Improving River Regulation to Restore Ecosystems and Improve Livelihood in Syr Darya Basin of Kazakhstan

Decline of the Aral Sea started in the 1960s as increasing amounts of water were diverted from the Amu Darya and Syr Darya Rivers mainly for irrigation.  Between 1960 and 1996, the surface area of the sea declined by some 50% (from 67,000 km2 to 30,000 km2) and the sea level dropped by 16 meters.  By 1990, the Aral Sea split into a small Northern Aral Sea (NAS) and a Large Southern Aral Sea (LAS) as the waters receded.  Derelict freighters and fishing boats as well as the salt landscape drew the world’s attention to the environmental crisis facing the Aral Sea or what is now referred to as the “Aral Sea Disaster.”  The mismanagement of land and water resources has actually caused degradation extending beyond the Sea to the total basin. 

The desiccation of the Aral Sea and the damage to the river deltas has resulted in serious economic, social, and environmental consequences.  Fish production in the delta and the NAS has been virtually extinguished, as well as hay production that benefited in the past from natural flooding along streams, lakes, and wetlands.  The salinity and pollution levels of the river and NAS have increased.  Dust and salt storms occur often, and local climatic changes are regularly taking place around the Sea.  It is becoming more and more difficult to locate adequate and safe drinking water supplies.  With environmental degradation and decline in drinking water quality, human health problems in the surrounding districts have sharply increased.  As a result, life expectancies in these areas are significantly lower than elsewhere in the countries that border the sea.  Moreover, tens of thousands of jobs were lost in the former fishing, agriculture, and service sectors.  Huge tracts of agriculture lands were degraded by wind and water-borne salt from the rivers, soil, groundwater, the dried seabed, and dried up wetlands.  The ecological system has deteriorated severely, affecting people, and wildlife.  The lowering of the Aral Sea level has also resulted in river bed erosion and the lowering of river water levels, making diversions of water for filling of inland delta lakes difficult or even impossible.

It is widely recognized that the goal of restoring the entire Aral Sea to previous levels is not achievable or realistic in the face of existing constraints and requirement for irrigation upon which the livelihood of the population living on the Aral Sea Basin throughout Central Asia depends.  It is estimated that to restore the sea in 25 years would require 75 billion cubic meters of water annually, the availability of which is unrealistic, because it would require either billions of U.S. dollars in investments to improve the efficiency of the existing irrigation systems upstream, or closing most of the irrigation systems.  However, the NAS, which is fed by the Syr Darya, can be rehabilitated by building a dike to raise the water level in the sea.  Simultaneously, the delta area, wetlands, and lakes near the NAS can be rehabilitated.  For a more efficient restoration of the NAS, the carrying capacity of Syr Darya would have to be increased through rehabilitation of the number of hydraulic structures on the Syr Darya within the territory of Kazakhstan, and removal of major bottlenecks constraining the river’s carrying capacity.  A partially restored NAS will have a much lower salinity than the LAS, thereby improving the environmental situation, improving the fisheries potential, and in particular, enhancing the socio-economic conditions in the area.

To restore the Aral Sea and improve the livelihood of the population living in the area, the Government of Kazakhstan with the assistance of the World Bank is implementing the Syr Darya Control and Northern Aral Sea Project.  The objective of the Project is to sustain and increase agricultural production, including livestock and fish production in the Syr Darya Basin in Kazakhstan; and to secure the existence of the Northern Aral Sea and improving the ecological/environmental conditions in the Delta and around the Sea leading to improved human and animal health and conservation of biodiversity.  The Project would reconstruct and/or rehabilitate key hydraulic infrastructure on the Syr Darya.  The infrastructure selected for rehabilitation under the Project would:  (i) check the river bed erosion from moving upstream and destroying valuable infrastructure; (ii) remove major bottlenecks in the river carrying capacity towards the NAS and the Delta.  This would allow improved water management in the basin, reduce losses and increase water savings; and (iii) improve and sustain water distribution to irrigated lands, hayfields, and fresh water lakes in the delta area.  The infrastructure included for rehabilitation under the Project is of a multi-sectoral nature used for irrigation, environment and fisheries, flood protection, and hydropower.  The Project intends to achieve its objectives through implementation of the following components:

Rehabilitation of Northern Aral Sea:  A well-engineered dike would be constructed across the Berg strait, a deep channel connecting NAS and LAS.  The dike would be provided with a spillway for regular use, and an emergency spillway with an earthen fuse plug.  These measures would create a stable level of the NAS and allow for flushing to maintain salinity at an acceptable level and pass flows during periods of high inflow.

