Battle for Issyk: environmentalists of Kazakhstan against the creation of a hydroelectric power station in the national park

In Kazakhstan, the ecological society “Green Salvation” opposes the construction of a new hydroelectric power station in the Ile-Alatau National Park.

What happened

The Almaty authorities announced that they intend to reconstruct the dam on Lake Issyk. Later it was reported that Khabel LLP, which manages the lake, plans to build a hydroelectric power station on the lake and develop tourism. The ecological society “Green Salvation” sent a request to government agencies to get information about these projects, but so far it has received only replies in response. Eco-activists reported this on their official website.

Details

The first letter of the NGO “Green Salvation” was sent to the Forestry and Wildlife Committee, since Lake Issyk is located between the Almaty State Nature Reserve and the Ile-Alatau National Park.

The answer was short:

“Lake Issyk and the construction of a hydroelectric power station on it are not within the competence of the committee and are administered by the Akimat of Almaty region. In this connection, to obtain relevant information, it is necessary to contact the akimat of the region.”

On May 12, eco-activists sent a detailed request to the regional akim’s office.

They asked for the following information:

which state body will decide on the development of tourism, the construction of a dam and a hydroelectric power station on Lake Issyk;
What opportunities are there for public participation in the decision-making process on the issues mentioned above;
in which state body can I get a feasibility study of the project;
has the environmental impact assessment of the future construction of the HPP been carried out?

From May 14 to May 19, the state bodies of Almaty region managed to redirect the appeal of eco-activists four times: from the tourism department to the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, then to the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Water Resources and Irrigation, the Department of Finance.

The chairman of the NGO “Green Salvation” Sergey Kuratov told BES.media that they eventually received a response from the finance department of Almaty region. But there was no information in it about which state agency would make a decision on the development of tourism, the reconstruction of the dam and the construction of a hydroelectric power station on Lake Issyk. The agency also did not answer questions about how the public can participate in the decision–making process on the reconstruction of the dam and the construction of a new hydroelectric power station, as well as where to get and view feasibility studies of these projects.

Eco-activists also did not find out from the response of the department whether an environmental impact assessment of large-scale construction on Issyk was carried out.

In the response of the state agency it was stated:

“An important aspect of the successful implementation of the project is strict compliance with environmental standards and requirements. Environmental impact assessment and development of measures to minimize negative consequences are mandatory. The preservation of the unique ecosystem of Lake Issyk and the surrounding areas should be a priority when considering the possibility of building a hydroelectric power station.”

EO “Green Salvation” sent a complaint to the Akimat of Almaty region on the fact of failure to provide complete and comprehensive information on dam reconstruction projects and the construction of a hydroelectric power station on Lake Issyk.

This is important

Eco-activists of the “Green Salvation” explained why they ask for information from government agencies.

“Now the manager of Lake Issyk has stated that they are planning to build a hydroelectric power station. We are against this construction. Two hydroelectric power stations have already been built on the territory of the national park in the Issyk Gorge, and now we are talking about building a third hydroelectric power station on the dam itself on Lake Issyk. This construction may negatively affect the ecosystem of the lake – its hydrological regime will change, flora and fauna will suffer. We demand that the Akimat of Almaty region provide us with the information on the basis of which such a decision was made, the design and estimate documentation for the construction of the hydroelectric power station, voiced all responsible persons. If the documentation exists, we must make sure of its legality, if it does not exist, we will demand to ban the construction of hydroelectric power stations. This is how we acted in the case of Kok-Zhailau, with Charyn, when illegal construction was planned there, and we achieved their cancellation,” explained Sergey Kuratov, chairman of the Green Salvation NGO, to BES.media.

What else

Eco-activists stressed that the construction of hydroelectric power stations is prohibited by the Law “On Specially Protected Natural Areas” not only in national parks, but even in their protected areas.

But then how did two hydroelectric power stations appear earlier in the Issyk Gorge on the territory of the national park?

EO “Green Salvation” believes that both HPPs were built with gross violations of the law.

