Keywords

1 Introduction

In the Soviet Union, the republics of Central Asia had no power to develop and pursue their own independent water policy. The decisions on water division and use were taken by the central authorities, in particular the USSR Ministry of Land Reclamation and Water Management following the single plan of development of regional economy and agriculture. The Soviet system of water relations among republics was based on water quotas allocated to each of them and on the balance of contractual obligations between the republics and the union center. The flow of transboundary rivers was regulated to ensure the balanced economic development of all five Central Asian republics including power generation and agrarian development [1]. The criteria of reservoir regulation were attainment of the maximum general benefit [2].

The reservoirs constructed in the upper reaches of rivers made easier the solution of these problems. They helped to regulate the river flow to the downstream countries and prevent the conflicts among republics.

The priority in development of Central Asia was given to irrigation and, primarily, to the irrigated farming in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan (Fig. 1). Thus, the Syr Darya flow was regulated by the Naryn – Syr Darya cascade of reservoirs by the irrigation schedule. The annual water releases from the Toktogul reservoir in summer was 75%. In its turn, Kirghizia received compensational raw materials from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The similar approach was taken to the Amu Darya River which flow was regulated by the Nurek reservoir.

Fig. 1
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Physical map of Kazakhstan (https://www.freeworldmaps.net/asia/kazakhstan/map.html)

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The formation of new independent states in Central Asia put to the fore the issue of ownership of water as this resource as well as many others was now on different “sides” of state borders. The water deficit and the endeavors of each state to use this resource with maximum intensity and solely in its own interests aggravate the situation in this region. Keeping in mind the high birth rate and the high level of unemployment in Central Asia, the water issue has turned into a serious factor of regional instability [3].

2 The Role of Transboundary Rivers for Kazakhstan

The greater part (around 50%) of water used in Kazakhstan is supplied by transboundary rivers originating outside this country: these are the Ily, Black Irtysh originating in China, the Ural River originating in Russia, and the Syr Darya, Chu, and Talas Rivers originating in Kyrgyzstan (Fig. 2). These rivers are the vital sources of fresh water for Kazakhstan. Herewith the main transboundary rivers do not reach the central areas of the country which suffer enormous water shortage.

Fig. 2
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Syr Darya River basin (https://www.flickr.com/photos/zoienvironment/23273318605)

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One of the main causes which make the situation with water resources in Kazakhstan still more acute is the uneven distribution of water resources – in Central Kazakhstan only 3% of the country’s water resources are formed (FAO Report, p. 131) and non-coincidence of the regime of their use for economic activities. And the same factors complicate relationships among the upstream (Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan) and downstream (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) countries. The downstream countries are greatly dependent on the upstream countries – Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – which are better supplied with water resources and, in fact, control the main water courses in Central Asia.

Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have well-developed industry; they possess significant hydrocarbon and other resources; they have the greatest population compared to other regional countries – Kazakhstan 18.2 million (2018) and Uzbekistan 32.7 million (2018) – which increases still more their need in water for addressing the social problems.

Of key significance for water supply of Kazakhstan is the Amu Darya River that flows to the Kazakh territory from Kyrgyzstan via Tajikistan. The mean many-year river flow is 37 km3 which is distributed as follows: 74% in Kyrgyzstan, 14% in Uzbekistan, 9% in Kazakhstan, and 3% in Tajikistan.

The Black Irtysh River that takes its origin in China is also very important for Kazakhstan. The length of the river to the border with Kazakhstan is 672 km. In the territory of Kazakhstan, it flows into the Zaysan Lake and then into the Irtysh River which further on meets the Ishim and Tobol tributaries.

