Azerbaijan's Abused River

A river flowing through the city of Ganja in western Azerbaijan has become so polluted that it presents a major public health threat, environmentalists say.

Once a flowing waterway, the Ganja riverbed now only fills up during the spring thaw. At other times, it is dry except for foul-smelling pools that locals say are a health hazard. In the heat of summer, they say, the stench makes it difficult to get close to the river, but local children nevertheless swim in the pools.

The river has dried up mainly as a result of excessive irrigation of farm lands, according to Irshad Abbasov, an environmental scientist.

Meanwhile, pollution comes from sewage from houses located along the river, plus rubbish thrown in by locals.

“Staff at the market on the right bank of the river used to throw all their rubbish into the dried-up river,” Abbasov said. “Once the market was moved, the situation improved somewhat.”

Ganja city resident Vusala Jannatova complained that while the municipal authorities repeatedly cleared the riverbed of debris, residents kept on dumping their waste there.

“We can’t wait for the authorities to do something. We need to display citizen spirit,” she said. “If people don’t see that it’s necessary, for their own health above all, nothing is going to change.”

Mushfiq Balayev, who lives close to the river, said local people were not entirely to blame since the city administration had provided very few communal rubbish bins, and rarely emptied them.

Alikram Qurbanov of the city’s environmental services department said written warnings had been sent to around 100 homeowners warning them that their sewage systems were contaminating the river water.

Aqila Aliyeva, an infectious diseases specialist, said the river presented a real danger to public health.

“Compared with past years, the state of the river has improved a bit. But the problem needs to be solved once and for all,” she said.

In 2007, the city authorities launched a reconstruction project costed at around one million US dollars. Work got under way to clear debris from the waterway and then to strengthen its banks. However, the project ground to a halt in 2009.

“The government began implementing the work, but then the whole plan collapsed,” Abbasov said.

Shahmali Javadov, deputy mayor of Ganja, said activities had to be suspended when the money ran out, but were expected to restart now that Azerbaijan’s national government had approved plans to improve riverways.

Ulvi Telmansoy is an IWPR-trained journalist in Ganja, western Azerbaijan.