Maria Zadneprovskaya. Afforestation of the dry bottom of the Aral Sea: results and plans
Interview with the head of the environmental department of the Executive Directorate of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea in the Republic of Kazakhstan about the results of the Nexus demo project on afforestation of the dried bottom of the Aral Sea, as well as further plans for saving the Aral Sea.
Brief information
National Nexus demo project in Kazakhstan “Afforestation of the dried bottom of the Aral Sea: piloting a system for growing saxaul seedlings with a closed root system” was implemented by the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia (CAREC) within the framework of the European Union project “Nexus Dialogue in Central Asia” in 2020-2023 . The demo project is aimed at introducing a system for growing saxaul seedlings with a closed root system to increase their survival rate to 70%. Main results of the demo project:
- 2 greenhouses and 1 tumarium were built , in which saxaul seeds were planted using the closed root system method. Only 20% of seedlings survived due to the hot summer and high mineralization of water in Lake Kamystybas in 2021;
- In the spring of 2022, 200 saxaul seedlings were transplanted into a fenced pilot plot of 5 hectares on the territory of the dried bottom of the Aral Sea, where saxaul seedlings are being planted using several different methods as part of the USAID Regional Project for Ecosystem Restoration on the dried bottom of the Aral Sea, implemented by the ID IFAS in the Republic of Kazakhstan. ;
- As a result, saxaul seedlings planted under conditions of a closed root system showed the best survival rate compared to other methods (more than 50%). It was noticed that saxaul, planted using the closed root system method, after some time can wake up and begin to grow from the root;
- Considering the positive results, one of the national saxaul nurseries in Kazakhstan expressed its intention to use a closed root system for mass transplantation of saxaul;
- Preliminary calculations were carried out on the costs of water and energy resources for growing seeds of saxaul seedlings in a closed root system;
- Watering of saxaul seedlings and monitoring of their survival rate on the dried bottom of the Aral Sea continues.
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Additional information : Lyudmila Kiktenko , CAREC Environmental Management Program Manager, lkiktenko@carececo.org
Photo: Zinovy Novitsky