The Irtysh basin is the main source of water for Southeastern and Eastern Kazakhstan. This basin is of strategic importance for water supply of the country’s central and northern regions. The main problems here appear for several reasons. One of them is the sharp increase of water consumption compared to the available water resources, primarily, from the Irtysh River that is the source of drinking water supply of Central Kazakhstan. The water of this river is also the key resource for economic development of industrial centers, such as Semipalatinsk, Pavlodar, and Ust-Kamenogorsk. Several millions of people live in the Kazakh part of the Irtysh basin. The canal Irtysh-Karaganda supplies drinking water to Astana-Karaganda. The Irtysh water is also directed to meet the needs of such cities as Semey, Pavlodar, Ekibastuz, and Temirtau; it supports agriculture development in some regions of Central Kazakhstan. The Irtysh is also used for navigation and fishery.

The prospects of energy, industry, and agriculture development depend, to a great extent, on the Irtysh River. This river is used for energy generation. Water reservoirs Bukhtarma with HPP generating 675 thousand kW, Ust-Kamenogorsk with HPP of 331 thousand kW, and others designed to regulate the surface runoff were built which had changed significantly the water regime and produced a negative effect on the environment in the river basin.

3 Legal Framework for Interstate Cooperation in Central Asia

In the 1990s the Central Asian countries signed the documents addressing the water and energy issues. Thus, in 1993 the Treaty on Cooperation in Joint Management, Use, and Protection of Water Resources of Interstate Sources was signed. This was followed by signing in 1995 of the Issyk-Kul Declaration of Regional Cooperation of the Central Asian States and the Nukus Declaration of Sustainable Development of the Aral Sea Basin. They stated the importance of the earlier signed agreements regulating the water relations. The regional countries confirmed their commitment to the principle of water use in the interests of all states.

In 1997 the Almaty Declaration was adopted, and in March 1998 Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan signed the agreement on the Use of Water and Energy Resources in the Basin of the Syr Darya River. In 1999 Tajikistan acceded to this agreement. This document set forth that the parties will take no actions which will violate the agreed-upon water use regimes and energy deliveries or infringe on the rights of the other parties to obtain water and energy deliveries in the mutually agreed amounts or to transport resources through their own territories. In addition, this document outlined that the Naryn-Syr Darya HPP excess power will be transferred to the republics of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in equal portions. This was the framework document, although it fixed the principles of compensations. It did not describe the economic mechanism of mutual relations between energy generation and irrigation [4]. As a result, in summer (the period of the peak water need), the downstream countries started suffering from water deficit, while in winter they had to face submersion and flooding of water facilities.

The above documents failed to cope successfully with sharing of water of cross-border rivers in Central Asia as they did not contain the practical mechanisms of compensations or settlement of conflicts. The downstream countries were not ready to compensate for losses caused by the changed operation regimes of reservoirs to the upstream countries. Moreover, each regional state intended to address the arising water problems individually and by exerting pressure on its neighbors to attain the positive result for its country. In fact, this was the conflict of national development programs of all Central Asian states [5]. As a result, the interstate relations concerning the transboundary river water use among Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have become more acute.

The conflict situations among the regional countries in relation to the use of transboundary river water emerge mostly owing to the provisions stated in the national legislations. The basic documents existing in the Central Asian countries identify water as the state-owned resource. For instance, Article 8 of the Water Code of Kazakhstan adopted in July 2003 says about the exclusive ownership of water resources on the part of the state.

Kazakhstan welcomed the use of international instruments to develop mechanisms for settling contradictions in water resources field. Thus, the UN passed several documents regulating the use and protection of international watercourses. First of all, this is the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (March 1992) and the Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (May 1997). According to these documents, an international watercourse shall be used and developed jointly taking into account the interests of the watercourse states concerned. But these conventions did not formulate explicitly the ways to settle the arising disputes. However, they may become the basis for further development of the legislation applicable to transboundary rivers in Central Asia.

Only Kazakhstan of all other Central Asian states ratified the international documents. Other regional countries in pursuance of their policy on the use of transboundary water resources rely upon bilateral agreements. As a result, disregard by the Central Asian states of the principles and norms of the international law concerning the use and protection of transboundary rivers has become a constraint in addressing the problems existing in the region [6].

