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ECONOMIC LIMITATIONS TO POLLUTION PREVENTION Azerbaijan Economic and social problems The social and ecological problems have been aggravated in the last years due to hundreds of thousands of refugees from the war with Armenia. The most critical problems are water supply and discharge channels and energy supply. The collapse of the Soviet Union has cut of Azerbaijan’s industry from its most important market. Outdated technology and inadequate production Because of the changed market conditions the production profile of the industries ought to be adapted to the new situation. Many products cannot be sold anymore. Even for manufacturing the products that can find a market, most installations are outdated and neglected. They need capital repair or replacement. Cleaner production technology should be introduced to minimize the consumption of energy and raw material along with the output of waste. A plan for the ecological improvement of the industries in Sumgait till the year 2000 has been made and approved, but political and financial difficulties have stopped the implementation of the plan. The "Special Economic Zone" project for Sumgait, drafted by the Government of Azerbaijan with assistance of UNIDO and UNDP, envisages ecologically sound reconstruction and development of the Sumgait industries. Disrupted monitoring Baku has been a major center for hydrometeorology and marine Research. Many regional monitoring activities were coordinated here. After the demise of the USSR, most connections with monitoring centers in other countries were severed or weakened. Insufficient funds do not allow for purchases of modern instrumentation or even reagents.
Iran Economic constraints Petroleum sales are the main source of national income. As a result of lower oil prices, only limited funds can be allocated by the government for environmental investments. International funds have not been available either during the last years. Technological problems Outdated technologies cause higher pollution. Examples are the Chouka paper mill and the Neka power station, both over 20 years old. The Iranian industry should employ technologies for cleaner production. This applies to smaller and larger enterprises alike. Threat of unemployment Implementation of environmental laws can lead to closing down industries that cannot meet the standards. In many cases the D.O.E. and affiliated authorities have not been able to take action against polluters due to threatening unemployment. Lack of expertise Inadequate practices in industry, farming and agriculture are frequently responsible for pollution. The provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran have strong and substantial farming and agriculture. There are many rice and tea plantations in Gilan. Mazandaran grows cotton, wheat and some other crops. Vast citrus plantations spread over both provinces. Unfortunately, increasing production rates have always been accompanied by elevated use of fertilizers and pesticides. Excessive use of chemicals on farm land has caused contamination of ground water and rivers, which flow into the Caspian . The presence of pesticides in coastal waters is indicative. The concentration of nitrates in shallow waters of the Tonekabon area has remarkably increased in the past twenty years as a direct result of increased use of fertilizers. Advanced farming techniques for optimized use of fertilizers and pesticides have not yet been introduced to the region. Biological ways to fight pests have not been tried either. Industrial mismanagement Excessive consumption of energy and raw materials and production of too much waste are common in manufacturing. Kazakhstan Environmental investments do not match the increasing oil production Production of oil and gas for export is a principal source of income for Kazakhstan’s economy. A large part of Kazakhstan’s oil and gas comes from the Caspian region. The oil production will be increased. In 1994 Kazakhstan produced 20.3 million tons, in 1995 20.6 million tons and in 1996 about 23 million tons. About 26.5 - 27.5 million tons of oil is projected for 1997. 7.3 million tons of oil in 1994, about 7 million tons in 1995, and 5.5 million tons in the first nine month of 1996 were processed in Kazakhstan’s refineries. In 1994 12.9 million tons, in 1995 13.5 million tons and in the first nine months of 1996 11.3 million tons of crude were exported. The projected export for 1997 is 20.7 million tons of crude oil. However, the transit quota for oil from Kazakhstan through Russia is only 7 million tons for 1997. The offshore field under the Caspian that is currently being developed is estimated to yield 60 million tons of crude by 2013. Outdated equipment Production and transportation of oil are limited by pipeline capacity, outdated and malfunctioning equipment and some other reasons. The subsoil of the Caspian contains rich reserves of hydrocarbons. Therefore, Kazakhstan has successfully started the exploration of oil and gas fields in the Caspian . In the near future the production of oil and gas is expected to be increased. That will cause more industrial pollution in the Caspian . The current lower pollution level is a consequence of the decline in industrial production and some plant closings due to the collapse of the Soviet market. However, the pollution may grow again when the economic situation improves. Underfunded monitoring The monitoring services in Kazakhstan are not capable of measuring all parameters of industrial pollution, because of their budget have been severely cut. The instrumentation is in general very old and not adequate. Most ties to laboratories in the other republics of the FSU are not functioning anymore.
