Central Asian rivers are home to dozens of endemic and threatened fish species, most of which are not well studied. According to the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN) Red List, 21 fish species in the region are critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), or vulnerable (VU).
Several vertebrate species are already considered to have gone extinct due to anthropogenic transformation in Central Asian river valleys, including at least three fish species and the Turan tiger. New species are discovered every year and usually are narrow-range endemics, often threatened with dam construction plans.
Мost Central Asian countries are actively pursuing water infrastructure development in mountainous regions, and recently agreed to collaborate on the construction of large hydropower dams, such as Kambarata-1 in Kyrgyzstan. Kazakhstan supports the development of numerous dams on pristine mountain rivers through renewable energy auctions, without considering the potential threats to biodiversity. Kyrgyzstan recently declared an ‘energy emergency’ to enable the construction of hydropower projects throughout the country, including within the Western Tien–Shan World Heritage Site. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan is pursuing the development of 11 hydropower plants within Ugam–Chatkal National Park as well as hundreds more on almost every remaining river. And finally, Tajikistan is developing the controversial USD 11 billion Rogun hydropower project, which may ruin globally important biodiversity in downstream areas and harm local communities.
Map of key freshwater bodies prioritized for protection in Central Asia
Explore the online GIS map here: https://arcg.is/0fDfGP0
Civil society organisations and scientists have joined forces to develop a comprehensive map of the key rivers and lakes in Central Asia. These key rivers should be included in, and protected as part of, the Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA) Programme, an international network of the most important places in the world for species and their habitats. Additionally, the key rivers should also be conserved or restored as free-flowing rivers. Projects, like hydropower plants, should not be built if they might impact these water bodies.
The process of developing the map involved the following steps:
- Collecting information on existing and planned hydropower and water infrastructure projects, and creating an open-access database.
- Developing a multi-criteria GIS model to evaluate potential impacts on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems based on dam location, inundated areas, river fragmentation, potential seasonal changes, and reduction in river flows.
- Identifying 50 endemic and threatened fish species representing the key known freshwater biodiversity values in the region, and gathering available records on the locations of these fish populations from the literature and the expert community.
- Consulting with experts on water resource management, aquatic biodiversity, nature conservation management, and local livelihoods dependent on natural resources, as well as assessing the potential impacts of each large water infrastructure project on biodiversity.
- Mapping river sub-basins with low levels of anthropogenic transformation and/or high biodiversity value, marking them as priorities for further comprehensive conservation efforts.
Based on currently available data only 12% of sizeable watercourses in 5 river basins of Central Asia were recognized as key freshwater habitats still supporting intact ecosystem processes and\or native biodiversity. This falls short of 30% of natural habitats of each type that should be taken under protection according to the Global Biodiversity Framework. All major natural lakes of the region were also recognized as key freshwater habitat, although some of those, such as Lake Balkhash, have been modified due to dam-induced changes in inflow. In addition 7% of heavily modified water bodies were recognized as critical habitat for rare and endemic species. The rest of river ecosystems are seriously degraded and there is no data whether they still support significant biodiversity. The region is in dire need of urgent protection measures for remaining natural rivers and for intensive surveys of freshwater habitats to identify additional biodiversity hotspots before those are destroyed.
Sources: CEEBankwatch and RwB