“We do not have access to complete and reliable environmental information, and we cannot yet get accurate information about who is in charge of Lake Issyk. There is one thing on the maps of the reserve, another on the maps of the Ile-Alatau National Park, and the third on cadastral maps. It is impossible to find out who the specific owner of this territory is from open sources. The Almaty Nature Reserve adjoins the lake on one side, and the Ile–Alatau National Park on the other. Even if the lake and its coast are not part of them, they are a protected area of the reserve and park. Economic activity on the territory of the protected area is restricted by law. The entire surrounding ecosystem depends on the lake. It is impossible to build hydroelectric power stations on the lake and in the gorge, neither before nor now. There is a growing shortage of water resources in Almaty region, and the construction of another hydroelectric power station will lead to a deterioration of the environmental situation. The lake may become shallow,” said Sergey Kuratov.

Should Ile-Alatau National Park be on the UNESCO Heritage List

According to the eco-activist, the ecological situation in the Ile-Alatau National Park is very bad, and if the rapid economic activity on its territory is not stopped, it will worsen.

Ile-Alatau National Park is included in the preliminary list for nomination to the UNESCO World Heritage List. If large-scale construction continues on its territory, then nothing will remain of the park.

The Issyk Gorge is a good example of this. After the 1963 mudslide, a lot of ruins remained in the gorge and on the shore of the lake, no one has been cleaning them for more than 60 years.

The gorge itself is built up with water pipes, pipelines, power lines, hydroelectric power stations, it is losing its tourist appeal.

“Now the map of the national park looks like a chessboard, it is full of “black holes” – territories that do not belong to anyone. There are many tenants on the territory who manage the land as if it were their private property. There are, I think, also illegally seized plots of land. Even those who officially rent land on the territory of the national park often behave inappropriately – they do not comply with environmental regulations, build up the banks of rivers, dumpsters are located almost near the water. All this causes enormous damage to the natural environment, but the violators do not bear any responsibility,” stated Sergey Kuratov.

What they say in government agencies

Interestingly, the Department of Ecology of Almaty region has not yet confirmed plans for construction in the national park.

“As of the current date, the department has not received any applications for obtaining an environmental permit to carry out environmental impact on the above-mentioned projects. In this regard, consideration of these projects in terms of their environmental support is not possible at the moment,” the head of the department, Konysbek Bayedilov, answered the request of BES.media regarding the implementation of projects for the reconstruction of the dam on Lake Issyk and the construction of a hydroelectric power station (HPP) on the territory of the Ile–Alatau National Park.

Obviously, the absence of statements does not mean that they will not appear in the near future, so BES.media will monitor the development of the situation.

The infrastructure will be developed, but what exactly is unknown

The dam on Lake Issyk (cadastral number 03:044:307:109), located on a land plot of 141,643 hectares in the rural district of Turgen, Yenbekshikazakh district, was transferred by the regional financial department to the trust management of Khabel LLP on an open competitive basis. This was reported to BES.media by the head of the Department of Water Resources and irrigation of Almaty region Yelzhas Musakhanov.

According to him, Khabel LLP has developed an action plan for the development of infrastructure on Lake Issyk, this plan was approved by the finance department (why the plan did not fall into the hands of environmentalists of the region is unknown).

LLP plans to invest 23.6 billion tenge in the implementation of this plan.

We are talking about multifactorial research work, restoration work project, work on mechanical cleaning of the base of Lake Issyk and installation of SRU, explained in the Department of Water Resources and irrigation of Almaty region.

BES.media also asked for information about the proposed construction of a hydroelectric power station on Lake Issyk.

We asked:

Is there a feasibility study for this project and where can I get acquainted with it?
What are the parameters of this power plant: what area will it occupy, how much will it generate electricity, for whose needs, how much water will it consume to generate electricity?
Has this project passed an environmental assessment?
Have there been public hearings on this project?
Does the owner of Lake Issyk have the right to build a hydroelectric power station in the water protection zone on the territory of the national Ile-Alatau Park? How legal is it?

However, the head of the Department of Water Resources and Irrigation of Almaty region, Yelzhas Musakhanov, chose not to answer these questions, as if they were not in the request.

BES.media

Original (in Russian): Битва за Иссык: экологи Казахстана против создания ГЭС в нацпарке