Location: Baku, Azerbaijan
Pre-workshop field surveys for the CBD EBSA workshop
In order to provide relevant scientific and technical information for the CBD Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) in the Black Sea and Caspian Sea region, Cenesta conducted several field surveys in marine and coastal areas of the South Caspian Sea in April, 2017. During field surveys, the marine ecologist of Cenesta evaluated the ecological and biological features of South Caspian Sea based on the seven criteria designated by the CBD and investigated the overlaps of the potential EBSAs with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), Biosphere Reserves, Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites), Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and ICCAs.
EBSAs: the seven criteria designed by the CBD | |
جدول معیارهای شناسایی مناطق مهم اکولوژیک یا بیولوژیک | |
Uniqueness or rarity | منحصر به فرد بودن و یا نایاب بودن |
Special importance for life history stages of species | اهمیت ویژه برای مراحل مختلف چرخه زیستی گونه ها |
Importance for threatened, endangered or declining species and/or habitats | اهمیت خاص برای گونه ها و یا زیستگاه های در معرض تهدید، در معرض خطر و یا در حال کاهش |
Vulnerability, fragility, sensitivity, or slow recovery | آسیب پذیری، شکنندگی، حساسیت و یا قابلیت احیای کند |
Biological productivity | تولید زیستی |
Biological diversity | تنوع زیستی |
Naturalness | بکر بودن |
Based on field surveys and literature reviews, Cenesta provided scientific and technical documents for 3 potential EBSAs including Sefidroud Delta, Anzali Wetlands Complex and also Miankaleh-Essenguly (Miankaleh-Hassan Göli) as a transboundary EBSA between Iran and Turkmenistan and submitted to the CBD Secretariat prior to the workshop. Click on the picture below to enlarge the area map:
Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) in the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea and Training Session on Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas
The 13th CBD Regional Workshop to Facilitate the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) in the Black Sea and Caspian Sea region, hosted by the Government of Azerbaijan was held from 25 to 29 April 2017 in Baku, Azerbaijan. On the 24th was held a training session on Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas.
During the workshop, thirty experts, supported by a technical team from Duke University and members of the CBD Secretariat, described a total of 33 candidate EBSAs– 17 for the Black Sea and 16 for the Caspian Sea. Cenesta submitted 3 areas in the South Caspian Sea to be adopted as EBSAs including Sefidroud Delta, Anzali Wetlands Complex and also Miankaleh-Essenguly as a transboundary EBSA with Turkmenistan. These areas were introduced within the framework of the seven criteria designated by the CBD and were evaluated, judged and approved during the workshop process.
This workshop recognised the unique nature of both seas at a global scale, specifically their limited connection to the world’s oceans, climatic and salinity gradients and biodiversity components adapted to deep anoxic waters. These EBSAs includ a number of special bays and deltas, as well as areas of significance for specific species and habitats such as the Caspian Seal and Phyllophora fields.