Ecology minister: Reconstructed Karabakh and Eastern Zangazur - future zero emission zones

The most important issue for the government of Azerbaijan is the restoration of the Karabakh and East Zangazur economic regions of Azerbaijan, liberated in 2020 after almost 30 years of occupation. This includes the restoration of the biodiversity of the region and plans to achieve zero emissions here.

Mukhtar Babayev, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan made the remark in an interview with EUobserver, according to Report.

"First, we have to clean the territory from mines and unexploded ordnance, which is a painstaking and time-consuming job. But last month we managed to release tiny brook trout (Salmo trutta fario) into the Besitchai and Hakari rivers in Zangilan. We also planted chinar saplings in Besitchay State Nature Reserve in an attempt to replace the rare Oriental Plane trees that felled during the occupation. These are small steps but symbolize our resolve to restore the biodiversity of this stunning region," said the head of the Ministry of Ecology.

According to him, as Karabakh recovers, Azerbaijan has an opportunity to mitigate the effects of climate change. Therefore, the settlements built here (and all the cities and villages in these territories are completely destroyed) are based on the principle of "smart".

"A green energy zone is being created here as part of the program "Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socio-Economic Development. Electricity will be generated by solar, wind, and small hydroelectric power plants. Our goal is to create a clean zero emission zone on the liberated territories by 2050," Babayev said.

Touching upon other efforts to mitigate climate change, the ecology minister spoke of plans to create a regional early warning system to identify climate-related risks: "Better information exchange and coordinated action with our neighbors will increase our resilience to some of the effects of climate change. No country can cope with these challenges alone.

As a party to the UN Convention on Climate Change, Azerbaijan ratified the Paris Agreement and set an ambitious goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 35 per cent by 2030, the head of the Ministry of Ecology said. "Since then, we have made a new voluntary commitment to reduce emissions by 40 per cent by 2050," Babayev said, adding that Azerbaijan has signed all major international environmental conventions - there are about 20 - and closely cooperates with various UN specialized environmental agencies responsible for their implementation.

Mukhtarov also said that the EU is another key international partner for Azerbaijan.

"Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Energy Partnership was signed, which outlines commitments to reduce methane emissions throughout the gas supply chain. Energy efficiency, combating climate change and Azerbaijan's participation in EU Green Deal initiatives are all on the agenda. I am optimistic about the potential of cooperation with the EU and other international organizations in building a more sustainable, greener economy in Azerbaijan," the head of the Ministry of Ecology said.