Environment and Security: Transforming risks into cooperation

Eastern Caspian

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Environment and Security

to preventing pollution and conserving wet- land biodiversity. To this end the Ak Zhayk state nature reserve on the Ural delta is be- ing established thanks to the joint efforts of the Kazakh government, local authorities, international organisations and communi- ties (UNDP 2007). The Kazakh government, which considers the supply and quality of water a high prior- ity, has developed the “Drinking Water Pro- gramme 2003–10” which covers both east- ern Caspian provinces. The programme has been allocated substantial financial resourc- es, with a national budget exceeding 100 bil- lion tenge. Thanks to implementation of this programme the share of the population with access to tap water increased by roughly 3–7% by 2006. Furthermore water filters and modern desalination facilities are being in- stalled to improve drinking water quality. Turkmenistan’s Balkan province also suf- fers from water scarcity since permanent surface waters are limited to the Atrek river, the Yashan and Chilmamedkum groundwa- ter lens and a number of shallow perennial lakes and rivers 60 . The Karakum Canal, a gigantic 1 300 km long artificial waterway which takes water from the Amu Darya riv- er terminates in Balkan province supplying agricultural fields and settlements along its banks, including in the eastern Caspian re- gion 61 . The use of water from the Atrek river remains a sensitive issue between Iran and Turkmenistan, because in dry years the delta receives virtually no water, which has a di- rect impact on the livelihoods in the lower reaches and delta due to the reduction in the volume of water available for drinking, ag- ricultural activities and especially fisheries. (See the box devoted to the Atrek river).

Average domestic freshwater use in Balkan province is 45 million cu m a year. About 70% of population has access to tap water. In the recent past a number of settlements on the Caspian coast of Turkmenistan were supplied by water from the Volga and tank- ers from Baku. After independence these services stopped and alternatives had to be found: desalination and local water tanks. These solutions were quite problematic and the water supply was repeatedly interrupted due to technical failures 62 . The towns of Esenguly, Garabogaz and Turkmenbashy are supplied with water from desalination plants and receive additional water from the Balkan mountains via pipe- lines. Traditional methods condensing water from atmospheric moisture transported by sea winds are being used in some places. Industry uses more than 50% of all water 63 , reflecting the province’s industrial profile. The question of the availability of water and its quality is a key issue in the eastern Caspian region. There are major differences in access between urban and rural areas, with the latter at a clear disadvantage. In- adequate access reinforces poverty in rural areas, since poor families are forced to buy water or fetch it from open sources (when available). In addition to low per capita wa- ter availability, a significant proportion of the eastern Caspian rural population drinks water that is often below quality limits. The high mineral content of drinking water of- ten results in kidney and bladder diseases, enteric infections and viral hepatitis, and a general decline in health. Poor water treat- ment resulted in cholera outbreak in Aktau in 2001 when crops were irrigated with un- treated wastewater.