Year: 2025
Collections: Research Paper
Topics: Climate, Water governance, Transboundary Water Resources, Transboundary cooperation, Hydropolitics
Authors: Albina Prniyazova, Suriya Turaeva, Daniyar Turgunov, Ben Jarihani
Countries:
Source: Sustainability
Sustainable transboundary water governance in Central Asia faces significant challenges, including political tensions, ecological issues, such as the drying Aral Sea, and seasonal hydropower disruptions impacting downstream countries. This study aims to address these problems by examining the complexities of water resource governance in the region, emphasizing the interplay between national interests and regional cooperation.
Year: 2025
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water
Authors:
Countries: Afghanistan
Source: https://water-ca.org
This study explores pathways to transformation through a focus on water relations among states, examining the intersection of water resources management, political conflicts, and historical grievances: (1) Ukraine and Russia regarding North Crimea Canal; and (2) Afghanistan and Pakistan in Kabul River Basin. Using these cases to support water conflict prevention, this study explores water interactions (disputes, arrangements, and agreements) from the time of respective sovereign statehoods: Afghanistan (1919), Pakistan (1947), and Ukraine and Russia (1991) through to 2022. The design of this study incorporates the Transboundary Waters Interaction Nexus (TWINs) framework to assess past water interactions; with the Four Stages of Water Conflict Transformation framework, used to assess 2022 state-level relations to determine collaborative skills to cultivate water transformation. Findings indicate that while Ukraine- Russia water relations are adversarial, and Afghanistan-Pakistan are in the reflective negotiation stage—territorial disputes and political economic dynamics hamper cooperation, though points of leverage (such as neutral third-party mediation, shared environmental and economic interests, and water diplomacy and legal frameworks) exist. This research provides value through broadening preventative and transformative strategies in politically sensitive and geopolitically unstable regions—showing that water can be a catalyst for equity and regional securitization.
Year: 2025
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water, Climate
Authors: Maiwand Omary
Countries: Afghanistan
Source: https://water-ca.org
Pollution and over-exploitation of groundwater aquifers in Kabul Province have led to deteriorated water quality and decreased quantity. In its turn, these have caused elevation of physical, chemical, and biological contaminant concentrations in the province’s groundwater beyond national and international drinking water quality standards. The article describes the outcomes of a pilot photovoltaic reverse osmosis (PV-RO) system for drinking water treatment in Qala-e-Gulbaz Village, Kabul Province, Afghanistan. The main system’s components include PV solar panels, three dosing pumps, two alternative current pumps, two alternative-to-direct-current inverters, sand and carbon filters, two sediment filters, one ultra-violet filter, two water flow meters, and a complete water supply distribution system. The study was assisted by the Danish Committee for Aid to Afghan Refugees (DACAAR) ground monitoring well (GMW) system; quality analysis of different physical, chemical, and biological parameters of raw and filtered water samples; measuring filtered water and wastewater flow rates; determining associated limitations and pressures; as well as valuating different related expenses during cost per capita calculations. Water quality testing has shown the system’s removal efficiency of 97% for salinity, 97% for total dissolved solids, above 90% for other chemicals (anions & cations), 65.52% for turbidity, and 100% for bacteria. The plant’s mean quantity efficiency has amounted to 50%. The study highlights certain key challenges including high initial cost, significant wastewater volume, and need for professional operators leading to high operational and maintenance expenditures, with the initial system’s cost per capita of USD79.54. Therefore, under the condition of optimizing efficiency, improving wastewater management, reducing original costs, implementing training programs, and developing the necessary policy framework PV-RO water treatment systems represent a viable alternative.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Energy
Authors: Hans Holzhacker, Botagoz Rakisheva
Countries: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan
Source: Central Asian Journal of Sustainability and Climate Research
In July-August, 2023, CAREC Institute, Public Opinion Research Institute, and Asian Development Bank Institute conducted a sociological survey on household energy use in the Fergana Valley spanning over the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. The following article uses the data from that survey for investigating what determines the choice of different energy types for heating. The article concludes that high household expenditures for coal and high awareness of the harm fossil fuels can inflict on the environment and family health are insufficient to trigger a large-scale shift towards cleaner energy. To motivate households for such a shift a substantial increase in fossil fuel prices compared to electricity and other clean energy is required. This might call for a sales tax on coal. However, energy expenditure already accounts for up to one-third of household income. Low- and middle-income households would need to be compensated for increased energy spending to avoid social hardship and a backlash against such a tax.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Climate
Authors: Susan Legro
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
Source: Central Asian Journal of Sustainability and Climate Research
Countries in Central Asia, which are highly vulnerable to climate change, experience a variety of health-related impacts to which they must adapt. At the same time, climate mitigation interventions in the health sector in the form of reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions may also generate co-benefits. This article briefly outlines current understanding of the relationship between climate change impacts and human health in Central Asia and establishes a scope of inquiry based on climate and health linkages as identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It then identifies and summarizes existing research and reporting on this topic in the region as presented in published literature, country reporting to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and gray literature, including policy literature and documentation of donor-funded development interventions in the region. This review, which attempts to summarize and appraise those efforts, has found that both peer-reviewed and grey literature on this topic must be used with caution. The most frequent problems with peer-reviewed and grey literature resources involved confounding bias, and—to a lesser extent—self-reporting bias. The use of an appraisal framework for grey literature sources can frame these diverse resources in the proper context, identify potential shortcomings, and gain insights into current priorities and future direction for research on climate change and health in the region.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water
Authors: Tillakarim T., Serikbay N., Satmurzayev A., Sairov S.
