Kazakhstan and the World Bank have reaffirmed their commitment to joint efforts aimed at the restoration of the North Aral Sea.
On May 16, at the Kokaral dam in Kazakhstan’s Kyzylorda region, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Nurzhan Nurzhigitov met with Sameh Wahba, the Regional Director for Sustainable Development at the Europe and Central Asia region in the World Bank, to review the second phase of the North Aral Sea restoration project, initiated in response to the catastrophic shrinkage of the Aral Sea.
The North Aral Sea is the portion of the former Aral Sea fed by the Syr Darya River. It split from the South Aral Sea in 1987–1988, when water levels dropped due to water diversion for agricultural use.
The 12-km long Kokaral dam splits off the North Aral Sea from the South Aral Sea. It was completed in 2005 to control the water level of the North Aral Sea.
The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation is completing a feasibility study for the second phase of the project, aimed to reconstruct the Kokaral dam and raise the North Aral Sea level to 44 meters, as well as construct a hydroelectric complex near the village of Amanotkel to stabilize water resources in the Akshatau and Kamystybas lake systems in the Kyzylorda region.
As a result of the second phase, the water surface area of the North Aral is to increase to 3,913 square kilometers and its volume to 34 cubic kilometers within the next 4-5 years.
Sameh Wahba reconfirmed that the World Bank, which allocated a grant for the development of the project’s feasibility study, remains committed to further participation in preserving the North Aral Sea.
In his words, together with Minister Nurzhigitov he visited a local fish processing plant and saw how many jobs have been created in the region due to the project’s implementation in such sectors as agriculture, livestock farming, and tourism. “The North Aral Sea conservation project is very important for us, as it shows the world an example of restoring an entire ecosystem,” said the World Bank Regional Director.
The North Aral Sea conservation project aims to increase the volume and improve the quality of water in the sea, restore the Syr Darya River delta, reduce wind-driven removal of salt deposits from the bottom of the Aral Sea, develop the fisheries industry in the Kyzylorda region, and improve the living conditions of local residents.
As a result of the first phase of the project, the volume of water in the North Aral has increased by 42% to 27 billion cubic meters, the salinity of the sea has decreased nearly fourfold, annual fish catches have risen to 8,000 tons, and 870 square kilometers of the dried-up seabed have been covered with water, reducing the wind-driven removal of salt deposits.
