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Environment and Security
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The Uzen oilfield was discovered in 1959 and
development began in 1964. The oilfield is
35 km long from east to west and 8 km wide
from north to south. It is the largest in size in
the eastern Caspian region. In 1975 produc-
tion culminated at 330 000 barrels of oil a day.
Since 1990 there has been a sharp decline in
overall output (down to 50–60 000 barrels a
day in the mid-1990s) mostly due to obsolete
technology and the degraded state of pro-
duction facilities. In 2005, after the introduc-
tion of improved technology and increased
water-pumping to maintain pressure, produc-
tion rose to 132 000 barrels a day. In all 4 500
wells are now operating on the field. By 2006
about 300 million tonnes of oil had been ex-
tracted at Uzen since the start of operations.
Increasing oil production gave rise to severe
environmental problems. An aerial survey
conducted in 1989 showed that an estimated
10 000 ha of land in Uzen were polluted by oil
spills; of these 3 600 ha were considered se-
verely polluted. Spillage around the wellheads
or pipeline failures had contaminated about
3 million tonnes of soil. Two large oil-waste pits
originated as emergency oil retention ponds in
the early 1970s. Overall almost no attention has
been paid to protecting the environment from
oil exploitation over the last 30 years. As a result
nearly 30 000 ha of land have been damaged
by mechanical compaction, spills and erosion.
According to the local authorities and EBRD,
the cost of improving environmental protec-
tion, mitigating damage and rehabilitating land
at Uzen is estimated at US$100 million.
The town of Jana Uzen (70 000 people) and
the oil-extracting enterprise Uzen use a lot
of water. The bulk of water is supplied by a
water pipeline from the Volga river and from
the Caspian Sea. However a smaller part of
the water is pumped from nearby natural
groundwater reserves. Since 1971 intense
exploitation of the Tyu Suu fresh groundwa-
ter lenses has lowered the water table, af-
fecting vegetation and creating large sand
dunes. These moved towards the village of
Senek, Mangystau Province’s largest farm,
partly burying the north-western edge of the
village. Scientists have warned that similar
expansion of deserts near the Ushtagan
Oil extraction and water use in Uzen, Kazakhstan
with fears the local air quality may deterio-
rate, which in turn would have a negative
effect on public health
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An additional source of concern is the dis-
mantling and disposal of shipwrecks in Bau-
tino Bay, where the remains of more than 50
sunken and stranded vessels are located.
Though many of the ships have already been
brokenupand removed, the remainingwrecks
not only pose a danger to passing boats but
may also contribute to sea pollution.
Realizing the necessity to protect the eco-
system of the Caspian Sea and its biodi-
versity while developing the oilfields in the
region, the governments and local authori-
ties of both Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan
have prioritized issues related to ecology
and safety. In particular Kazakhstan has
banned gas flaring (natural gas combustion)
and dumping of waste into the sea. In both
countries environmental standards and ac-
cident-prevention rules have been brought
in line with international standards. Addi-
tionally several measures designed to im-
prove the response in the event of oil spills
have been adopted, including the creation
of a maritime emergency unit. National Ac-
tion Plans for Oil Spillage Prevention and
Response have been developed for the
sea and inland waters. Finally, within the
Framework Convention on the Protection
of the Marine Environment of the Caspian
Sea (the Tehran Convention) several proto-
cols in priority areas have been drafted and
submitted to the littoral states for review
and ratification
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