There are hundreds of abandoned oil wells in Azerbaijan, and thousands in Kazakhstan, many of which have been submerged by the rising sea. There are reports of big leaks into the water, killing waterfowl and fish. Thousands of hectares of soil on Azerbaijan’s Apsheron peninsula are unsuitable for agricultural use.

Thousands of hectares of soil on Azerbaijan’s Apsheron peninsula are unsuitable for agricultural use due to oil spills. The largest of these oil spills happened in May 1996. Oil extraction is happening off shore, in the Caspian Sea, and the oil is transported by pipelines.