A unique UNESCO-protected area in Kyrgyzstan has been earmarked for the mining of alluvial gold and the construction of a hydroelectric power station, according to ecologists from the international coalition “Rivers Without Boundaries.”
Fresh satellite images from the Sentinel spacecraft, analyzed by specialists from the environmental coalition, reveal signs of active mining at the 73-hectare Naiza-Tugai alluvial gold site in the heart of the Besh-Aral State Reserve in Kyrgyzstan. Another placer gold site, called “Arab,” covering 69 hectares in the same specially protected natural area, is awaiting development. This encroachment into the protected area has the full consent of the authorities, who approved the issuance of the necessary licenses to gold miners based on an order from the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic dated May 30, 2023, No. 290-r.
“The pollution of the once pristine Chatkal River within the reserve is now noticeable even from low-Earth orbit. Turbidity currents from gold mining waste have clouded the entire riverbed. This level of water pollution is typical for gold mining, not geological exploration work,” points out Alexander Kolotov, coordinator of the environmental coalition Rivers Without Boundaries for Central Asia.
The developed fields may also fall into the flood zone of the new hydroelectric power station’s reservoir on the Chatkal River. Kyrgyz authorities are actively seeking investors for this project within the Besh-Aral Nature Reserve. At a recent investment forum supported by the World Bank in Vienna, Austria, an updated project for the Chatkal hydroelectric power station was presented. This includes the creation of a reservoir with a volume of 860 mn cubic meters, the construction of a 10-kilometer diversion tunnel from the dam to the turbine room, and the installation of a power line to export electricity to neighboring Uzbekistan.
“Initially, investors were sought for two hydroelectric power stations in Chatkal. Now the focus is on one hydroelectric station with a dam 170-200 meters high. Such a hydroelectric power station will destroy the existing ecosystems of the Chatkal River valley along almost the entire length of the Besh-Aral Nature Reserve, effectively cutting it in half,” notes Evgeniy Simonov, international coordinator of the environmental coalition Rivers Without Boundaries.
Ecologists warn that the negative environmental consequences of such large-scale development within the transboundary UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site “Western Tien Shan” could lead to the site losing its unique natural properties and being excluded from the World Heritage List.
The next session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee will be held in New Delhi, India, from July 21-30, 2024. Representatives of the international coalition Rivers Without Boundaries have received an official invitation to participate in the session. They aim to bring global attention to the environmental degradation threatening this unique UNESCO-protected area and advocate for the preservation of its natural heritage.
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