BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 23. Turkmenistan has
launched a joint initiative with Kazakhstan to implement rainwater
harvesting and reuse systems in the country.
This was reflected in a report published by the press service of
the Turkmen government following an agreement reached between the
Turkmenistan Project Office of the Regional Environmental Centre
for Central Asia (CAREC) and Kazakhstan's Central Asian Institute
for Environmental Research (CAIER).
According to the report, the project will begin with pilot sites
in Ashgabat and the Avaza National Tourist Zone, where engineering
solutions will be developed to collect, filter and reuse rainwater
for irrigating green areas. The partners also plan to sign a
memorandum of cooperation and jointly seek international financing
for the initiative.
"The combination of CAIER's scientific expertise and the
practical experience of the CAREC Project Office will make it
possible to prepare high-quality international projects, attract
financing and introduce modern rainwater harvesting technologies,"
said Mergen Kepbanov, Director of the CAREC Project Office in
Turkmenistan.
According to the organizations, the initiative will combine
CAIER's research experience in rainwater harvesting with CAREC's
capacity to carry out climate and engineering assessments.
Specialists will also exchange hydrometeorological and technical
data needed to design the pilot systems.
If successfully implemented, the project could later be expanded
to other regions of Turkmenistan as part of broader efforts to
strengthen climate resilience, improve water management and promote
nature-based solutions across Central Asia, the report says.
Meanwhile, water management has become one of the key priorities
for Central Asian countries as climate change, population growth
and increasing pressure on water resources accelerate demand for
more efficient technologies. Rainwater harvesting systems are
increasingly being used worldwide to reduce pressure on freshwater
supplies, particularly in urban areas and regions with arid
climates.
Turkmenistan has in recent years expanded cooperation with
international organizations on climate adaptation and sustainable
water management. The country is implementing a number of projects
together with regional and international partners aimed at
improving water efficiency, introducing nature-based solutions and
strengthening resilience to climate change, while regional
cooperation on water issues has become one of the priorities of
Central Asian environmental initiatives.