Russia Republic of Daghestan The future economic prosperity of the Caspian region of Russia depends on the development of industry, fishery, agriculture and tourism at environmentally sound conditions. Significant pollution of the Caspian is caused by production, transportation and refining of oil and gas, by our industries and by agriculture. Residues of fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides penetrate ground water and rivers that flow into the Caspian . Industrial production declined in the 1990s dramatically in most branches. The industry’s share in the GNP became significantly lower than the agriculture’s. Daghestan’s economy became clearly dominated by agriculture and agroindustry. The arid climate makes irrigation indispensable. The main crops in Daghestan are grain crops (wheat, corn, rice), sunflower, melons and vegetables. Animal husbandry, horticulture and viticulture have also a significant share in the republic’s agricultural production. Daghestan’s industry works mainly with imported raw materials. Therefore, the decline of industrial production in early 1990s was here almost twice as drastic as in the Russian average. Daghestan purchases most of its fuel from other regions. In 1993 156,000 tons of gasoline and 143,000 tons of diesel fuel were imported here and in 1994 248000 tons of gasoline and 78,000 tons of diesel. The production of oil and gas condensate in Daghestan was before 1994 0.6 million tons annually, and in spite of a fuel deficiency in the republic, Daghestan exports petroleum. 186,000 tons were exported in 1993 and 79,000 tons in January - October 1994 for hard currency. In the last years the production of oil and gas has further decreased due to depletion, but also because of reduced purchases of equipment and spare parts for drilling, maintenance and repair. The capital Makhachkala should reconstruct and extend its sewage treatment facilities (total estimated costs 62 billion rubles), construct a sewage tunnel (estimated costs 65 billion rubles) and a deep-water drainage (estimated costs 80 billion rubles, all estimates based on 1995 terms). The construction of sewage treatment facilities for the fish processing plant GlavSulak, of therapeutic and recreational center of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Daghestan, and of a number of enterprises have not been started. The reconstruction of the sewage treatment facilities of Makhachkala trans-shipment oil-supply base and the construction of sewage treatment facilities at the Makhachkala poultry factory are halted. Today, the capacity of the treatment facilities of Makhachkala is 123 thousand m3/day but up to 180,000 m3/day are discharged. Due to the overload about 30 million m3per year of untreated wastewater are discharged into the Caspian within the territory of the capital alone. The coastal region of the republic, which is most endangered by the Caspian level’s rise, occupies 1/6 of Daghestan’s territory. 70% of the industrial and 10% of the agricultural output is produced here. Of 1,117 million ha 72% is arable and mostly used as pastures. The productivity of key crops is low and the share of fertilized land is small. The irrigation is insufficient and half of the arable land is subject to salinization. Wine making is concentrated here, but over the last 10 years viticulture declined and the vineyards have been reduced since 1994 from 61.6 to 27.9 thousand ha. Geochemical studies revealed in the coastal region increased soil concentrations of toxic pollutants of class 1, such as lead and benzpyrene (a), and of class 2, including antimony, strontium, bismuth, molybdenum, chromium and tungsten. Depth of pollution in some coastal territories by oil products reaches half-meter.
