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Turkmenistan: Turkmenistan Environment Profile 2012

2012/04/05

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Turkmenistan Environment Profile 2012

Legislative and executive environmental consciousness is low. Although the Turkmen government is obligated to protect the environment by signing a number of international environmental agreements, pollution has not decreased. Traffic and the petrochemical industry keep air pollution levels high. Drinking water quality has reached health-threatening levels, while the irrigation and drainage systems are in poor condition, endangering the groundwater supply. In addition, overcropping and lack of crop rotation are straining soil quality. Despite these serious concerns, environmental issues receive only sporadic consideration, especially if they are linked to economic growth. The Golden Lake project, designed to collect polluted drainage water in northern Turkmenistan, has begun without proper consideration of its environmental consequences, especially for neighboring Uzbekistan. There is a long-term political effort to reduce the economic dependence on raw materials by promoting a domestic textile industry, although this remains insignificant compared to the export market.