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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Kyrgyzstan
Index
Kyrgyzstan has been spared many of the enormous environmental problems
faced by its Central Asian neighbors, primarily because its designated
roles in the Soviet system involved neither heavy industry nor large-scale
cotton production. Also, the economic downturn of the early 1990s reduced
some of the more serious effects of industrial and agricultural policy.
Nevertheless, Kyrgyzstan has serious problems because of inefficient use
and pollution of water resources, land degradation, and improper
agricultural practices.
Water Resources
Although Kyrgyzstan has abundant water running through it, its water
supply is determined by a post-Soviet sharing agreement among the five
Central Asian republics. As in the Soviet era, Kyrgyzstan has the right to
25 percent of the water that originates in its territory, but the new
agreement allows Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan unlimited use of the water
that flows into them from Kyrgyzstan, with no compensation for the nation
at the source. Kyrgyzstan uses the entire amount to which the agreement
entitles it, but utilization is skewed heavily in favor of agricultural
irrigation. In 1994 agriculture accounted for about 88 percent of total
water consumption, compared with 8 percent by industry and 4 percent by
municipal water distribution systems. According to World Bank (see
Glossary) experts, Kyrgyzstan has an adequate supply of high-quality water
for future use, provided the resource is prudently managed.
Irrigation is extremely wasteful of water because the distribution
infrastructure is old and poorly maintained. In 1993 only an estimated 5
percent of required maintenance expenditures was allocated. Overall, an
estimated 70 percent of the nation's water supply network is in need of
repair or replacement. The quality of drinking water from this aging
system is poorly monitored--the water management staff has been cut
drastically because of inadequate funds. Further, there is no money to buy
new water disinfection equipment when it is needed. Some aquifers near
industrial and mining centers have been contaminated by heavy metals,
oils, and sanitary wastes. In addition, many localities rely on surface
sources, making users vulnerable to agricultural runoff and livestock
waste, which seep gradually downward from the surface. The areas of lowest
water quality are the heavily populated regions of the Chu Valley and Osh
and Jalal-Abad provinces, and areas along the rivers flowing into Ysyk-Köl.
In towns, wastewater collection provides about 70 percent of the water
supply. Although towns have biological treatment equipment, as much as 50
percent of such equipment is rated as ineffective. The major sources of
toxic waste in the water supply are the mercury mining combine at
Haidarkan; the antimony mine at Kadamzai; the Kadzyi Sai uranium mine,
which ceased extraction in 1967 but which continues to leach toxic
materials into nearby Ysyk Köl; the Kara-Balta Uranium Recovery
Plant; the Min Kush deposit of mine tailings; and the Kyrgyz Mining and
Metallurgy Plant at Orlovka.
Land Management
The most important problems in land use are soil erosion and
salinization in improperly irrigated farmland. An estimated 60 percent of
Kyrgyzstan's land is affected by topsoil loss, and 6 percent by
salinization, both problems with more serious long-term than short-term
effects. In 1994 the size of livestock herds averaged twice the carrying
capacity of pasturage land, continuing the serious overgrazing problem and
consequent soil erosion that began when the herds were at their peak in
the late 1980s (see Agriculture, this ch.). Uncertain land tenure and
overall financial insecurity have caused many private farmers to
concentrate their capital in the traditional form--livestock--thus
subjecting new land to the overgrazing problem.
The inherent land shortage in Kyrgyzstan is exacerbated by the flooding
of agricultural areas for hydroelectric projects. The creation of Toktogol
Reservoir on the Naryn River, for example, involved the flooding of 13,000
hectares of fertile land. Such projects have the additional effect of
constricting downstream water supply; Toktogol deprives the lower reaches
of the Syrdariya in Uzbekistan and the Aral Sea Basin of substantial
amounts of water. Because the Naryn Basin, where many hydroelectric
projects are located, is very active seismically, flooding is also a
danger should a dam be broken by an earthquake. Several plants are now in
operation in zones where Richter Scale readings may reach eleven.
The Aral Sea
In response to the internationally recognized environmental crisis of
the rapid desiccation of the Aral Sea, the five states sharing the Aral
Sea Basin (Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and
Uzbekistan) are developing a strategy to end the crisis. The World Bank
and agencies of the United Nations (UN) have developed an Aral Sea
Program, the first stage of which is funded by the five countries and
external donors. That stage has seven areas of focus, one of which--land
and water management in the upper watersheds--is of primary concern to
Kyrgyzstan. Among the conditions detrimental to the Aral Sea's environment
are erosion from deforestation (photos | news) and overgrazing, contamination from poorly
managed irrigation systems, and uncontrolled waste from mining and
municipal effluents. Kyrgyzstan's National Environmental Action Plan
(NEAP) has addressed these problems as part of its first-phase priorities
in cooperation with the Aral Sea Program.
Environmental Policy Making
The NEAP, adopted in 1994, is the basic blueprint for environmental
protection. The plan focuses on solving a small number of critical
problems, collecting reliable information to aid in that process, and
integrating environmental measures with economic and social development
strategy. The initial planning period is to end in 1997. The main targets
of that phase are inefficient water resource management, land degradation,
overexploitation of forest reserves, loss of biodiversity, and pollution
from inefficient mining and refining practices.
Because of severe budget constraints, most of the funds for NEAP
operations come from international sources, including official
institutions such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank and
numerous international nongovernmental organizations. Implementation is
guided by a committee of state ministers and by a NEAP Expert Working
Group, both established in 1994 by executive order. A NEAP office in
Bishkek was set up with funds from Switzerland.
The main environmental protection agency of the Kyrgyzstani government
is the State Committee on Environmental Protection, still known by its
Soviet-era acronym, Goskompriroda. Established by the old regime in 1988,
the agency's post-Soviet responsibilities have been described in a series
of decrees beginning in 1991. In 1994 the state committee had a central
office in Bishkek, one branch in each of the seven provinces, and a total
staff of about 150 persons. Because of poorly defined lines of
responsibility, administrative conflicts often occur between local and
national authorities of Goskompriroda and between Goskompriroda and a
second national agency, the Hydrometeorological Administration (Gidromet),
which is the main monitoring agency for air, water, and soil quality. In
general, the vertical hierarchy structure, a relic of Soviet times, has
led to poor coordination and duplication of effort among environmental
protection agencies.
Data as of March 1996
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