4 Policy of Kazakhstan in Water and Energy Resources

Low efficiency of the documents signed by the Central Asian states and unilateral actions of the upstream countries forced Kazakhstan to pursue the policy called to alleviate the negative effect of water shortage. To improve the situation with water resources, Kazakhstan adopted some decisions and among them the decision to revive the smaller Aral Sea (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3
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The Aral Sea evolution (https://againstthecompass.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Aral_Sea_chronology_lg-e1520887877181.jpg)

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The Aral Sea problem is one of the key issues directly affecting Kazakhstan. Since the 1960s the water level in the Aral Sea had been dropping most quickly – every year by 0.2–0.8 cm. And the increased water intake for irrigation was blamed for this event. In the period from 1960 to 1990, the area of irrigated lands in Central Asia had grown from 4.5 to 7 million ha, including owing to the increase of lands under cotton that is cultivated mostly in Uzbekistan. So, in 1989 the sea broke into two water bodies: the Northern (smaller) Aral Sea to which coast Kazakhstan had access and the Southern (greater) Aral Sea to which coast Uzbekistan had access (Fig. 3).

In February 1992 the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan signed the Treaty on Cooperation in Joint Management, Use, and Protection of Water Resources of Interstate Sources. Later, in March 1993 the Interstate Coordination Water Commission (ICWC) was established as was set forth in the Treaty.

For resolving the Aral problem, Kazakhstan adopted the decision to revive the smaller Aral Sea for which purpose in 1992 they constructed a dam that soon had broken down. Then in 1997 a new dam was built, and as a result the area of the northern part of the Aral Sea increased greatly. This permitted Kazakhstan to improve enormously the environmental situation in coastal territories: the number of sandstorms decreased, and the population of some fish species (bream, carp, sturgeon) was restored. Unfortunately, in 1999 the storm destroyed the dam. Nevertheless, by 2005 Kazakhstan restored the dam and started filling the smaller Aral with water again.

In 2004 Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan suggested the concept for resolving the problem of the Aral Sea and the near-Aral area with regard to the social and economic development of the region. However, the focus of each regional country on its own national interests prevented from addressing this issue.

Owing to high dependence on the neighbors controlling more than the half of the transboundary river flow, Kazakhstan focused on implementation of measures to ensure more effective use of water, preservation of water resources, and introduction of water-saving technologies for reduction of water use. In 2008–2011 Kazakhstan built the Koksaray water reservoir on the Syr Darya. It was located 160 km downstream the Shardara reservoir with a capacity of 5.7 km3 which was built in 1966 near Shardara town in Kazakhstan. It was designed for seasonal regulation of the flow for irrigation and flood protection purposes. Being the counter-regulator for the Shardarin HPP, it was called Koksaray counter-regulator.

However, in the recent decades, the water intake went on, and the regional countries faced the water shortage problem. As a result, the disputes acquired the political dimensions giving rise to interstate confrontation [7].

In response to the large-scale plans of the upstream countries, Kazakhstan started developing the programs for reduction of the water deficit. In April 2014 the President of Kazakhstan approved the program on water resources management. These measures did not resolve the problem of water resources completely, but, in general, these had a positive effect.

5 Kazakhstan-China Relations in Water Resources

After disintegration of the USSR, the water became the focal point in the Kazakhstan-China relations. Weakening of the positions of Kazakhstan that from now on had to defend its interests independently permitted China to pursue the offensive policy: to determine unilaterally the approaches to the use of waters of Ily and Irtysh transboundary rivers which originate in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of China (Fig. 4).

Fig. 4
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Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of China (https://www.rfa.org/english/news/uyghur/security-09072009205059.html)

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Initially Kazakhstan was at a disadvantage remembering that 70% of the Ily and Irtysh Rivers flow was formed in China. Accordingly, Kazakhstan is seeking to address the problem of cross-country rivers at the interstate level.

Kazakhstan and China share 23 rivers, the largest of which are Irtysh, Ily, and Talas. China developed irrigation projects based on each of these rivers, and some of these projects are already commissioned. As a result, in the recent time, the Republic of Kazakhstan has increasingly witnessed the growing water intake on the Chinese side. At the same time, the growing water intake and deterioration of the quality of transboundary river waters incur perceptible damage to the environment.

