Baku, September 10, 2025
By Azerbaijan.US Editorial Board
The year 2027 is now being sold as a turning point for Azerbaijan’s capital.
Officials proudly declare that Baku will finally solve its chronic water shortage by drinking from the Caspian Sea itself, thanks to new desalination plants. International contracts are being signed, glossy presentations shown at Baku Water Week, and words like “innovation” and “sustainability” are thrown around like confetti.
But let’s not pretend this is Dubai. The bitter truth is that the Caspian is not an untouched reservoir of purity. For decades, Baku has been flushing millions of cubic meters of untreated sewage directly into it. According to the Ministry of Ecology’s own figures, roughly half of the city’s wastewater never sees proper treatment before it flows into the sea. Entire districts’ pipelines lead straight to the shore.
So, let’s connect the dots: the same Caspian that reeks of human waste in summer heat will, within two years, be rebottled as “premium drinking water.” No miracle here – just an industrial loop. Flush, dilute, desalinate, and serve. A grotesque parody of recycling.
Authorities insist desalination will provide “quality drinking water.” Perhaps they should explain why residents must first pollute the sea, then pay international corporations to clean up their own mess. If that isn’t policy genius, what is? In fact, it almost feels like a parody of Soviet-style planning: first break it, then fix it, then charge people twice.
The most tragicomic element is cost. Desalinated water is one of the most expensive ways to produce fresh water anywhere in the world. In countries like Israel or the UAE, it works because the infrastructure is world-class, leakage is minimal, and sewage is treated, not sprayed into the nearest body of water.
In Baku, people will likely end up paying premium rates for what can only be described – without exaggeration – as their own waste in a cleaner bottle.
So let the PR teams continue celebrating “a new chapter in water security.” For ordinary residents, 2027 may be remembered as the year Baku discovered the full meaning of the phrase: what goes around, comes around.
This editorial reflects the position of the Azerbaijan.US Editorial Board, which calls for fairness, dignity, and accountability in social practices across Azerbaijan.
