The draft directive has been developed by the national meteorological and hydrological services of Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Russia. Its coordination was completed during the 18th meeting of the Coordination Committee on Hydrometeorology and Pollution Monitoring in the Caspian Sea (27-28 November 2013, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan).
The agreement provides for cooperation between national meteorological and hydrological services of the Caspian states (representing Russia – the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring) in some areas, including:
- operation and development of national monitoring networks;
- applying the standards of the World Meteorological Organisation and the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission to hydrometeorological monitoring methods;
- improving the methods of forecasting Caspian Sea condition including changes in sea level;
- developing the basis of a uniform system of Caspian Sea conditions;
- coordinating measures on the training and professional development of hydrometeorology personnel.
To implement the provisions of the agreement, the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring has six hydrometeorological stations with automated monitoring, two aerological stations, stations receiving information from meteorological satellites, and two research ships in the area of the Caspian Sea.
The agreement will create a legal framework to expand international sharing of observation data and analytical and forecasting information on the conditions of the Caspian Sea, and to prepare sections on the climate and hydrological conditions of the sea as part of the periodic assessments of the Caspian Sea environment envisioned by Article 19 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Caspian Sea of 4 November 2003 (Tehran).