At a government session chaired by Prime Minister Askar Mamin, measures to implement the Address of the Head of State dated Sep. 1, 2020, were considered. The Minister of Ecology, Geology and Natural Resources Magzum Mirzagaliyev presented a report during the session.

According to the results of environmental monitoring in 2019, the cities of Aktobe, Atyrau, Nur-Sultan, Almaty, Shymkent, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Karaganda, Temirtau, Balkhash, Zhezkazgan are characterized by a high level of air pollution.

According to the minister, to solve environmental problems, the ministry has begun the practice of holding online meetings with the public. Five meetings were held with the public and akimats of Atyrau, Aktobe, Pavlodar regions and the cities of Almaty, Temirtau. As a result of the meetings, road maps were developed. The work will continue. Within two months, roadmaps will be developed for the rest of the regions.

“This year, in order to improve environmental culture, a number of events have been held, such as a meeting of eco-activists, at which eco-ambassadors were identified. Also, on behalf of the President, work was carried out to eliminate spontaneous dumps. So, out of 7.6 thousand landfills, more than 5 thousand have been liquidated. The work will continue within the framework of the action "Birge Taza Kazakhstan". For example, on Sep. 19, we are planning to organize a World cleanup Day campaign. We ask akimats to support us. In addition, on behalf of the Head of State, the legislation for causing damage to nature will be toughened,” Mirzagaliyev said.

Deep decarbonization of the economy

As you know, in order to fulfill the obligations of the Paris Agreement on the climate, Kazakhstan needs to develop its long-term vision until 2050 on the transition to a low-carbon economy.

“Today there is a trend towards decarbonization of the global economy and tightening of climate regulation. For example, last year the European Union declared its main goal to achieve zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. To this end, the European Union has begun developing a ‘border carbon tax’ on imported products from high-emission countries. In order for Kazakhstani products to remain competitive in European markets, it is necessary to reduce emissions,” Mirzagaliyev said.

The ministry has started developing the Concept of Low-Carbon Development of Kazakhstan until 2050. Within the framework of the Concept, the Ministry is working on a number of scenarios for decarbonization of the country's economy. Based on the simulation results, measures will be developed that are optimal from an economic and social point of view. It is planned to complete the work on approving the Concept in the first half of 2021.

Monocities. Geological exploration

As Mirzagaliyev noted, the problems of provision with reserves of city-forming enterprises, low replenishment of mineral reserves and decline in production at the so-called "mature" deposits are the main issues that need to be addressed today. By 2025-2040, the depletion of reserves of a number of large deposits (Orlovskoye, Maleevskoye, Tishinskoye, Ridder-Sokolnoye), located in the regions of monocities, is expected.

“To increase geological exploration and assess the resources of priority types of minerals, the State Geological Exploration Program for 2021-2025 has been developed, which provides for large-scale prospecting work around monocities in Vostochny (Ridder, Zyryanovsk, Serebryansk), Central (Satpayev, Zhezkazgan) and in Northern Kazakhstan (Arkalyk, Rudny, Lisakovsk). This will ensure the uninterrupted operation of the city-forming enterprises,” said the minister.

Water industry

As the Head of State noted in his Address, today water losses in irrigation are 40%. To reduce losses, the following actions have been taken:

Work is underway on the reconstruction and construction of 6,785 km of irrigation networks. This will reduce water losses from 40 to 17%, or about 1.5 billion m3 / year.

In order to improve water supply to agricultural producers, it is planned to introduce widespread digitalization and water accounting.

A pilot project is also being implemented with the introduction of digitalization and automation of irrigation water metering at the K-19 inter-farm canal in the Turkistan region. In the test mode, it was found that one of the agricultural cooperatives received 2 times more water than was paid for. In connection with the good performance of the pilot project, the Ministry plans to digitize channels throughout the country within several years.

Currently, the ministry, together with the akimats, is analyzing the results of the growing season, according to the results of which appropriate recommendations will be sent to the akimats on the transition to less water-intensive crops and the introduction of moisture-saving technologies. By 2030, the area where water-saving technologies are used is planned to be increased to 750 thousand hectares.

Development of the fish industry

The head of state noted that the fish industry deserves close attention. The industry's potential is significant. By Nov. 1, together with the akimats, regional programs for the development of fisheries will be developed. Regional indicators will be displayed. The ministry held a kick-off meeting last week with the participation of akimats, scientific organizations and the business community. 

Planting trees

In the field of forestry, by 2030 it is planned to increase the proportion of forest cover from the current 4.7% to 5% of the territory of Kazakhstan. Within 5 years, 2 billion trees will be planted in the forest fund and 15 million trees in settlements. The area of ​​the green belt around the capital by 2023 will reach 100 thousand hectares from the current 87.8. As the Head of State noted, this will lead to a large-scale greening of our country.

Biodiversity

On behalf of the Head of State, by Nov. 1, it is planned to develop a draft Concept for the Conservation and Rational Use of Biological Diversity until 2030, aimed at preserving rare species of plants and animals, improving the management system of forestry and specially protected natural areas, etc.

Development of ecological tourism

Currently, there are 13 national parks in Kazakhstan. The number of visitors in 2019 was 1.5 million. Today in national parks there is an urgent need for equipped parking lots for vehicles, camping, modern sanitary cabins. The Ministry, on the basis of international experience, provides for the development and arrangement of routes and trails, it is planned to create modern visit centers, medical centers, campings, ethno-auls, etc.

In this regard, appropriate master plans are being developed. Work is underway to discuss them with the public. In parallel, work is underway to attract private investors.

In addition, calculations were made of the predicted opportunities for the development of ecotourism until 2030. The volume of private investment will reach 70 billion tenge, the flow of tourists will increase to 12.2 million people, and up to 12 thousand additional jobs will be created.