Azernews.Az

Nigar Hasanova

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Azerbaijan's capital city, Baku, is at risk of a water shortage. According to Azernews, this is reflected in the Master Plan for the development of Baku until 2040.

It was noted that although the drinking water network is wide, there are leaks from the system due to the old system and the complicated terrain of Baku. According to the assessments conducted, the amount of water lost from the network is 48% of the total transported water. Although the existing water resources are large enough to supply the city of 3.5 million people, there are interruptions in water supply in several areas of the city (6 hours a day, 14 days a month).

According to the National Report on the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, national water resources are expected to decrease by more than 23% by 2050 due to climate change. About 6% or 744 million m³ of water produced in the country is consumed on the Absheron Peninsula. Since there are no natural water sources on the peninsula, water is transported from other regions of the country.

The defined approach to water supply infrastructure within the framework of the Baku City Master Plan was developed in close cooperation with Azersu OJSC. The General Plan of the Society covering Baku and the Absheron Peninsula was taken into account when making planning decisions. Taking into account the projected population of the development areas proposed in the plan for 2027 and 2040, the demand for each area was determined separately and adapted to the Master Plan of Azersu OJSC.

Within the framework of the Baku City Master Plan, it is recommended to implement a sustainable water management policy for the main user areas: agriculture, landscaping of public areas, and technical and domestic water user groups. Implementation of these policies and intervention measures is required to reduce daily consumption from the current level of 288 litres (per capita daily consumption) to 150 litres in 2040. Here, significant improvements can be achieved by implementing a water reuse and recycling system.

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