Countries: Kazakhstan
Source: water-ca.org
The research aimed to evaluate the possibility of applying the HBV model for assessing the flow of the Ile Alatau Mountain Range rivers. The main part of the corresponding water resources forms on the northern slopes of the Ile Alatau making them a significant water balance and water supply factor for the major cities of Almaty, Kaskelen, Talgar, and Yesik.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Climate
Authors: Isaev E., Murata Akihiko, Shin Fukui, Roy C. Sidle
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan
Source: https://water-ca.org/
Climate change poses various challenges for agriculture and water management practices in Central Asia (CA). Central to these challenges are cryosphere dynamics, fragile mountain ecosystems, and ongoing natural hazards that highlight the need for robust projections of regional climate change. For the first time, dynamic downscaling was conducted in Central Asia at a spatial resolution of 5 km.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Climate
Authors: Nina Miholjcic-Ivkovic
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
Source: Central Asian Journal of Sustainability and Climate Research
Central Asia is considered a region highly vulnerable to climate change impact and susceptible to climate-induced migration. Rural populations throughout the region are particularly at risk of experiencing adverse effects of climate variability and (im)mobility due to increased exposure to environmental hazards and distress that can severely affect agricultural productivity. This paper explores how climate change impacts migration trends in rural areas of Central Asia with an aim to contribute to the research on climate mobility in the region focusing on most vulnerable inhabitants. By examining the ongoing region's environmental degradation with increased aridity and retreating glaciers that affect local agriculture, water and food security, this paper suggests possible outcomes of such effects on rural mobility trends across five Central Asian countries.
Year: 2024
Collections: Research Paper
Topics: IWRM, Water law, Water diplomacy, Transboundary Water Resources, Transboundary cooperation
Authors: Ayşegül Kibaroğlu
Countries:
Source: Theorizing Transboundary Waters in International Relations
Water diplomacy encompasses the processes and institutions through which the national interests and identities of sovereign states are represented to one another. It is enshrined in international law, which states use to explain and justify their policies to concerned actors in the international system. States mostly prefer traditional tools of water diplomacy such as negotiation and mediation to resolve disputes in transboundary river basins.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water
Authors: Maiwand Omary, Mohammad Najim Nasimi, Mohammad Nasim Nasimi
Countries: Afghanistan
Source: https://water-ca.org
This study aimed to evaluate the suitability of Kabul Province’s groundwater for drinking by way of analyzing the data collected from 34 ground monitoring wells. The purpose was helped through the assessment of a set of groundwater physico-chemical parameters (pH, turbidity, total dissolved solids (TDS); sulfate, fluoride, nitrate, and boron content; total hardness (TH) as calcium carbonate, sodium, calcium, magnesium, and total iron), as well as the determination of the Water Quality Index (WQI) developed based on sampling the water points located in the districts of Kabul Province and Kabul City in the course of 3 years (2018 to 2020) to provide a clear and concise representation of water quality status, and cat-egorize groundwater into different quality classes ranging from “excellent” to “unsuitable for drinking”. Moreover, the spatial distribution of WQI and 12 physico-chemical parameter values was mapped using the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) Interpolation in Arcmap 10.7 environment, revealing distinct water quality patterns across the study area. The water qual-ity testing outcomes under this investigation show compliance of multiple water contaminant concentrations with the World Health Organization (WHO) Water Quality Guidelines and Afghanistan National Drinking Water Quality Standards (ANDWQS). The WQI values range between 27.5 and 112 (as per ANDWQS) and between 33 and 127.5 (as per WHO Guide-lines); the WQI (WHO) display 9% and WQI (ANDWQS) display 3% of groundwater unsuit-able for drinking. Spatial variation maps (IDW Interpolation) demonstate that turbidity, TDS, TH, and magnesium concentration values for the provinces’s central and eastern sec-tions exceed the permissible thresholds. The study’s findings underscore the need for target-ed groundwater management strategies, including pollution control and regular monitoring, to safeguard water quality and public health in Kabul Province.
