resources are in the liberated territories. It is planned to create resort and recreation zones on natural mineral springs," Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev told a panel "Great Return to Karabakh: Sustainable Settlement and Economic Reintegration" within the UNEC Economic Forum.

The minister said that Azerbaijan's access to water resources in Karabakh, of which 70% of water resources are formed abroad, is important: "There are relict lakes, numerous rivers and reservoirs of ecological importance in those areas. The rich water resources will be used for drinking water, agriculture and electricity generation."

In order to study the hydrological regime of reservoirs and rivers flowing through the liberated areas, observations are being restored, and state control is being established over the efficient use and protection of water bodies, he said.

"It has not been possible to obtain accurate information on the condition of water bodies for many years due to the lack of environmental control. However, regular monitoring is carried out today to control the level of river pollution. According to the results of the analysis carried out by local and internationally accredited laboratories, transboundary rivers flowing through the territory were found to be polluted," Mukhtar Babayev added.