PROJECT OBJECTIVES

The intention of the project is to provide technical assistance to the Kyrgyz Republic in the form of base line investigations and assessments of the impact of the mining industry on environmental geology. The principal objective is the geoenvironmental investigation of the extent of radioactive contamination and pollution by heavy metals in the Kichi-Kemin River Valley. This involves the assessment of the ecological burden and the environmental hazards caused by contamination from the former mining and ore dressing complex of Ak-Tyuz. Together with maps documenting the scale and type of contamination, other outputs from the project will include suggestions for protective measures to be adopted and proposals for decontamination of polluted sites. The project will also be used to establish systematic protocols for identification, evaluation and monitoring of ecological burdens.

 

Funding for the safe relocation of a local source of radioactive contamination caused by storage of Th-REE concentrate in an abandoned warehouse at Ak-Tyuz is an integral part of the project. The concentrate in the store, contaminated soil and other materials will be relocated to one of the nearby tailings ponds in order to produce an immediate improvement in the local environment and reduce the exposure of the local population to radioactive particulates.

 

Success in dealing with the radioactive burden at Ak-Tyuz would demonstrate the capability of Czech geologists to solve some of the pressing environmental problems caused by mining in Central Asia and create opportunities for further collaborative work in this field.

 

The area under consideration lies in the Kemin district of Chu region ca 150 km east of the city of Bishkek, the Kyrgyz capital. It includes the Kichi-Kemin river valley and its immediate environs along the section down river from the former mining and ore dressing complex of Ak-Tyuz, reaching as far as the state border with Kazakhstan. This whole tract is at risk from contamination by heavy metals and Th-REE minerals. The area under consideration is ca 45 km long and also includes a significant part of the catchment of the river Chu east of the town of Kemin.