Water Resources Management and Agricultural Production (WARMAP) in the Central Asian Republics
Inter-republic water use in the Aral Sea Basin
In 1960 the Aral Sea was one of the four largest inland lakes in the world. Since then it has continued to shrink to only half of its original size because of the nearly total cut-off of water inflow from the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers and as a result of huge abstractions of irrigation water. The indiscriminate use of water for nonagricultural purposes, inefficient irrigation practices, excessive use of chemicals for growing cotton and rice crops and the lack of adequate drainage have caused extensive waterlogging and salinity problems. Water pollution from urban and industrial wastes has further aggravated the situation. The desiccation of the Aral Sea has resulted in the total collapse of its fishing industry and the deterioration of the ecosystem which is manifested by changes in temperature and dusty storms carrying clouds of sulphates and chlorides from the exposed Aral Sea bed throughout the country.
The overall objective of the WARMAP project was to reach an inter-republic water apportionment and the development of principles and institutions. This should be achieved by:
- providing the administrative and technical framework within which the policies, strategies and development programmes for utilisation, allocation and management of the water resources of the basin can be developed;
- assisting, at the regional level, with the establishment of the institutional structure required to prepare and execute the policies and strategies on water allocation and management.
The main objective of the project was to assist the Central Asian Republics (Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) in the elaboration of regional and national strategies for an economically, socially and ecologically sustainable land and water management in the Aral Sea Basin.
Main activities:
- Support to the Executive Committee of the Interstate Council for the Aral Sea Basin (EC-ICAS) in institutional, legal and management aspects
- Assessment of the land and water resources in the Aral Sea Basin
- Assessment of future water demand, costs of water supply and treatment, and economic value of water
- Identification of options to improve the efficiency and crop diversification of irrigated crop production systems
- Identification of international water sharing options in the five Republics
- Development of sustainable regional and national land and water use strategies.
Contract value: 1.85 million Euro
Client: EC-ICAS
Financed by: EC Tacis
Associated firms: Aquater, GAF, Scot Conseil
Period: 1995 - 1998