Main stages of developing environmental legislation of Islamic Republic of Iran on environmental protection of Caspian Sea

The article focuses on the environmental legislation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which regulates, among other things, the issues of protecting the environment of the Caspian Sea. Iran, like other Caspian states, is aware of the need to protect and protect the Caspian marine environment, on which the state of the coastal provinces and the well-being of the local population depend. There are examined the main legal acts of Iran related to the management of the quality of water resources, the protection of the marine environment from pollution, the protection of biological resources. Iran’s domestic environmental legislation was formed in the second half of the 20th century, but the most important regulations for the protection of the environment of the Caspian Sea were adopted during the last 25 years. In general, the national legislation of Iran is aimed at protecting the environment, while providing the population with water resources and protecting surface and groundwater from pollution, including the marine waters of the Caspian Sea, is especially important for the republic. The direction of Iran’s environmental legislation is consistent with the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea of 2018, which has not yet been ratified by the republic. In this Convention, the Caspian states have undertaken to protect and preserve the ecological system of the Caspian Sea and all its components, not to carry out activities that damage biological diversity, and also to bear responsibility for damage caused to the ecological system of the Caspian Sea. In the next decade, Iran plans to prepare a national action plan for the republic on protecting the marine environment, biodiversity, combating marine pollution, public participation and capacity building, as well as increasing coastal and marine protected areas, which gives some hope for the ratification of the Convention on the Legal status of the Caspian Sea.