KAZAKHSTANAN: ENVIRONMENTAL UPDATE

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SUBJECT: KAZAKHSTANAN: ENVIRONMENTAL UPDATE



1. Summary: This information is drawn primarily from the
Kazakhstani local press, and has not been verified. The
opinions expressed in this report, therefore, should not be
interpreted by readers as conveying positions and/or policy
of the U.S. Government.

-- Kazakhstan Supports Tight Control over Movement of
Ionizing Radiation Sources
-- Kazakhstan Must Decontaminate the Semipalatinsk Nuclear
Test Site
-- Space Program to Develop Space Activities
-- President of Kazakhstan Signed Law "On Social Protection
Of Invalids"
-- "Dikaya Priroda" (Wild Nature) NGO Initiated
Implementation of the "Kings of Tulips" project
-- "Access Energo" Enterprise Reduces Hazardous Emissions
-- Republican Research Conference "Environment and Children"
Held In Almaty

Kazakhstan Supports Tight Control over Movement of Ionizing
Radiation Sources
--------------


2. Speaking at the 36th plenary session of the International
Science and Technology Center's (ISTC) governing board on
April 11, 2005 in Almaty, Energy Minister V. Shkolnik called
on the international community to introduce a system of
tight control over the movement of ionizing radiation
sources with the same degree of strictness as the movement
of nuclear materials. He stressed the significance of
introducing such a system because terrorists might be
interested in creating "dirty bombs." The minister pointed
out that "any steel, iron, cobalt, manganese turns into the
strongest source of gamma radiation after having been
treated by a neutron laser, which is very dangerous to life.
The number of such sources worldwide is huge. There are
hundreds of thousands of them only in our region," he said.
(Interfax-Kazakhstan, April 11, 2005).

Kazakhstan Must Decontaminate the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test
Site
--------------


3. At the 36th plenary meeting of ISTC on April 11, 2005,
the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Vladimir
Shkolnik, thanked the International Science and Technology
Center for reorientation of the weapons industry towards
peaceful goals and noted that Kazakhstan is now facing the
problem of further decontamination of the Semipalatinsk
nuclear test site where there is a lot of sprayed nuclear
material. It must be collected, buried and removed, he said
(Interfax-Kazkahstan, April 11, 2005).

State Program to Develop Space Activities
--------------


4. Baikonur will celebrate its 50th anniversary in June

2005. The Kazakhstani budget includes $340 million to
implement the 2005-2007 state program to develop space
activities. According to Minister of Education and Science
Byrganym Aitomova, the program is "of and innovative nature"
and includes the creation and operation of spacecraft for
communication and broadcasting, improvement of surface
infrastructure and facilities for orbiting spacecraft,
creation and utilization of information and space
technologies and use of piloted flights for fundamental and
applied scientific research. (Interfax-Kazakhstan, April 11,
2005).


President of Kazakhstan Signed a Law "On Social Protection
Of Invalids"
--------------


5. According to the press service of the Head of state, on

April 13, 2005, President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed laws
"On Social Protection of Invalids" and "On Introducing
Amendments to Some Legislative Acts of the RK on Social
Protection of Invalids." The law specifies measures on
medical, social and professional rehabilitation of invalids
and main directions of state policy. The document envisages
transfer from mostly medical to a medical-social model of
social protection: provision of secured volume of free
medical aid, including free medications and sanatorium-
resort therapy not only to invalids but to their children as
well. There are 395,000 invalids in Kazakhstan, 47,000 of
whom are children (Interfax-Kazkahstan, April 13, 2005).

Wild Nature NGO Initiated Implementation of the "Kings of
Tulips" project
--------------


6. In the Southern Kazakhstan Oblast, the NGO "Dikaya
Priroda" (Wild Nature) has begun implementing a project
known as "Kings of Tulips." Activists are calling on local
people to protect wild tulips in April, during their
vegetation period. There are six types of wild tulips in
Southern Kazakhstan Oblast, two of which -- Greig and
Kaufman tulips -- are in the Red Data Book. To prevent
people from picking wild tulips, activists call on them to
grow cultivars species on their garden plots. The project is
supported by the International Union of Nature Conservation.
(Interfax-Kazakhstan, April 13, 2005).


"Access Energo" Reduces Hazardous Emissions
--------------


7. Access Energo, owned by Access Industries, employs
environmental protection technologies and has developed a
special program on environmental protection. In comparison
with 1998, the quantity of hazardous emissions into
atmosphere was lessened by 37%, slag residuals - by 14%. KZT
557,574 million has been spent on nature protection in the
six years of the company's work. Access Energo is planning
to construct a new ash dump at a cost of KZT 3 bn.
Observers note that Access Industries is a good example of
successful business development in Kazakhstan. The company
is the only regional station in the country that exports
energy. Access Energo produces 1.66 bn KW of electricity
and 1.8 mn Hcal of heat annually using modern technologies.
The company provides with electricity over 650,000 residents
and 3,600 industrial and agricultural businesses of the town
and oblast. (Kazakhstanskaya Pravda, April 12, 2005).

Republican Research Conference "Environment and Children"
Held In Almaty
--------------


8. The 10th republican research conference - "Environment
and Children" - began on April 12 in Almaty. Kazakhstani
pupils presented over 120 research projects on environmental
conservation. Representatives of the Ministry of Education
and Science, the leading Kazakhstani universities and
research institutes participate in this conference.
(Kazakhstan-I, April 12, 2005)


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