Republic of Kalmykia Kalmykia has relatively large resources of oil and natural gas. In the years of economic crisis the oil production has practically not been reduced and amounted to 400,000 tons in 1992 and 1993. Intensive exploration of new deposits took place. Of 19 deposits under development at present, 11 were put into exploitation in this period. Recoverable reserves of oil on the territory of the republic are estimated at 13-14 million t. Oils of developed fields have good quality characteristics. They are low-viscous, with low content of sulfur (0.15 - 0.4%), highly resinous, but have a high wax content (up to 30%). Kalmykia’s oil is processed at the Volgograd refinery. Production of natural gas was 200 million m3 in 1994, 74% of which was extracted from the Iki-Burulskoye field. Most of Kalmykia’s oil and gas deposits are small in terms of reserves. The most significant are the Caspian oil deposit (2,263,000 tons), Kurganskoye (1,923,000 tons), Maili-Kharanskoye (1,323,000 tons), the Ulan-Kholskoye gas-oil condensate deposit (1,841 million m3), the Oleinikovskoye gas-oil deposit (1,455,000 tons) and Iki-Burulskoye. Practically all recoverable reserves have been developed: oil to 90.4%, gas to 92.3%. The degree of depletion of the gas reserves has reached 47.4%. A significant increase of the production of hydrocarbons can only be expected from the development of deep beds of the sub-salt complex of the Caspian oil and gas bearing area. Cases of oil spillage and storage of oil products in the open ground are common in the oil and gas fields. Biological and technical recultivation of affected territories is not been carried out. During the transportation of drilling rigs the soil and its vegetation are destroyed on large areas. Many deposits are developed under gross violation of the legal requirements. There are reported cases of unauthorized use of mineral wealth and development without prior approval of the projects. Oil pollution causes complete destruction of the fertile soil layer. As a result these areas cannot be used in the future for agricultural production. In 1994 only about 10 million rubles (about $ 5,000) in damages were rewarded for land pollution by oil products. Discharges are also a big problem. Every year 125,000 tons of solid waste (galvanic slag, building materials), wastewater of the food processing industry and sheepskin tanneries, containing chemically harmful substances are discharged. The amount and kinds of produced waste are not accounted for and there are no plans for waste recycling. There is only one adequate dumping ground (in Elista) in the republic and a great number of makeshift dumps. The territory of the Caspian region of Kalmykia is threatened by the rise of the Caspian level. Agricultural production declined from 1990 to 1994 by 40%, crop production decreased by 55%, animal breeding by 40%. Production of potatoes and vegetables shrunk significantly. The state of soil fertility is critical. The application of organic and mineral fertilizers decreases every year. The amount of mineral fertilizers used was in 1993 only 6% of the average annual level of 1986 - 1990 and 43% of the amount in 1992. Infiltrating pollution from other parts of the Russian Federation is a special problem in Kalmykia, since local sources of technogenic pollution are of limited scale. Preliminary studies showed that high technogenic environmental pollution is caused mainly by sources, located outside the territory of Kalmykia. Due to its geographical position Kalmykia is being polluted by highly mineralized, chemically contaminated water and industrial wastewater. Sources of pollution adjacent to Kalmykia are fuel oil driven power plants, metallurgical, chemical and agricultural complexes of the Volgograd and Astrakhan Oblasts and from Stavropol Krai. They discharge about 3 million m3 of industrial wastewater annually, containing over 200 kinds of compounds of different classes of danger. They infiltrate the ground water also in Kalmykia. Besides, Kalmykia is affected by atmospheric emissions of the Astrakhan gas complex and industrial enterprises in Volgograd.
