Jalal-Abad Region, Suzak District, Village of Ming-Öruk (Barpy) Destroyed Warehouse of Outdated Pesticides

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Coordinates 40.885654, 73.022308



The greatest anthropogenic impact in the southern regions of the Kyrgyz Republic has affected the Jalal-Abad region. Most warehouses have been destroyed, and the territorial movement/location of previously stored pesticides is unknown. During the inventory, a large number of contaminated areas of former warehouses with unidentified pesticides were found, along with contaminated packaging leaking pesticides into the soil and groundwater. In the Jalal-Abad region, more than 11 sites were identified from past inventories, and an additional 8 sites were indicated by territorial representatives of the State Agency for Environmental Protection and Forestry of the Kyrgyz Republic. A total of 19 sites were surveyed.

The main sites include burial grounds Suzak-A, Suzak-B, and burials in Ala-Buka and Zhil-Kol. In 1973, the burial of Suzak A was conducted in the Ak-Chabyr area of the Suzak district of the Jalal-Abad region, where approximately 2000 - 3000 tons of outdated pesticides were buried in total. The burial ground is fenced with barbed wire, but access is free. This work was funded by a small grants program. There is security, but the guardhouse is destroyed. Signs of recent excavations were found.

In the 1970s-1980s, burials were conducted at the Suzak B burial ground in the Tash-Baka Kunghey area, near the village of Kyzyl-Bayram, Jalal-Abad region. According to the State Committee for Ecology and Climate (GKEK), approximately 1300 tons of various pesticides were buried in total. Currently, the condition of the burial ground is satisfactory (fenced, there are video cameras near the guardhouse, with autonomous power supply using solar panels). No signs of fresh excavations have been found.

The burials in Ala-Buka did not undergo proper registration. All pesticides from the warehouse (the former pesticide warehouse has been destroyed) of the Production Association "Agricultural Chemistry" in the Ala-Buka district were buried 200 m south of the warehouse. The area has been leveled with imported soil, and a large area has been prepared for construction. Soil monitoring for pesticides is necessary.

The burial area of Zhil-Kol indicates that there has been extraction of pesticides, and most of them may already be irretrievably lost. The surface of the site shows signs of old excavations. Nearby, another site with deep pits was found, possibly indicating soil contamination. Surrounding pastures are located where animals graze. The burial site is situated in a small valley. All pesticides from the Uch-Korgon warehouses were brought to this location and buried. According to local residents, the buried stocks were mainly insecticides; cattle were treated with pesticides (presumably DDT).
During the survey, 6 sites in private ownership with partially or completely destroyed warehouses were identified. There is no smell, no pesticides, and no traces on the soil in the area. The absence of traces on the soil may have been obscured by the application of clean soil, and soil contamination cannot be ruled out. The owners of the sites do not know the locations of the old pesticide stocks.

At present, the exact amount of pesticides located in the burial grounds that require repackaging and storage has not been established. More than 10 cubic meters of pesticides remain at the former warehouses. The approximate amount of contaminated soil is over 60 cubic meters.
It should be noted that the GEF-UNEP project "Demonstration of Non-Thermal Treatment of DDT-Containing Waste in Central Asian Countries (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan)" plans to dispose of waste in the Suzak-A and Suzak-B burial grounds. These works need to be accompanied by the development of project documentation, obtaining a positive conclusion from the state ecological expertise on the disposal technology, feasibility study, environmental impact assessment, as well as monitoring possible emissions of POPs into the environment throughout the disposal process.

To date, despite the abundance of previously implemented projects for the inventory of outdated pesticides, contrary to national legislation:
• there are no laboratory data bases on the composition of waste;
• waste passports are absent;
• regular monitoring of the condition of outdated pesticide waste is not conducted (only within the framework of international projects);
• there is no executive authority responsible for the storage and disposal of waste;
• insufficient laboratory capacity for conducting analyses on outdated pesticides, including POPs;
• information on the composition of outdated pesticides is lacking in the supervisory authorities;
• additional research is required on the owners of some warehouses/land where points with outdated pesticides are located.
• training of local government officials and supervisory and controlling authorities is necessary;
• it is necessary to tighten responsibility for improper handling of hazardous waste.

Conclusions
According to the Stockholm Convention on POPs (Article 6 (d) (ii)), waste containing POPs must be destroyed. To find environmentally acceptable methods for the destruction of outdated pesticides, the exact composition of the waste is necessary. To this end, it is necessary to address the issue of equipping laboratories, training personnel, and obtaining accreditation in accordance with GOST ISO/IEC 17025-2019.

In addition, it is necessary to continuously monitor the condition of points contaminated with outdated pesticides and to repack and place waste in a temporary storage facility that meets the requirements of national legislation. Repackaging, construction of a temporary storage facility, and destruction must be accompanied by an environmental impact assessment procedure and obtaining a positive conclusion from the state ecological expertise. For all waste, the owner must provide waste passports and obtain permits for the storage of hazardous waste.

The process of storing and disposing of hazardous waste must be conducted under the control of environmental supervisory authorities.
To this end, it is necessary to initiate the process of maximum legalization of the data obtained from the inventory.
Past inventories have not laid the foundation for creating a monitoring system for the management of outdated pesticides. As a result, a large volume of uncontrolled hazardous waste has become a threat to the environment, life, and health of the population living near the sites of outdated pesticides.

Full report on the inventory of outdated pesticides (OP) in Chui, Talas, Naryn, Issyk-Kul, Jalal-Abad, Osh, and Batken regions