Environment - The Times Of Central Asia

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Waste-to-Energy

Chinese Firm Proposes $95 Million Kyrgyzstan Waste-to-Energy Plant

A subsidiary of the state-owned China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group (CECEP) is considering a $95 million waste-to-energy plant in southern Kyrgyzstan. CECEP Environmental Protection’s proposal comes as Chinese companies play a growing role in turning municipal waste into electricity and heat in the country. Company representatives discussed the proposal on November 3 with Ravshanbek Sabirov, director of the National Investment Agency under the President of the Kyrgyz Republic. The proposed complex would initially process 800 metric tons of waste per day, equivalent to 292,000 tons annually if operated continuously. Capacity could eventually rise to 2,000 tons per day. The city of Manas, formerly Jalal-Abad, and the nearby Suzak district are being considered as possible locations. Feasibility and environmental studies are still needed to establish the project’s final design and cost. The agency announced neither an investment agreement nor a construction timetable. In December 2025, Bishkek opened what authorities described as Central Asia’s first operational waste-to-energy plant. Built by China’s Hunan Junxin Environmental Protection at a cost of $95 million, the facility was designed to process 1,000 metric tons of municipal waste daily and generate up to 30 megawatts of electricity. The plant operates at Bishkek’s main landfill, where decades of accumulated waste have created environmental problems for surrounding communities. It was developed under a 35-year concession agreement, after which it is to be transferred to the state. Construction of a second phase began in June 2026. The expansion is intended to raise total processing capacity to 3,000 tons per day and electricity generation capacity to 90 megawatts. Hunan Junxin is also involved in a waste-to-energy plant under construction in Osh and a project in the Issyk-Kul region. A groundbreaking ceremony for the latter was held in Karakol in October 2025, with initial facilities planned for the Ak-Suu district and Balykchy. Waste-to-energy plants reduce the volume of material sent to landfills, but incineration is not recycling. Recovering reusable materials such as plastics and paper requires separate collection and sorting systems. Environmental performance also depends on emissions controls and the treatment of ash and other residues. In an earlier interview with The Times of Central Asia, Chinara Sultanalieva, founder of the UpKel recycling project, said contaminated plastic and inadequate collection infrastructure made it difficult for recycling businesses to secure reliable supplies of usable material.

Tiger Reintroduction

Kazakhstan Tiger Reintroduction: Second Amur Tiger Released into the Wild

Kazakhstan has released a second Amur tiger into the wild as part of a program to restore the big cats to Central Asia. The male, named Amur, was freed in the Ile-Balkhash State Nature Reserve in southeastern Kazakhstan on October 31. The first tiger, a female named Umit, was released on July 31. According to Kazakhstan's Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, she is already hunting independently and exploring her new territory. Both animals are being tracked using satellite collars. Tigers disappeared from the wild in Kazakhstan by the middle of the 20th century. Hunting contributed to their local extinction, while the development of river valleys destroyed the dense woodlands and shrublands along rivers in Central Asia's arid regions. Populations of wild boar, deer, and other prey animals also declined. The Turan, or Caspian, tiger once ranged from Central Asia to the Caucasus and northern Iran. Genetic studies have established its close relationship with the Amur tiger, which inhabits Russia's Far East. Conservationists therefore selected Amur tigers for reintroduction to this historical range. In November 2025, Kazakhstan and Russia agreed to transfer four tigers. In May 2026, two adult tigers and two cubs captured in the wild were brought from Russia's Khabarovsk region. They were placed in enclosures to adjust to conditions at the reserve, established in 2018 on the southern shore of Lake Balkhash. Before releasing Amur, specialists assessed his health, ability to find food independently, and response to human presence. The two cubs remain under observation. A decision on their release will be made once they reach an appropriate age and pass the necessary assessments. The return of tigers has raised concerns among some Kazakhstanis. After Umit's release, social media users questioned the safety of tourists and residents around Lake Balkhash. They worried that the tigress might approach settlements or attack livestock, while some said they were reconsidering trips to the lake. The ministry outlined a system of three safety zones around Umit's habitat. A specialized response team is tasked with intervening if a tiger approaches populated areas. Measures include warning residents, driving the animal back to a safe area, and, if necessary, sedating and relocating it. Public access to the reserve is restricted. An AI-generated tiger adjusting to life near Lake Balkhash has become a social media sensation through videos posted by @qreative_qazaq on Instagram. In the videos, the tiger speaks Russian and Kazakh, complains about mosquitoes, searches for a mobile phone signal, and tries to figure out where to find food. By August 11, the first video had attracted approximately 3.2 million views. Other images circulating online have caused confusion. In August, the ministry rejected a photograph purportedly showing a chance sighting of Umit. Officials said the image showed signs of possible AI generation and that specialists knew Umit's actual location through satellite monitoring. To support the tigers' return, conservationists are restoring tugai forests, woodlands that grow along rivers, and increasing populations of wild hoofed animals in the delta of the Ili River, which flows into Lake...

