Sarysu ( az, Sarısu meaning "Yellow Water") is the largest lake of
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country, transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Wester ...
located in
Imishli and
Sabirabad raion
A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...
s of the
Kur-Araz Lowland
The Kura-Aras Lowland, Kura-Aras Depression or Kura-Aras Basin ( az, Kür-Araz ovalığı) is a vast depression in central-southern Azerbaijan defined by the valleys of the Kura River and Aras River. It is situated by the West shore of the Cas ...
.
Overview
Sarysu lake stretches along the
Kura River from
Imishli Rayon southeast to
Sabirabad Rayon reaching a total length of . It is one of the four lakes present in the area. The water in the lake is
fresh water
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does includ ...
. The lake
inflows from
Lake Ağgöl through a
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface fl ...
– and which is also replenished by
groundwater and
rain
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...
– and
outflows to the Kura River. The outflow to Kura is regulated by a water-releasing station in
Muradbəyli.
[Səth sularının çirklənmə vəziyyəti: Sarısu gölü (State of surface water pollution: Lake Sarysu.)](_blank)
The lake is separated from the residential areas in the north by a highway which prevents it from potential pollution. The southern part of the lake has been polluted from waters of onshore
oil production
Petroleum is a fossil fuel that can be drawn from beneath the earth's surface. Reservoirs of petroleum was formed through the mixture of plants, algae, and sediments in shallow seas under high pressure. Petroleum is mostly recovered from oil dri ...
activities in the past.
The shoreline of Sarysu is mainly made up from wetlands and swamps. The overall area is . The approximate volume of water in the lake is 60 million m
3. Average depth is 1–3 meters, at the shoreline 0.1-0.9 meters. The increases of volume of water is mainly observed in spring and fall seasons. During winter season, the average ice-covering period is 11 days. The lake is rich with
common carp
The Eurasian carp or European carp (''Cyprinus carpio''), widely known as the common carp, is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia.Fishbase''Cyprinus carpio'' Linnaeus, 1758/ref>Arkive The ...
and
vobla. Favorable conditions at the lake attract 300-350 thousand migrating birds during the winter.
Mineralization at Sarysu is high.
Overflowing and floods
The river sometimes overflows and floods. In 1976, overflowing of the Kura River caused the lake to increase in size by 3-5 times.
In May 2010, major flooding struck the area. Heavy rains caused the volume level of the Kura river increased by 12 cm and the level of lake Sarysu by 20 cm. On 24 May 2010, Muradbeyli village, surrounded by the lake on the south and the Kura River on the north, completely flooded collapsing the dam. Muradbəyli and three other villages
Qasımbəyli,
Əsgərbəyli,
Axtaçı of Sabirabad Rayon as well as
Nərimankənd,
Musalı,
Dəllər and
Novruzlu of
Saatly Rayon
Saatly District () is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the centre of the country and belongs to the Central Aran Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Imishli, Sabirabad, and Bilasuvar. Its capital and l ...
were evacuated.
Sarysu is a primary source for fishing and partially for irrigation.
BirdLife International
/ref>
See also
*Rivers and lakes in Azerbaijan
The water bodies of Azerbaijan were formed over a long geological timeframe and changed significantly throughout that period. This is particularly evidenced by remnants of ancient rivers found throughout the country. The country's water systems ar ...
References
External links
Satellite image of Sarysu from Wikimapia
* At Sarysu Lake in the winter (from Azerbaijani Wikipedia)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarysu, Lake
Lakes of Azerbaijan
