Nature and Resources
Azerbaijan has a total area of 86,600 square kilometers (sq. km.). It is bounded by the Russian Federation (Dagestan) to the northwest, Armenia to the west, Iran to the south and the Caspian Sea to the east. The exclave of Nakhchivan shares a small strip of the borderline with Turkey in the south. Baku, the capital, is located on the western shore of the Caspian Sea, on the Absheron Peninsula, making it a convenient regional gateway to the Caucasus and Central Asia.
The country covers the northeastern area of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, a part of the lesser Caucasus range, the Talysh Mountains and the Kura depression which lies between these two ranges and is the lowest region in the country. The central and eastern areas are characterized by alluvial plains. Hills, ridges and valleys dot the western and northern regions. The Araz River Valley extends between the Zangazur and Dilagarez ranges. The Absheron Peninsula, Sara Peninsula and the Kura sand bar are the largest land projections.
The Kura and Araz are the two major rivers. The Kura, the largest river in Transcaucasia, flows through Azerbaijan from the northwest to the southwest into the Caspian Sea. The Kura River is a tributary of the Araz.
Most of Azerbaijan’s rivers (of which there are over 1,000) are in the Kura Basin. The Mingechevir Hydroelectric Plant and the Mingechevir Reservoir are located on the Kura. Rising levels of the Caspian, which makes up 800 km of the country’s eastern border, threatens the low-lying Kura River delta. The Samur, Tartar, Ayrichay and Ganchay Rivers are affluent of the Kura and Araz. The two largest lakes are Lake Hajigabul (16 sq. km.) and Lake Boyukshor (10 sq. km.).
Azerbaijan contains 9 out of the 11 climatic zones. The climate varies from subtropical to dry in central and eastern Azerbaijan and from subtropical to humid in the southeast (Lenkoran lowlands). The climate is temperate along the shores of the Caspian Sea, and cold at the higher mountain elevations. Average annual temperatures run from 15°C in low-lying areas to 0°C in the mountains. Average temperatures in summer are 26°C in the lowlands and 13°C in the highlands. In Baku the climate is cool in the winter, averaging 4°C in January. Summers are hot, up to 40°C, and humid because of the sea. There are often strong winds, especially in winter. Rainfall distribution is uneven – the annual rainfall average is 130 to 380 mm in the plains and 1,000 to 1,400 mm in the highlands.
Azerbaijan is rich in oil and gas deposits. There are oil fields on the Absheron Peninsula and the Caspian Shelf, in the region of Siyazan, and west and southwest of Absheron in Gobustan and Shirvan (in the Salyan Valley). Large deposits of oil have been discovered south of Absheron. The country also has deposits of natural gas in the Caspian Sea. Not far from Ganja there are layers of oil that can be used for medicinal purposes (naphthalene).
Other mineral resources include iron ore, aluminum, copper, lead, zinc, limestone and salt. Azerbaijan has abundant minerals that can be used in metallurgy, construction and healthcare industries. There are large deposits of iron ore, clay, dolomite and limestone, which constitute the raw materials for ferrous metallurgy. There are magnetite ore and limestone deposits in the Dashkesan region. Shimali Dashkesan has cobalt, chromate and manganese. Bentonite clay is concentrated in the Dash Salahli deposits in the Gazakh region. The Negram Field in Nakhchivan contains dolomite that is used as a fireproof raw material in ferrous metallurgy.
There are also rich resources of non-ferrous metals such as raw aluminum, copper, molybdenum, cobalt and mercury. Most of the discovered deposits are in the regions of Filizchay, Kashdagh, Kateh and Sagatar. Kasdeg and Kateh have copper metal compounds, Sagator has copper-zinc and Mazimchay has copper-pyrite ore deposits. There are large alunite fields in the Dashkesan Zeylik region. Nakhchivan and Balakan-Zakatala regions have copper porphyrin fields. Balakan-Zakatala also has copper pyrite deposits. While at least six fields have been explored, there are still opportunities to develop a large metallurgical complex using the Filizchay deposits. Mercury is located in the Levchay, Aggaya, Narzanli and Chilgaz deposits. Gold has been discovered in Zangilan (Vejnali quarts-gold field), Karabakh (Giziulag gold-copper-pyrite deposits) and other regions.
The Negram Field in Nakhchivan has 2-2.5 billion tons of rock salt. Stone for use in construction can also be found. There is marble in the Lesser Caucasus region, and gravel, sand and limestone on the Absheron Peninsula. The country is estimated to have 300 billion tons of construction stone and 24 million tons of facing stone. Iodine-bromine springs are scattered through Kihilli, Neftchala, Babazanan, Mishovdagh and Bina-Hovsan. In addition, there are a large number of mineral and spring water resources that could be bottled and marketed inside the country and abroad.
Azerbaijan has a diverse climate, which allows the cultivation of a wide variety of crops, from peaches to almonds and from rice to cotton. The range of climatic zones has also influenced the development of a high diversity of fauna and flora in the region. Most of the major plant and animal groups are represented (over 4,000 plant species and 18,000 animal species). Flora and fauna are sources of a wide variety of marketable products. Oak, hornbeam, beech, ash and maple forests cover the lower slopes of the mountain ranges, orange groves thrive in the southern coastal lowlands and mulberry trees grow in the north. There are 800 medicinal herbs available in the country, 100 of which are of commercial importance.
Mud volcanoes are pervasive within the Republic of Azerbaijan. In local language, mud volcanoes are also known as "pilpila", "yanardag", "bozdagh", "ahtarma", "gaynarja" etc. There are over 220 mud volcanoes in Azerbaijan (Absheron Peninsula, Gobustan, southeast Shirvan plain, Samur-Davachi plain terrane, both Absheron and Baku Archipelago. The biggest are Galmas, Toragay, Big Kanizadag etc. Most of them have a cone shape. Their height varies in the range from 20 to 400m, whereas base diameter may vary from 100 to 4500m.
Besides onshore mud volcanoes there are buried volcanoes and offshore mud volcanoes. There are over 140 offshore mud volcanoes within the Caspian Sea. Eight Islands within Baku archipelago were generate by mud volcanoes eruptions (Khara-Zira, Zanbil, Garasu, Gil, Sangi-Mughan, Chigmil etc). Buried mud volcanoes have been encountered by exploration wells. Ancient activities of mud volcanoes were identified among various age stratigraphic units. It is suggested that mud volcanoes activity within the Republic of Azerbaijan about 25,000 years ago. Usually, mud volcanoes eruption begins with subsurface rumble followed by a strong burst. Gases coming out to the surface from deeply buried formations get ignited and blaze up. Flame tongues may at times reach up to 1000m high (Garasu mud volcano).
Observations indicate that 50 mud volcanoes have burst about 200 times since 1810 in Azerbaijan. Lock-Batan mud volcano erupted 19 times during that period. Mud volcanoes erupt mud, solid rock fragments, gas and water. Mud volcanoes outbursts contain over 100 minerals and up to 30 chemical microelements (such as barite, mercury, manganese, copper, barium, strontium, lithium etc). The origin of mud volcanoes is associated with buried hydrocarbon deposits. Prolific oil and gas -condensate fields have been discovered in areas characterized by mud volcanoes development (Lock-Batan, Neft Dashlary, Garadagh, Mishovdagh etc). Mud volcanoes outbursts are used as the medical row material.