Nature Reserve

Kazakhstan Tree Planting Drive Faces Wildfires and Low Survival Rates

In late October, as firefighters battled forest fires in three regions of Kazakhstan, authorities announced a 300 million tenge (approximately $660,000) project, funded by state-owned Samruk-Kazyna, to restore pine forests in the Semey Ormany nature reserve in the country's east. The project involves planting three million pine seedlings across 762 hectares. Three years earlier, a wildfire swept through approximately 60,000 hectares of the reserve. Fourteen forestry workers died, while authorities also counted a local tractor driver who went to help fight the blaze as a 15th victim. Experts estimate that the wider ecosystem could take at least 70 years to recover. Such losses are particularly severe for Kazakhstan, where forests cover only about 5% of the country's territory. Kazakhstan is now in the sixth year of a program to plant two billion trees. By the end of 2025, authorities had reported approximately 1.6 billion plantings and seedings, although a later government report put the figure at 1.7 billion. In some years, most seedlings have failed to survive. What Counts Toward Two Billion Trees? The program was launched in 2020, with planting originally scheduled for completion by 2025. The deadline was subsequently extended to 2027. Ecology Minister Yerlan Nysanbayev attributed the delay to insufficient funding and a shortage of equipment and resources. In July 2025, the Ministry of Ecology reported that approximately 743 million were seedlings and another 640 million were seeds sown directly into the ground. Government statistics therefore include both planting and seeding, although the success of the latter depends on germination rates. Much of the work is taking place on the dried seabed of the Aral Sea. Once one of the world's largest lakes, the Aral Sea shrank dramatically after water was diverted from its feeder rivers for irrigation, causing an environmental disaster. Its exposed seabed became a source of salt-laden dust carried by winds far beyond the Aral Sea region, which spans parts of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. To stabilize the sands, workers plant saxaul, a desert tree or shrub with an extensive root system. Between 2021 and 2025, forest reclamation work covered approximately 1.1 million hectares of the former seabed, using both seedlings and seeds. Saxaul planting helps reduce dust storms, but it serves a different ecological purpose from restoring conventional forests. The two-billion-tree target therefore combines activities designed to address different environmental problems. Why Seedlings Fail to Survive According to the Ministry of Ecology, the survival rate of planted trees was 45.3% in 2021, 35.1% in 2022, and 31.2% in 2023. It rose to 50.5% in 2024. Before the program began, the rate had been approximately 54%. In western and southern Kazakhstan, young plants suffer from drought and high temperatures. Conditions are more favorable in the north and east, where survival rates can reach 70%. At Semey Ormany, the target survival rate for planted pine seedlings is 70% to 90%. Problems also arise from the way planting campaigns are organized. In October 2024, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov accused regional administrations of inflating greening figures and concealing...

Pasture Management

Kyrgyzstan Pasture Restoration Plan Includes 7,200 Kilometers of Road Repairs

Kyrgyzstan plans to repair hundreds of bridges and more than 7,200 kilometers of roads to help livestock farmers reach remote grazing land as pastures near villages deteriorate. The Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry outlined the plans on October 29. It estimates that 184,000 hectares of pasture near settlements have been degraded and need restoration. To ease grazing pressure near villages, the ministry has identified a need to repair and restore 553 bridges and improve 7,206.3 kilometers of pasture access roads. It also plans to establish 406 livestock watering points and install 170 milk collection tanks. Plans to restore vegetation include reseeding pastures, controlling weeds unsuitable for livestock feed, and rotating grazing areas. Tractors would be used for sowing on flat terrain and specialized drones in areas that are difficult to reach. According to the ministry, pasture grass seeds were sown on 34,376.5 hectares of degraded land between 2023 and 2025. In September, it reported purchasing more than 186 metric tons of seeds for 50 million soms (about $570,000). Sowing was still underway in October. Kyrgyzstan already has a pasture development program for 2024–2029, approved in August 2024. It also calls for restoring degraded grazing land and improving pasture infrastructure. The latest announcement did not explain how the new plans differ from the existing program or specify their overall cost. In March 2025, the ministry said it had recommended annual restrictions on grazing near villages from April 15 to September 15. At the time, it estimated that 139,069 hectares had been degraded. It is unclear whether the higher figure in the latest announcement reflects further deterioration or a revised assessment. The ministry estimates the country’s total pasture area at about 10 million hectares. Pastures are the main source of livestock feed, so their deterioration affects feed availability and farmers’ incomes. Kyrgyzstan’s livestock numbers continued to rise in 2025, reaching approximately 1.8 million cattle and 6.3 million sheep and goats by the end of the year, increases of 1.7% and 0.8%, respectively, over 2024.