Kazakhstan considers it very important to settle water relations with China and advocates the development of a joint position in respect of transboundary rivers use. In 1992 Kazakhstan directed to China the proposals to harmonize the joint use of transboundary rivers. However, China did not support the negotiations on settlement of contradictions arising in the use of transboundary river water.

In 1997 Kazakhstan proposed to extend the format of negotiations by including Russia. However, the Chinese side did not support this initiative preferring to keep negotiations only with Kazakhstan although the Irtysh River runs across the territories of three countries. But still Kazakhstan succeeded to give start to the Kazakh-Chinese negotiations on a complex of water issues. The first official negotiations on the use of transboundary river waters between Kazakhstan and China took place in 1998 as a result of which the Joint Working Group of Experts on Transboundary Rivers was established. On November 6, 2000, the first meeting of this group was held in Almaty at which they elaborated the list of works which were divided into three phases. And on September 12, 2001, in Astana the Agreement between the Governments of Kazakhstan and China on the Cooperation in the Use and Protection of Transboundary Rivers was signed. This agreement approved by Resolution of the Kazakh government in September 2002 laid the legal basis for development of interstate relations in water resources management.

Within the framework of this agreement, the Joint Commission on the Use and Protection of Transboundary Rivers was established to promote the exchange of hydrological and water chemical data, water quality control, and prevention of pollution of transboundary rivers.

By 2001 there were signed in total more than two dozens of agreements and treaties regulating the rational management of transboundary rivers of Kazakhstan and China. The Chinese side directed the draft projects “Concepts on Water Sharing of the Irtysh and Ily Rivers” and “Agreements on the Control of Transboundary Water Quality and Prevention of Its Pollution.” However, China implements unilaterally the plans on XUAR development envisaging increase of water diversion via canal Black Irtysh-Karamay to XUAR.

The position of China in respect of transboundary rivers may be explained, primarily, by its plans to turn Xinjiang into the regional and commercial center of Central Asia and to extend its influence to Middle East. Apart from this, China contemplates to populate Xinjiang with ethnic Chinese people (Hans). Having the intensive natural reproduction in this region, the population here will grow significantly. Accordingly, this will require the increase of both the agricultural and industrial potential of the region and also its supply with water. The Chinese policy is determined by the goals on development of hydropower generation, oil and other industries, irrigated farming, and animal husbandry in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

The main problem in bilateral relations of Kazakhstan and China remains the issue of joint use of water resources and growing water intake from transboundary rivers Ily and Irtysh in the territory of China. And China resolutely objects against the extension of participants of negotiations, first of all, Russia, insisting on regulation of cross-country watercourses only on the bilateral basis. In its turn, Kazakhstan supports the idea of inviting Russia to negotiations which is also interested in finding the solution for the problem of joint use of the Irtysh water resources.

China uses the factor of transboundary rivers to exert permanent pressure on Kazakhstan and to keep it within its political and economic interests. For this very reason, China refuses from extension of the negotiation format in an attempt to keep the bilateral dialog with Kazakhstan on the issues of water resources. In addition, the Chinese authorities are seeking to move the signing of the document on regulation of transboundary rivers to the later date hoping meantime to accomplish their plans on construction of hydraulic structures on transboundary rivers.

The unilateral actions of China and unwise use of resources in the territory of Kazakhstan have already led to deterioration of the situation with the Ily and Irtysh rivers. Ineffective use of water by industrial and production facilities in Kazakhstan caused deficit of water resources. In general, the Chinese policy on the use of water resources of transboundary rivers is targeted to addressing the long-term goals. The control of transboundary river flow is an effective instrument of the China’s policy towards Kazakhstan. Nevertheless, China intensified the negotiation process with Kazakhstan. In 2014 at the 12th meeting of the Kazakhstan-China Joint Commission on the Use and Protection of Transboundary Rivers, it was arranged to create the Ad Hoc Working Group for harmonizing the Draft Agreement between the countries. In the later years, the Draft Agreement was approved, the Regulations on the Activities of the Ad Hoc Working Group were signed, and several meetings of the Joint Commission and the Ad Hoc Working Group were conducted.

