Kazakhstan plans to build three channels to divert floodwaters of Yessil River to Aral Sea
Kazakhstan plans to build three channels to divert excess water of the Yessil River basin to the Aral Sea through the Turgay River during the flooding period, Kazinform News Agency reports.
The total length of the channels will be 277 kilometers, and the cost of the project is estimated at 324 billion tenge.
A special advisory agency is currently assessing the project’s effectiveness, Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev says in his reply to a Majilis deputy’s official request.
According to Bozumbayev, the project’s feasibility report has already been drafted.
“The total cost of construction and assembly works is estimated at 324.4 billion tenge,” the document reads.
The project aims at construction of channels on three sections:
- Yessil-Turgay - with a length of 42 kilometers
- Karakol-Saryozen - with a length of 52 kilometers
- Shalkarteniz-Aral - with a length of 183 kilometers
“The implementation of the project will require additional financial investment. The project aims at diverting floodwaters of the Yessil River basin to the Turgay River basin, to restore hydrological regime of Lake Shalkarteniz. Presently, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation is conducting comprehensive research of redistribution of water between the basins. The project materials will be submitted to the Ministry’s Scientific and Technical Council. Based on its conclusions and recommendations, the Government will make a decision on the project’s expediency,” the document reads.
Earlier, it was reported that from October 2024 through January 2025, the North Aral Sea has received one billion cubic meters of water, which is 100 million more than the volume planned before.
