Tehran – Celebrated on August 12 by five Caspian Sea provinces (Iran, Russia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan), International Caspian Sea Day serves as an opportunity to review the state of the world’s largest inland waters, highlighting the importance of retaining unique ecosystems and abundant waters.
In 2003, the coastal province of Caspian signed the Framework Convention (Tehran) to protect the marine environment of the Caspian Sea.
Following ratification by all five governments in the Caspian coastal province, the Tehran Congress came into effect on August 12, 2006. Since then, Sea of Caspia Day is celebrated every year on August 12th.
Known for its unique biodiversity, the Caspian Sea is home to a wide variety of precious species and plays an important role in the region’s economy, food security and ecological sustainability.
Over the past decades, marine life, particularly marine life, has significantly reduced the population of oceans and Caspians in the oceans and Caspians due to threatening factors such as illegal fishing, overfishing, oil, industry, agricultural pollution, climate change, reduced water flow and habitat destruction.
Sturgeons are one of the strategic resources of the Caspian Sea and are extremely valuable to their caviar, but at risk of extinction.
Caspia seals are the only marine mammal in the ocean. The species is currently listed as at risk on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, and has a population declined for a variety of reasons, ranging from 1 million to 70,000 people.
In recent years, the increase in the discovery of seal bodies on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea has raised concerns among environmentalists that Caspian seals are at an unprecedented risk of extinction.
Iran has always emphasized the need for regional cooperation to protect the biodiversity of the Caspian ecosystem based on local diplomacy and save at-risk species, particularly Caspian seals, through enhanced joint measurements.
The country is taking several steps to address these challenges.
The seventh meeting of the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea, known as COP 7, in Tehran, will focus on the preservation of the Caspian seal.
In November 2024, the Ministry of the Environment (DOE) began implementing a national action plan focused on the preservation of Caspia seals.
The main purpose of this plan is to save Caspianseal, a rare, valuable, endemic, endangered species of the Caspian Sea, as a priority for marine environmental activities.
The establishment of the Seal Conservation Centre in Caspia, located at the Tarbiat Modare University Branch in Noor County, is one of the important measures taken in this regard.
It promoted positive interactions between the university and the executive unit. This is expected to have positive consequences for Caspia seal protection in the near future.
The Executive Working Group is formed under the control of the Environmental Regional Sectors of Gilan, Mazandaran and Golestan, in collaboration with the governor and other beneficiaries.
Additionally, seal rescue centres in these three states are well equipped and special training workshops have already been held for beneficiaries and rangers, Talebi-Matin said.
Training included basic methods of rescue, release, corpse disposal, and correct sample collection.
Furthermore, examining seal bodies on beaches and identifying the cause of their losses is being pursued in collaboration with neighbouring countries and related organizations.
In August 2024, Iran’s Ambassador to Turkmenistan participated in an international scientific practice conference entitled “Cooking Techniques in the Caspian Sea” held in the National Tourism Area of Awaza.
Speaking at the meeting, Ali Mojitaba Luzbahani said the Caspian Sea is a general heritage and a point of connection between coastal states. It is the source of blessings to over 270 million people.
The Caspian Sea is a strategic region that connects corridors from north to south and east to west. It is the obligation of coastal areas to protect Caspians for future generations. This is because it is inherited by how clean and safe we are.
Officials say the recognition of the Tehran Convention as the first step to realizing cooperation in the Caspian Sea demonstrates the importance of maintaining the environment as an important principle for all activities in the sea.
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