The problems of the Irtysh basin are not limited to depletion of water resources and deterioration of water quality. There is a clear-cut tendency to the growing technogenic load on water resources of the Irtysh basin and, consequently, to the growing pollution of Irtysh waters. The condition of hydraulic structures in the Irtysh basin may be also an additional contributing factor.

The plans of the Xinjiang government to increase areas under cotton and grain crops and also to transfer water for new industrial facilities to the Karamay area stir great anxiety in Kazakhstan. The growing cultivation of crops requiring much water for irrigation, such as rice, wheat, and corn, and intensive development of industry that accounts now for around the quarter of water consumption in China have led to considerable depletion of water resources in some northern regions of Kazakhstan.

If China increases its water intake from the transboundary river Irtysh, Kazakhstan will invariably face numerous negative consequences, and among them are the disturbance of the water balance and natural equilibrium in the area of the Balkhash and Zaysan lakes, deterioration of environment in these regions, the growing concentration of harmful substances in water, aggravation of the problem of water supply of coastal settlements and cities, and drop of agricultural crop yields. In addition, the Chinese policy may entail reduction of power generation by the Irtysh HPP cascade and stopping of shipping in the Irtysh River already by 2020.

The policy of China towards other transboundary river – Ily – may also incur negative aftereffects for Kazakhstan. Thus, in particular, the Chinese side intends to build more than 30 power plants, more than 10 large water reservoirs and dams, and other waterworks. In the recent years, the water intake from the Ily River in the Chinese territory has reached around 3.5 km3 per year, and in the next several years, it may become as large as 5 km3 annually. As a result of implementation by China of the projects on the Ily River, by 2050 the flow of this river in Kazakhstan will become 40% less. At the same time, commissioning of industrial, mostly oil production and oil processing enterprises in the river basin in China, will contribute to greater pollution of river waters. So, the policy of China in the use of the Ily River water resources will threaten the Balkhash Lake which may become shallower as for over 50% it is recharged by waters of the Ily River.

The contemplated extension of lands under cotton and grain crops in Xinjiang and water supply of new industrial facilities in XUAR is based on the use of the Irtysh upstream flow. It is planned to increase gradually the water intake from this to 5 km3 per year.

The growing pollution of the Irtysh waters directly affects the quality of drinking water. It should be remembered here that for Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk cities, the Irtysh is the sole source of water supply, while the Irtysh-Karaganda canal satisfies the water needs of Karaganda for 90% and of the Karaganda Region for 50%.

The decreasing flow of the Irtysh River brings about serious environmental, social, and economic consequences. The self-purification capacity of the Zaysan Lake and Bukhtarma water reservoir will decrease significantly. In the Chinese territory, the Irtysh receives waters polluted with heavy metals, nitrates, and petroleum products. If the existing industrial and agricultural sources of pollution are maintained, even the insignificant decrease of the annual flow may lead to degradation of the existing environmental systems.

6 Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan Transboundary Rivers

The main watercourses shared by Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan having a common border of 980 km long are the Talas River (661 km long) and the Chu River (1,186 km long) (Fig. 5).

Fig. 5
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Chu and Talas River basins (https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2011/08/redrawing-the-map-of-the-worlds-international-river-basins/)

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Regardless of rather complicated relations in the water sphere, these two states signed in 2000 the Agreement Between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic on Utilization of the Water Facilities of Interstate Use on the Chu And Talas Rivers which permitted to establish the joint bodies to control transboundary rivers.

The environmental issues faced by Kazakhstan in the use of these watercourses are pollution of surface waters and the low water level in their deltas. The Chu River is polluted by industrial wastewaters discharged in Kyrgyzstan. Rather high is the share of municipal wastewaters from Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, in the total pollution load.

