BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 3. Uzbekistan held the
fourth meeting of its interagency working group on preventing water
pollution and ensuring tailings storage safety, as the country
moves forward with plans to strengthen environmental protection and
industrial safety standards.


This was reflected in the statement published by the National
Committee on Ecology and Climate Change of Uzbekistan.


The meeting, held in Tashkent, was organized by the National
Committee on Ecology and Climate Change of Uzbekistan together with
the Committee on Industrial, Radiation and Nuclear Safety, the
Sanitary and Epidemiological Welfare Committee, the United Nations
Economic Commission for Europe Convention on the Transboundary
Effects of Industrial Accidents, and the UNECE-WHO/Europe Protocol
on Water and Health.


The initiative is being supported financially by the Swiss
Agency for Development and Cooperation.


The session brought together representatives of ministries,
regulatory bodies, scientific institutions, international
organizations and private-sector enterprises involved in
environmental protection, water management, industrial safety and
emergency response.


Speaking at the meeting, Javokhir Abdukhalikov said the
interagency working group was established in 2024 to support
Uzbekistan’s efforts to improve water security, sanitation and
protection of water resources from accidental pollution under
climate change conditions.


“Today, final versions of these documents have been prepared,
and they will serve as the foundation for Uzbekistan’s accession to
the Convention and its further implementation,” Abdukhalikov
said.







The first meeting of the working group in September 2024
launched the preparation of a roadmap for Uzbekistan’s accession to
the UNECE Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial
Accidents. Subsequent meetings focused on national assessments in
water, sanitation, hygiene and health, as well as climate-related
risks.


During the latest session, participants reviewed progress on the
roadmap, discussed remaining implementation steps and examined
measures to prevent accidents at tailings storage facilities,
particularly in the context of climate change and natural
disasters.


Special attention was given to the near-final package of
national target indicators in water supply, sanitation, hygiene and
public health, developed under Article 6 of the UNECE-WHO/Europe
Protocol on Water and Health.


The participants also approved key recommendations from the
second technical seminar on revising these indicators, held in
Tashkent on June 30.


According to Trend
analysis, Uzbekistan’s intensified work on industrial accident
prevention and water governance reflects broader efforts to align
with international environmental safety standards. With
climate-related risks and industrial waste management becoming
increasingly urgent across Central Asia, accession to the UNECE
convention could strengthen Uzbekistan’s institutional framework
for managing cross-border environmental risks and improving
long-term water security.