Kyrgyzstan: rare investigation opened after the destruction of glaciers

Kyrgyzstan has opened a rare criminal case after the destruction of glaciers by a coal mining company in this country where the water reserves contained by glaciers are crucial for all of Central Asia.

“The construction of a road leading to a coal mine has destroyed glaciers and degraded the soil,” said the Kyrgyz Prosecutor General’s Office on Thursday, which estimated the total area destroyed in the mountains of the south of the country at 9,392 square meters. , towards the Chinese border.

The opening of this investigation follows a complaint from the Ministry of Energy of this mountainous republic where, according to experts, the extraction of natural resources can accelerate the melting of glaciers, already threatened by global warming.

In Central Asia, an arid and landlocked region, water resources are found in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, each with around 10,000 glaciers.

They serve as crucial water towers for the food security of Central Asian countries, feeding the rivers especially during months without precipitation, but these vital reserves of fresh water are inevitably dwindling.

Central Asia’s glaciers could disappear completely by the end of the 21st century, leading to severe water shortages in this rapidly growing region, according to the United Nations and scientists.

Do you have a real estate project in mind? Yakeey & Médias24 help you make it happen!