The Talas River is also polluted by wastewaters discharged by industrial enterprises in the Zhambyl Region of Kazakhstan. The discharge of drainage waters from the Zhambyl HPP and Zhambyl alcohol distillery plant into the Talas River has increased significantly due to the growing production.

The drop of the water level in the Talas and Chu Rivers may be attributed to the agricultural development. The water from these rivers is taken for irrigation of agricultural crops. The climate change involving general decrease of water resources is also a negative factor causing water level drop in the rivers. Shallowing of the Talas River has already led to negative environmental consequences – the increase of salt concentrations in drinking water in settlements located along the river (Sarybulak, Shakhan, Bostandyk, Akkum, Sadu Shakirov, Amangeldy, Zhanaturmys, Oiyk, Usharal). Apart from this, the shallowing of the river entails degradation of lands, their desertification and salinization. The shortage of water may also result in decrease of agricultural areas which will affect the general economic development. These processes may also provoke migration of the population from the salinization-affected territories and health problems for the people.

7 Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan Transboundary Rivers

The main conflict between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan which common border runs for 2,300 km is over the growing water intake by the Uzbek side from the Syr Darya River.

In 1992 both sides tried to settle their contradictions in the water sphere. They signed the Intergovernmental Agreement Between the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrghyz Republic, the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Republic of Tajikistan, and the Republic of Turkmenistan on the Cooperation in Joint Management, Use, and Protection of Water Resources of Interstate Sources. Later on in March 1998, the three-lateral Agreement Between the Governments of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrghyz Republic, and the Republic of Uzbekistan on the Use of Water and Energy Resources of the Naryn-Syr Darya Cascade Reservoirs was signed.

For Kazakhstan that depends on neighboring states for resolving the water problems, it is of great importance to obtain guarantees of steady supply of water that may be used to meet the domestic and industrial needs. But the Syr Darya waters entering the Kazakh territory are already polluted. The main pollutants contributing to the Syr Darya degradation are sulfates, copper, nitrites, and petroleum products as well as industrial wastewaters, discharges of collector, and drainage waters from agricultural lands and animal farm effluents. If Uzbekistan continues this practice, this will make solution of the social, economic, and environmental problems more difficult.

Similar problems exist for other transboundary river – Ily – that accounts for 80% of the total surface inflow into the largest lake of Balkhash which is very important for the economy of Kazakhstan. The Balkhash Lake provides with water the population in the coastal territories and supplies water to the metallurgical and power facilities.

8 Kazakhstan-Russia: Mechanisms of Interaction

The Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation are linked not only by the world’s longest state border but by numerous common watercourses. The border between Kazakhstan and Russia runs for 6,467 km. It is crossed by several large rivers – Irtysh, Ural, Tobol, and Ishim. The joint use of transboundary rivers supposes the search for compromises in addressing many complicated issues which is in the interests of both states and facilitates development of a meaningful dialog concerning wise water use, protection, and management of water resources (Fig. 6).

Fig. 6
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Tobol, Ishim, and Irtysh River basins (http://geography.name/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Ob_watershed.png)

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The most problematic in terms of settlement of disputes related to joint use and protection of waters is the Irtysh River 3,712 km long. It crosses the territories of three states: China (405 km), Kazakhstan, and Russia. This river originates on the slopes of the Greater Altay Mountains in China where under the name of Black Irtysh it crosses the China-Kazakh border and flows into the Zaysan Lake from which is goes out under the name of Irtysh and flows further to Russia. The Irtysh River has great importance for economy development not only of China but of Kazakhstan and Russia, too.

In August 1992 in Orenburg, the Intergovernmental Agreement Between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation on the Joint Use and Protection of Transboundary Water Bodies was signed, and the Russian-Kazakh Intergovernmental Commission on the Joint Use and Protection of Transboundary Water Bodies was established.

