Kyrgyzstan Environment Profile 2012

Environmental awareness and concerns for long-term environmental sustainability have not been adopted as priorities for the country. The level of water in the Toktogul reservoir, the major source of irrigation water and hydroelectric power in Central Asia, has dropped to critical lows following a series of dry seasons and in general unsustainable management. The buildup of industrial and radioactive waste is a looming threat, but the government is not able to cope with this challenge without external support.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farming reported recently that the growth of sheep and livestock has risen to the levels seen during Soviet times, which is a serious burden on the sustainability of grazing lands and the preservation of wilderness in the mountains. Thus, economic growth has placed ecological issues as a secondary concern in practice, even though in principle environmental hazards are taken into account during economic planning. These challenges are coupled with the even larger concerns of global warming, an increasingly drier climate and melting glaciers.