Energy and the environment in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan is blessed with energy resources including oil, gas, coal, and uranium. But attached to this blessing is also a curse, since the extraction and use of these resources cause numerous ecological problems. There is serious pollution of the soil and the Caspian Sea by oil products. Methane leaks from worn and outdated gas infrastructure and coal mines. The burning of energy fuels for heat, electricity, and transport causes emissions of particles as well as carbon, sulphur and nitrogen oxides. Radiation is an unwelcome by-product of oil and uranium production. In this paper we examine these and other devastating effects that energy has had on the Kazakh environment in the past and the present. We outline the laws and institutions for protection of the environment, evaluate their efficiency, and make recommendations on technical and legal improvements that will provide Kazakhstan with a safer and cleaner environment. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.