Year: 2024
Collections: Policy Briefs
Topics: Energy
Authors: Кобзев Алексей, Мануэль Андреш, Абылайхан Солтанаев, Нурбек Есетов
Countries: Kazakhstan
Source:
Энергетический переход продолжается с беспрецедентной скоростью и масштабом, требуя новых технологий с низким уровнем выбросов углерода. Зеленый водород рассматривается как часть решения для достижения декарбонизации промышленности, что потребует согласованных действий со стороны промышленности и правительства для того, чтобы Казахстан смог получить выгоды.
Year: 2024
Collections: Policy Briefs
Topics: Climate
Authors: Жакенова Салтанат, Тлеппаев Арсен, Джанибеков Нодир, Крылова Виктория
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
Source:
Университеты и академическое сообщество в Центральной Азии играют важнейшую роль в борьбе с последствиями изменения климата, включая повышение температуры, сокращение водных ресурсов и увеличение частоты экстремальных погодных явлений, угрожающих сельскому хозяйству и средствам к существованию. Приоритетным направлением академических усилий должны стать исследования стратегий адаптации, способствующих повышению устойчивости и стабильности. Однако, исследования в области изменения климата в Центральной Азии представлены недостаточно, что подчеркивает настоятельную необходимость расширения исследовательской деятельности
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water
Authors: Esther Mbuci Kinyua, George William Atwoki Nyakairu, Emmanuel Tebandeke, Oghenekaro Nelson Odume
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan
Source: https://water-ca.org/
Efficient strategies are necessary to effectively remove microplastics (MPs), which are widely present in the environment. Among various techniques, photocatalysis using visible light has emerged as a promising ap-proach to tackle the growing concerns surrounding microplastic waste.
Year: 2024
Collections: Scientific Publications
Topics: Water, Sustainable Development
Authors: Catalin Stefan, Jana Sallwey, Nurlan Ongdas, Mohammad Al-Hosban
Countries: Kazakhstan
Source: https://water-ca.org
MAR remains relatively underutilized in Central Asia despite its potential to address water scarcity issues, particularly those related to seasonal fluctuations in water availability. Thus, the objective of this study was to produce a map depicting the potential suitability of managed aquifer recharge (MAR) implementation in Kazakhstan. Employing a multi-criteria decision analysis framework, five distinct physical criteria were integrated and visualized within a Geographic Information System (GIS) to delineate the intrinsic potential for MAR. To demonstrate the practical utility of the generated map, it was applied to the Zhambyl region in Southern Kazakhstan, an area previously afflicted by water scarcity challenges. The intrinsic MAR potential map was overlaid with remote sensing data identifying potential water sources and water utilization patterns. This overlay facilitated the identification of priority areas with potential for further evaluation for MAR implementation. The map developed for Kazakhstan represents the first spatial representation of MAR potential within the region, serving to raise awareness regarding the feasibility of MAR application. It is anticipated that dissemination of this map will enhance understanding among water management professionals, potentially catalysing the integration of MAR methodologies into regional water management strategies.
Year: 2024
Collections: Policy Briefs
Topics: Climate
Authors: Zhakenova Saltanat, Arsen Tleppayev, Nodir Djanibekov, Viktoriya Krylova
Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan
Source:
Universities and academia in Central Asia play a crucial role in addressing climate change impacts, including rising temperatures, diminishing water resources, and increased frequency of extreme weather events threatening agriculture and livelihoods. Academic efforts must prioritize research on tailored adaptation strategies to foster resilience and sustainability. However, there's an underrepresentation of climate change research from Central Asia, emphasizing the urgent need for expanded research efforts.
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