The destiny of Irtysh has to worry all!

According to the United Nations the growth of consumption of the fresh water, caused by the demographic growth and mobility of the population, new requirements and the increased power inquiries, in combination with notable consequences of climate changes, conducts to growing shortage of water resources. Each three years the World program of the UN according to water resources publishes the official report of the UN representing the fullest assessment of a condition of fresh-water resources in the world.

In the report for 2012 it is emphasized that many countries already reached limit opportunities of water use. Situation worsens also owing to climatic changes. There is competitive fight for water on the horizon contours– both between the countries, city and the village, and between different branches. All this will turn in the near future a problem of shortage of water resources into a political problem.

As it is noted in a set of researches and the publications, one of the most actual environmental and political problems at this stage in the countries of Central Asia and Russia is the condition of transboundary water resources. People are disturbed by possibility of the serious international conflicts because of shortage of water. It is impossible to deny such opportunity completely because the disputes because of water of the cross-border rivers are not a rarity and undoubtedly, there is matter for local collisions. In other words, water today is the vital factor influencing economic development of the countries of the Central Asian region and Russia, their stability and regional security.

Today there are many so-called “water problems”, however, as authoritative experts in this sphere believe, the main attention needs to be concentrated on a condition of water resources of the main waterways among which the Irtysh river is the largest.

It is known that Irtysh proceeds on the territory of three countries - China, Kazakhstan, Russia and is the largest inflow of the Ob River. Welfare of considerable part of the population of Kazakhstan depends on a condition of Irtysh, quality of its water resources and practically all Western Siberia. After all Irtysh, first of all is the cross-border river and its condition depends on the recovery actions which are carried out by all states, for which territory it proceeds.

According to supervision of the international ecological organizations and the interested departments of Russia and Kazakhstan, in recent years the water management situation in the pool sharply worsened. There is a continuous shallowing of the river, there is violation of a hydraulic and hydrochemical regime, reduction of fish stocks, decrease in quality of water, the natural complex as a flood plain and coastal environment degrades.

Unfortunately, it is considered that one of the reasons of the above-named problems is the lack of accurate coordination in management of water resources of Irtysh. Each state independently defines the use of its resources, frequently to the detriment of the states, whose territories are below on a current.

It is especially characteristic for China which is selecting a significant amount of water of Black Irtysh for economic needs at development of desert areas of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Along with considerable selection of waters, their pollution mainly from the Chinese party became a serious problem which, thanks to cross-border feature of the river, migrates on the territory of the adjacent states – Kazakhstan and further Russia. Nobody carried out an assessment of degree of impurity of a surface water of Irtysh in border zones. Therefore, now it is difficult to present what is their real condition and what it is necessary to make to reduce receipt of polluting substances in an ecosystem of Irtysh.

Let's give some examples.

In strategy of large-scale development of the Western China, in the next years the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region according to plans of the leadership of the People's Republic of China has to turn into regional industrial and shopping center of the country. Big role in this process played and plays the development of hydro-electric potential of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at the expense of building of hydrotechnical objects on the cross-border rivers.

Only till 2020 the Chinese authorities planned for it about 2-2,2 billion US dollars from which more than a quarter is allocated for building of hydro-electric objects - reservoirs and hydroelectric power station. Since 2004 the People's Republic of China systematically dewaters the big and small rivers feeding Irtysh.

Soon 9 reservoirs will be put into operation in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, 8 more are in the long term, including the largest in the region hydroelectric power station “Qiaobate”. Design capacity of hydroelectric power station is 524 megawatt, volume of investments is 5.5-5.7 billion yuans (873-904 million dollars of the USA).

From 2010 to 2013 26 projects on construction of new and reconstruction of operating reservoirs in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region were planned and almost executed. Within the framework of the actions the construction of four reservoirs in districts of Burchum (reservoir Yelamax), Fukhay (reservoir Akedala), Emin (reservoir Maihaiyin), Tola (reservoir Wuxuete) the Altai and Tarbagataysky districts according to use of waters of the Irtysh Rivers and Emel is begun in June, 2010.

With Black Irtysh — Karamay channel introduction in operation the Chinese party carries out an annual intake of water from Irtysh of more than 450 million cubic meters. The increase in a water intake to 1,5 billion cubic meters is provided in the long term. At present China carries out the intake of 800 million cubic meters of water per year from the basin of Irtysh for ensuring production on an oil field developed by it near the city of Karamay. But even the insignificant further increase in the intake of water generates threat for normal existence of the Lake Zaysan in the East Kazakhstan region.

A certain concern is caused by also that fact that near Black Irtysh and its inflows more than 30 mining and metallurgical enterprises of the People's Republic of China work constituting danger to ecology of waterways in case of technogenic catastrophes and natural cataclysms.

It is only small shred of statistical information on plans of China on development of hydrotechnical capacity of Irtysh and its inflows. The Chinese party carefully hides many “water” projects from a foreign look in spite of the fact that the international law stipulates possibility of other coastal states to receive information and consultations on planned or carried-out water management actions on the international rivers.

Summarizing the abovementioned, it would be desirable to note the following. Now the Russian-Kazakhstan relations endure cardinally new progressive period of development - trade and economic, cultural, humanitarian cooperation develop at full speed, including between border regions of the countries, there is an economic integration within the Customs Union.

Therefore, a preservation and restoration question, and also rational use of Irtysh we, Russia and Kazakhstan, have to be engaged together, realizing our shared responsibility before future generations. If we don't start working on this subject seriously now, so the course degradation, degradation Ob-Irtysh pool as a whole will happen further. Therefore it is necessary to think over joint programs. But thus we, of course, have to involve our neighbors in our work in our work China which bears a joint liability with us for an ecological situation in the region.