By Nailia Bagirova

BAKU (Reuters) -Rapid falls in the level of the Caspian Sea are affecting ports and oil shipments and threatening to inflict catastrophic damage on sturgeon and seal populations, according to Azerbaijani officials.

The Caspian, the world's largest salt lake, holds significant offshore oil reserves and is bordered by five countries that are all major producers of oil or gas or both: Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan.

Azerbaijan's Deputy Ecology Minister Rauf Hajiyev told Reuters that the sea had been getting shallower for decades, but figures showed that the trend was accelerating.

Its level has fallen by 0.93 metres (3 ft) in the past five years, by 1.5 metres in the last 10, and 2.5 metres in the past 30, he said in an interview, estimating the current rate of decline at 20-30 cm per year.

"The retreat of the coastline changes natural conditions, disrupts economic activity........

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