Astrakhan Oblast The Astrakhan Oblast has the largest gas-condensate deposit in Europe and a large complex for gas condensate production and processing, as well as for sulfur production. Only 8% of the total volume of waste gas is trapped and neutralized here in the course of gas production, and that is the lowest index among all branches of industry of Russia. Therefore, a number of settlements in the oblast has high level of air pollution. The development of the Promyslovskoye oil and gas field is environmentally dangerous due to flooding danger and increased ground water. In average the quality of surface water in the Astrakhan Oblast has stabilized in 1994-1995. Nevertheless, pollution levels fluctuate significantly. Changes in concentration of oil products, phenols, nitrates and organic substances are a result of various accidental discharges, which deteriorate the equilibrium of indices of water quality heavily. The growing rate of deterioration comes from the increase of the discharge volume, as well as from the inefficient operation of biological treatment facilities. Periodical control of the efficiency of operation of the treatment facilities and control of the level of pollution and toxicity of wastewater from enterprises, discharged into water bodies, has shown that in the Astrakhan Oblast the situation is critical. The treatment facilities do not work properly and, as a consequence, the concentrations of pollutants discharged into natural water bodies exceeds MPC standards sometimes by decades. Agriculture in the Astrakhan Oblast is focused on the production of vegetables and melons, and on cattle and sheep breeding. The area of agricultural lands of the side region of the Astrakhan Oblast was 81 thousand ha in early 1994. 294.7 thousand ha (61.3%) are pastures and 111.5 thousand ha (23.2%) hay land. Arable land occupies only 74.2 thousand ha (15.4%). 90% of the arable area is irrigated. The main agricultural crops are grain (29.6 thousand ha, including 16.8 thousand ha for rice), potatoes and melons (9.2 thousand ha) and feed crops (30.7 thousand ha). The crisis of the 1990s and the collapse of trade in vegetables, rising transport tariffs, increased importation of food and other factors entailed a decline of agricultural production, in particular of vegetables and melons. Only 25% of the irrigated land is in satisfactory meliorate condition. Over 30% is salinated due to violation of irrigation norms and lack of efficient irrigation systems. Discharged and drainage water from irrigated rice fields causes pollution of the Volga and the northern Caspian . The use of pesticides in the Astrakhan Oblast has been drastically reduced over the last years. In 1994 104.3 tons were used, as opposed to 580.3 tons in 1990. The percentage of pesticide contaminated produce decreased from 7.7% in 1991 to 0.1% in 1994. Studies of the hydrochemical regime of surface water in the lower Volga in the years 1990 - 1994 show that the environmental situation in this region could be assessed on the whole as more or less satisfactory. Application of fertilizers and pesticides in the whole Caspian region of Russia has rapidly decreased in recent years. It led to the decrease of production efficiency, but also to a reduction of environmental pollution by these toxic substances.
General remarks Some Caspian territories of the Russian Federation may be referred to as regions of environmental disaster. The northern Caspian is affected by land destruction from mining, depletion and pollution of inland water, water pollution, exhaustion of fish resources, secondary soil salinization, chemical soil contamination, soil deflation and air pollution. The rules for specially protected natural territories are often disregarded. Degradation of pastures and soil deflation are typical for Kalmykia. Areas of the most critical environmental situations include: the Volga delta and the northern Caspian , Kalmykia, coastal zone of Daghestan. Very high environmental tension is typical on the whole of the Volga region and Kalmykia, while Daghestan is characterized by high environmental tension.
Turkmenistan 5,210,000 tons of petroleum and gas condensate and 60,1 billion m3 of natural gas were extracted in Turkmenistan in 1992. Until 2002 an increase of the petroleum production by 5,4 times, of primary processing of petroleum by 2,6 times and of gas production by 2 times is planned. The strategy for the development of the fuel complex of the country next year will be focused on supporting the raw materials base by increasing the well digging industries and exploring the existing deposits. This is part of the distributor agreements with the companies “Petronas” (Malaysia) and company “Monument” (UK), which are expected to increase oil extraction. In 1997 the German company “Siemens” will equip the deposit Yudznyj Kamyshlydza. That will increase the amount of extracted oil by up to 500,000 tons annually. In 1997, according to the plan, 5.9 million tons of oil will be extracted. Next year the extraction of gas will reach 44 billion cubic meters, 40 of them will be exported by the Turkmen-Russian joint stock company “Turkmenrosgas.” Next year 20 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas will be delivered to Europe under the Protocol signed between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Russian “Gasprom”. |
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