Improving the Hydraulic Control of the Syr Darya: Rehabilitation and construction of hydraulic structures will contribute to regulating and improving water management, and controlling allocations to various water users, including an increased inflow for the NAS.  Works under this component include: (i) reconstruction of Aklak weir (and related works); (ii) reconstruction of the Aitek and Karaozek water control structures; (iii) rehabilitation and construction of low height dikes along the River to protect urban and rural areas from flooding and for increasing flow capacity of the River; and (iv) repairs of Kazalinsk headwork and Kzyl Orda barrage.

Rehabilitation of Shardara Dam: The Shardara Dam is the first and major structure on the Syr Darya within the territory of Kazakhstan.  It provides water for irrigation, and generates electricity.  The Shardara Dam does not meet the normal safety standards and it is considered at risk.  The rehabilitation of the Chardara Dam would cover priority works in order to ensure its safety in the immediate future. 

Aquatic Resources Restoration and Fisheries Development: This component aims to ensure the maximization of benefits from additional fisheries in the NAS as a result of the stabilization of the NAS level and salinity, as well as the improved flow of water to the delta lakes.  The fisheries component would provide: (i) technical assistance for the preparation and implementation of a detailed resources and fisheries development plan; (ii) investments for rehabilitation of existing hatchery facilities at Kamyshbash (for Cyprinid and other forms of freshwater aquaculture) and at Tastak (for sturgeon production); (iii) the importation of sturgeon fingerlings, if needed; (iii) credit for fishermen; and (iv) the development of fish freezing, processing, and marketing facilities.  The development plan would be based on a community driven approach in order to involve all potential beneficiaries.
 
The project’s expected benefits are as follows:

The project benefits are: (i) increased crop, livestock and fish production; (ii) improvements in water availability, water, soil and air quality, state of the flora and fauna, resulting in a better living environment and health of the population in Kazalinsk and Aralsk.  Particularly, in addition to increased fish production, the rehabilitation of the NAS would improve the environment.  Reconstruction/Rehabilitation of several major hydraulic structures would: (a) improve water distribution to various users such as irrigation, fisheries, hayfields, and flood protection; (b) reduce water losses in the river system; and (c) check river bed erosion and stop damage to the infrastructure.  With the Project, sustainable water supplies would be ensured to some 150,000 ha of irrigated lands, hayfields and freshwater lakes.
 
Specifically, (i) the reconstruction of Aklak weir would restore water supply to 6,000 ha of hayfield and 6,000 ha of lakes; (ii) reconstruction of Aitek would secure water supply to 17,000 ha of irrigated lands, 20,000 ha of hayfields, 80,000 of pastures, and 600 ha of lakes and 1,350 ha of wetlands ecosystems; (iii) repairs of Kzyl Orda and Kazalinsk barrages would ensure water supply to 98,000 ha and 39,000 ha of irrigated lands and lakes respectively; and (iv) flood protection dikes would protect urban and rural settlements (including Kzyl Orda town) and help in increasing the carrying capacity of the River and reduce losses to Arnasai depression which would benefit Uzbekistan.  The Chardara Dam is the largest structure on Syr Darya and of national importance to Kazakhstan.  Rehabilitation of the Chardara Dam would result in reduced water losses, ensured water supplies for irrigation and other sectors, and increased hydropower production.

The project’s main beneficiaries are the approximately 1 million people living primarily in Kzyl Orda Oblast, the poorest region of the country.  The Project will contribute to improving the living conditions and reduce poverty in Aralsk and Kazalinsk raions of the Kzyl Orda Oblast, an internationally recognized area affected by the Aral Sea environmental catastrophe with a population of 150,000 to 200,000 people.

Even though construction of various structures under the Project has just begun, it is clear so far that the Project could meet its objectives.  During the last and this winter, the partially completed hydraulic structures and dikes helped Kazakhstan to pass unusually high winter flows.  The amount of water that passed through the system during this period was more than twice as much as in the previous years.  It is also evident that after higher flows to the delta area and Northern Aral Sea (NAS), the salinity of the lakes has reduced considerably, resulting in increased fish resources in the lakes and NAS.  The availability of more water in Syr Darya provides the needed water resources for increased production in agriculture, fisheries, and livestock in the project area.  In addition, the higher flows will result in filling of the Northern Aral Sea faster than expected and will improve the natural environment in and around the Aral Sea considerably.  With completion of all planned works under the Project, and better operation of the Shardara Dam, flows to the Syr Darya Delta and NAS can be expected to improve further, thus providing additional evidence that the project objectives will be achieved.