The protection of nature, environment, and natural resources is considered as a universal issue, and currently the protection of ecology remains the most urgent issue in the whole world.

In order to ensure the ecological safety of the environment, minimizing environmental pollution and improving protection, efficient use of natural resources in order to meet the needs of current and future generations are the main directions of the environmental policy of the Azerbaijan state.

The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan also carries out consistent work for the purpose of increasing the efficiency of measures aimed at solving environmental problems, pand roviding prompt solutions, including improving the environment.

The territory of existing reserves and sanctuaries in the country has been expanded, national parks have been created, and measures have been taken to strengthen environmental protection. The main goal of these programs was to ensure the systematic and efficient implementation of state-important investment projects aimed at environmental protection.

The implementation of consistent measures in the field of ensuring the environmental safety of the Caspian Basin in Azerbaijan, keeping the works under full environmental control, and at the same time establishing the requirements of environmental expertise in accordance with the current world standards have led to the reduction of problems and the emergence of a fundamental turnaround in this field.

The main goal of the environmental policy implemented in Azerbaijan is to ensure sustainable development with the protection of existing ecological systems, economic potential and efficient use of natural resources in order to meet the needs of current and future generations.

Environmental protection has become one of the priorities of Azerbaijan's state policy, and the declaration of 2010 as the "Year of Ecology" on the initiative of President Ilham Aliyev proves this.

In the country, a plan of measures is regularly implemented in the direction of protection of ecology and environmental protection, which conditions the successful realization of the goals set in the field of ecology and environmental protection.

The "Ecological Concept of the Republic of Azerbaijan" based on the principles of "Sustainable Development" can be mentioned as the first document on environmental policy in Azerbaijan. In the concept, the main principles for solving the problems that are extremely important for the country in terms of environmental protection are reflected.

As a sparsely forested country, increasing and protecting forests in Azerbaijan is one of the priority directions.

Due to the fact that 95 percent of the country's territory is supplied with gas, the scale of negative impacts on forests has decreased significantly. Surveillance cameras have been installed in Zagatala, Sheki, Gakh, Oguz ,and Gabala regions to ensure forest protection and fire safety, and work in this direction continues. In order to ensure the sustainable development of forests, fencing works with light construction are carried out in places that are more exposed to external influences.

Measures are regularly taken to prevent air pollution in the country.

An example of these measures is the installation of cleaning facilities in public catering facilities in large cities of the country for the purpose of neutralization of waste released into the atmosphere.

Regular tree planting campaigns in the city can be considered as one of the steps taken towards nature protection.

The Heydar Aliyev Foundation's "Let's Plant a Tree" project also made great contributions to this field. Within the framework of this project, which was implemented at the initiative of the Foundation's president, Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva, hundreds of hectares of land in the country were greened.

While touching upon ethe cological situation in Azerbaijan it should be noted about Armenia's ecological terror against Azerbaijan.

Armenia has destroyed cities and villages which kept under occupation for nearly 30 years, destroyed material and cultural monuments, destroyed underground and surface resources - mineral water sources, forest fund (246,217 hectares of forest area), 152 state natural monuments, 5 geological looted the facility and 155 types of mineral deposits.

Armenia destroyed valuable tree species in Zangilan, Aghdam, Kalbajar, Gubadli, and other regions for profit and sold them to foreign countries as semi-finished products.

The destruction of a unique ecosystem of valuable and perennial dense forests of oak, juniper, beech, holly, pine, dove and walnut with a total area of more than 8,000 hectares has been the most severe blow to endemic biodiversity.

The forests of Karabakh, rich in the most valuable trees of flora and fauna, were brutally destroyed.

Armenia's ecological terror against Azerbaijan did not end there, starting in 1999, it started fires in the occupied territories and lands close to those territories. As a result, both the soil layer and species of fauna and flora were destroyed on a large scale. Thus, in 2006, 63,414 hectares, in 2007, 31,097 hectares, in 2008, 380 hectares, and in 2009, 250 hectares were burned by usurpers.

Planting of various types of seedlings has been started in the liberated areas in order to restore the ecological balance.

One of the main tasks ahead in the framework of the great return to the territories freed from occupation is the restoration and health of the natural and quality ecosystem, biological diversity, as well as rare and disappearing plant species in those territories. Restoring the activity of the unique forest fund and protected natural complexes based on the application of modern approaches in these areas will create conditions for the transformation of the region as a whole into a "green zone".

In the areas freed from occupation, large-scale measures have been initiated in order to improve the environment and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources, to preserve the network of specially protected natural areas, rare natural complexes, and objects in their natural state.

President Ilham Aliyev's signing of the decree dated October 20, 2021, on the restoration of the activities of the Basitchay State Nature Reserve, which is located on an area of 107 hectares in the administrative territory of Zangilan, which is part of the Eastern Zangezur economic region of Azerbaijan, also shows this.

The measures taken and the steps taken once again confirm that ecology and environmental protection is priority issue in Azerbaijan.

Analytic group of News.Az

The article focuses on the protection of ecology and the environment

The article was published with the support of the Media Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (MEDIA)