Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 18 October, in Beijing, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Sh. Mirziyoyev spoke at the III International Forum “One Belt, One Road”.

During his speech, the leader of Uzbekistan drew attention to the difficult environmental situation in Central Asia, manifested in the form of abnormal weather conditions, droughts, dust storms, land degradation and desertification, and loss of biodiversity.

This concern stems from the fact that warming in Central Asia is occurring faster than in other parts of the world. So, if in the period from 1900 to 2020. While the global average temperature increased by 1.1°C, in Central Asia the average annual temperature increased by 1.6°C, that is, on average it increased from 13.2°C to 14.8°C. At the same time, according to forecasts, by 2050 the air temperature may increase by another 1.5°-3°C.

As a result of rising temperatures over the past 50-60 years, the area of glaciers in Central Asia has decreased by 30%. Moreover, a temperature increase of 2°C in the next 50 years will lead to a reduction in their area by 1.5 times.

Such unfavorable forecasts, according to experts, will aggravate the situation related to water supply in the region, since in the next ten years the water level in the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers may decrease by 10-15%.

The trend towards a decrease in the volume of water flow of the two main rivers of the Aral Sea basin will directly affect the process of desertification of the Aral Sea region, which has already reached 60%, which has become the main environmental disaster for the whole of Central Asia.

In this regard, the Head of Uzbekistan put forward the initiative to create a scientific and information platform for the transfer of “green” knowledge and solutions on the basis of the International Innovation Center of the Aral Sea region.

It is worth noting that the International Innovation Center of the Aral Sea region, created in 2018, is engaged in ecosystem restoration, adaptation to climate change, improving the lives of the local population, etc.

The center can serve as an ideal basis for creating a scientific and information platform, which will further expand the possibilities for implementing joint innovative projects in the field of adaptation to water shortages in the Aral Sea region.

In particular, cooperation with China will help solve the environmental problem of the Aral Sea by planting desert-resistant plants on the dried seabed (Aralkum), which will soften the climate and help curb the movement of dust and sand.

This is because China has 70 years of experience in combating desertification.

Over the past few decades, China’s success in preventing land degradation has been comparable to economic development, the forest cover ratio in the PRC has increased from 9% in 1949 to 30% in 2021, and the trend of soil degradation and desertification has been stopped.

China has managed to make a historic transformation from a “sandy” to a “green” surface, economic development continues in the desert areas of the country, people’s lives are constantly improving, China will prematurely achieve the goal of zero growth of degraded land according to the UN plan, which is scheduled for implementation by 2030.

As it seems, the implementation of the initiative of the head of Uzbekistan to create a scientific and information platform for the transfer of “green” knowledge will be the next important step in strengthening cooperation between the countries participating in the BRI in the environmental direction and environmental protection, and will allow Central Asia to effectively combat land degradation.

Mashrapov Abbos

Leading researcher at the International Institute of Central Asia