The further progress in interstate relations continued by signing in 1993 in Omsk of the Protocol on Cooperation in Protection and Use of Transboundary Waters of the Irtysh River Between Kazakhstan and RF. The signing of this protocol was dictated by the urgent need in the coordinated policy on joint management of the water resources of the Irtysh River. On June 26, 1997, in Orenburg, the heads (akims) of the Aktyubinsk, Western Kazakhstan, Kostanay regions of Kazakhstan, and the governor of the Orenburg Region of Russia signed the Agreement on Cooperation in Environment Protection, Natural Resources Management and Environmental Safety in Neighboring Territories. At present the local flow is shared on the basis of the Protocol on the Joint Use and Protection of Transboundary Water Bodies in the Ural River basin.

During 2001–2003 Kazakhstan and Russia accomplished the Project on the Cross-Border Management of Water Resources of the Irtysh River Basin in cooperation with French experts. In the course of project implementation, there was an organized regular exchange of information about the condition of the river water which permitted to suggest scenarios of further development of the Irtysh basin system taking into consideration the anthropogenic factor. The results of modeling were disappointing – a sharp drop of the water level in the river due to growing water consumption was forecasted to occur by 2030. Accomplishment of the joint project improved the mutual understanding of the parties, the responsibility of Kazakhstan and Russia for the condition of the Irtysh waters, and safety of the densely populated region in terms of quality water supply.

The water relations with the Russian Federation are regulated by the Agreement on Joint Use and Protection of Transboundary Water Bodies signed in October 2010. In addition, the Kazakh-Russian Commission for Joint Use and Protection of Transboundary Water Bodies was established and functions.

From time to time, the Kazakh leadership raises the question on implementation of the projects on transfer of water resources from Russia and getting access to sea expanses. In May 2018 at the meeting of the Eurasian Economic Union the President of Kazakhstan suggested construction of the shipping canal “Eurasia” between the Black and Caspian Seas which would open the Central Asian countries the way to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean.

9 Conclusion

Being the strategic objects, the transboundary rivers are also a source of problems for neighboring basin countries – Russia, the Chinese People’s Republic, the Kyrghyz Republic, and Kazakhstan. Therefore, the pending national environmental problems of the Aral, Caspian, and Balkhash and the attainment of environmental safety should become the priority issues for sustainable development of Kazakhstan. The process of coping with these threats in Kazakhstan is impeded by the absence of the adequate mechanism to ensure environmental safety. The prevention and resolving of the environmental issues will require not only ratification of international conventions but also the permanent coordination of joint efforts with transboundary countries. Addressing the political and economic issues will make it possible to settle the problem with environment deterioration. President of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbaev said that in the water problem, the Amu Darya and Syr Darya should not become the subject of political bargaining and that the use of hydraulic structures, waters, and electricity should be resolved in the interests of all states [8].

In management of transboundary rivers, the most fair is considered the basin approach to integrated management of watercourses assuming not only protection of rivers but their rational use along with saving the potential of the river basin ecosystem in general. Such approach takes into consideration the stability of the whole river ecosystem and environmental safety of the region. In September 2015 the Kazakhstan President called all Central Asian countries for cooperation and building up relations with a view for a long-time perspective [9].

But regardless of obvious advantages of such approach in management of transboundary rivers, its application in reality faces many objective problems proving the need in its improvement and further adjustment on the basis of efficient cooperation among the states in order to preserve the natural potential in this region. It is meant here to develop joint actions with regard to development of economy, social situation, and ecology stirring great anxiety in all countries of the region. All such approach will permit the Central Asian countries to settle the accumulated contradictions and to lay the basis for stable development [10].

The analysis of the main cross-country watercourses of Kazakhstan and Russia in terms of the basin approach to their management is highly relevant in view of acute problems with water supply and unsatisfactory conditions of many international rivers [11].

Water issues may become more acute in Kazakhstan not only owing to climate changes but also due to decrease of water coming from neighboring territories. This solution of this problem requires development of the effective mechanisms for water resources use in cooperation with neighboring countries. However, China and Kirghizia are not in a hurry to change their position targeted exclusively to meeting their national interests.