Part I

Draft Black Sea Regional Transmission Project ESIA
4.0 BASELINE ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC CONDITIONS
This chapter describes existing conditions in the districts along the transmission line route.
Section 4.1 describes various environmental conditions, and section 4.2 describes
socioeconomic conditions. Figure 4.0-1 provides an overview of major features along the
transmission line route.
4.1 Environmental Baseline
4.1.1 Meteorology and Climate
Overview. The climate in Georgia is diverse, with two distinctive climatic zones: humid
subtropical in the west of the country and dry subtropical transiting to continental in the east.
The Greater Caucasus Range plays an important role in the climatic regime, preventing
intrusion of cold air from the north and producing a warmer regime with a small number of
extreme meteorological events. Another significant factor in climate formation is the Black
Sea in the west, which contributes to increased humidity in western Georgia. This influence
is softened toward eastern Georgia by the natural barrier of the Surami and the Adjara-
Traleti Ranges. Since humid air masses predominantly transfer from west to east,
orographic lifting makes excessive moisture precipitate on the west slopes of these
mountains. Consequently, the eastern side of the mountain ranges experience lower
precipitation and lower relative humidity, resulting in a transition to a dry-subtropical climate
eastwards, which are also affected by the dry plains of Azerbaijan.
Climate along the route may be further sub-divided into several climatic regions, mainly
owing to the different relief features, large variation of altitude, and proximity to the Black
Sea. These subregions, beginning from the east at Gardabani, include:
Dry-subtropical climate with warm summers (> 22°C) and mild winters
(approximately 0 to -3°C) in the west near the Azerbaijan-Georgia border. It is
characterized by a notably warmer and drier climate compared to the rest of the
route. The climate becomes increasingly humid as the pipeline route approaches
the Bedeni Plateau.
A transitional climate between the dry-subtropical in the east, and the humidsubtropical
mountainous steppe climate to the west, over the area spreading from
the Bedeni Plateau to the feet of the Trialeti Range. Altitude gradually increases
by approximately 800 meters over a short distance, which causes lower
temperatures and higher wind speeds. Generally, the region experiences cold
and occasionally snowy winters, and long mild summers. Precipitation along this
section is the highest along the route.
The humid-subtropical mountainous climate with cold winter ( 20°C). The climate is similar to the transient
climatic zone, spread over the area between the Trialeti and the Samsari
Mountain Ranges, though more moderate due to lower elevation and proximity to
the Black Sea.
A very humid subtropical warmer climate after crossing the Meskheti Range to
Zestaphoni, when the route transits to the Western Georgia. The climate of the
region is dominated by influences of the Black Sea and mountainous relief.
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