National Parks

Kyrgyzstan Plans to Expand Protected Natural Areas

Kyrgyzstan plans to expand its protected natural areas under a draft strategy for 2026–2035. The expansion would bring additional high-altitude glaciers, rocky mountain areas, and state forest lands under protection. The Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision released the document for public consultation on October 26. An accompanying explanatory note proposes increasing protected land from 11.8% of the country’s territory to 20% by 2030 and 30% by 2035. However, another section of the strategy sets 2030 as the deadline for reaching 30%, leaving the intended timetable unclear. Kyrgyzstan’s protected natural areas currently cover approximately 2.36 million hectares. The increase in protected land in recent years partly reflects the creation of ecological corridors linking protected areas, including the 792,000-hectare Ak Ilbirs corridor in 2025. Under the proposal, the expansion would take place without removing productive pastures from agricultural use. Traditional livestock grazing by local residents would continue to be permitted in buffer zones. The country has ten state nature reserves covering a total of 509,900 hectares and 13 national nature parks spanning 724,900 hectares. The draft strategy calls for upgrading their infrastructure, introducing digital monitoring and recordkeeping systems, and improving training and equipment for park rangers. Other priorities include combating poaching and protecting mountain wildlife, including snow leopards and Tien Shan brown bears, as well as ancient walnut forests and glaciers. Private investors would be allowed to develop tourism facilities in designated recreational zones within national parks. However, the draft would prohibit transferring protected land into private ownership and constructing permanent buildings. The authorities also propose introducing cashless payments for admission tickets to reduce unrecorded revenue. Residents of nearby communities would have opportunities to earn income through guesthouses and other small tourism businesses. The strategy’s authors acknowledge the risk of ecosystem degradation from growing tourist numbers. The document specifically identifies the popular Ala-Archa, Karakol, Chon-Kemin, and Kyrgyz-Ata parks as areas of concern. It proposes limits on visitor numbers along popular routes to reduce littering and damage to vegetation. The strategy would be financed through existing government allocations, income from park visitors, and international grants, with no additional budget spending required, according to its authors. Kyrgyzstan’s nature reserves and national parks received more than 271,000 visitors in 2025, an increase of nearly 24% from the previous year. Revenue from park visits more than doubled to $431,000.

Cotton Harvest

Uzbekistan Cotton Harvest Reaches 4.63 Million Tons as Water Losses Persist

Uzbekistan's Ministry of Agriculture says the country had harvested 4.63 million metric tons of raw cotton as of October 22, exceeding its target by 3%. About 76% of the cotton harvested so far was harvested mechanically, reflecting the industry's shift away from manual labor. A new study, however, highlights another challenge: extensive water losses in the country's irrigation system. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, nearly 3,000 harvesting machines collected 3.52 million metric tons of cotton. Mechanized harvesting accounted for 98.5% of the crop in the Jizzakh region, 94.2% in the Syrdarya region, and 81.2% in the Tashkent region. In other regions, the figure was as low as 61%. Although the national target has been exceeded, the first picking is continuing on more than 49,000 hectares. Machines have reduced the need for seasonal workers in an industry that depended on large-scale manual labor for decades. Nevertheless, approximately 1.1 million metric tons of cotton was still picked by hand. At an international seminar on October 19–20, the government-linked Center for Economic Research and Reforms presented a study reporting that cotton yields had increased by 71% and grain yields by 48% between 2017 and 2025, while water withdrawals had declined by 22%. Water-saving technologies now cover 2.6 million hectares of agricultural land, according to the study. The same study, however, estimates that approximately 37% of irrigation water is lost during transportation through canals, while nearly half of irrigated farmland is affected by soil salinization. A 2021 World Bank report estimated that agriculture accounts for nearly 90% of the country's freshwater withdrawals, with cotton the largest user of irrigation water. These losses are particularly significant for Uzbekistan, whose agricultural sector depends on water from the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers. Decades of river water diversion for irrigation have been among the main causes of the Aral Sea's decline. The study also assesses the climate impact of agricultural production, finding that agriculture accounts for 17.5% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions. Methane, primarily associated with livestock farming, makes up nearly two-thirds of the sector's emissions. Proposed measures include reducing water losses, restoring pastures, and improving fertilizer efficiency. The pressure on Uzbekistan's water resources is also expected to increase. In July, the OECD warned that shrinking glaciers, rising temperatures, and growing demand threaten to reduce the country's water availability in the coming decades.