Why the Caspian Sea is shrinking
Water levels in the Caspian Sea, which sits below sea level, have been falling almost continuously since 1996, and faster still since 2006. By 2100, water levels could plummet by between 9 and 18 metres, various studies project.
They were built to be close to the water of the Caspian Sea. Now the ground beneath them is parched, and they are just relics of what once was there.
But the whole sea is shrinking, and on this sliver of land in the Absheron national park, the shoreline is now 200 metres away.
"This is the place where as a kid we first discovered what biodiversity is, where we first saw snakes. We used to see turtles, different kinds of birds. We used to play with sand."
Water levels in the Caspian Sea, which sits below sea level, have always fluctuated, as tectonic shifts change the shape of the basin.
Already fisheries are falling, agriculture is being disrupted by the increasingly salty water and the critically endangered Caspian seal is facing extinction.
