Kyrgyzstan
Population: 6,389,500
Christian Percentage: 6.1 %
Primary Religion: Sunni Islam
Persecution Ranking: Not Ranked

Oxford Languages defines precarious as, “not securely held or in position; dangerously likely to fall or collapse.” That is a perfect description of the water situation in Kyrgyzstan, a mountainous Central Asian nation.

Set high in the mountains, Kyrgyzstan has the advantage of glaciers that provide much of their fresh water for drinking and farming. There are rivers and lakes that augment their fresh water supply so this nation should have a sufficient supply of water. But also set high in the mountains are two uranium mines. Between 1946-68 these Soviet run mines functioned with minimal safeguards for the future. Today there are 23 tailings (waste) pits and 13 dumps containing uranium waste. It is only a matter of time before they fail. Already there is evidence of pollutants seeping into the water and farmland leading to higher incidents of typhoid fever, cancer and birth defects.

Below these uranium mines is the fertile Fergana Valley which straddles three countries. It is the primary agricultural region of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, where farmers grow cotton, grain, vegetables, and fruit.

Kyrgyzstan is vulnerable to earthquakes and landslides. Either of these can cause up to 185 million gallons of uranium mine tailings to flood the Fergana Valley below. Uranium waste material is in liquid form, so it would blend with the water of the local lakes and rivers, which currently irrigate farmlands. If this happened, the water would become undrinkable and harmful for farming, not only in Kyrgyzstan but also in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan’s portion of the Fergana Valley. All 16 million people would need to be displaced from this now-fertile region. It would be a Chernobyl-level disaster.

They desperately need to move the toxic waste, especially from the banks of the Mailuu-Suu River, which feeds into an entire river system. This will require a massive improvement for Kyrgyzstan’s infrastructure. As the poorest country in a poor region, Kyrgyzstan does not have the capacity to do it on their own. Fortunately, there have been government and NGO efforts, but the danger will remain until all 185 million gallons of uranium waste are moved to a safer area. There is a lot at stake, not just for Kyrgyzstan but for the entire region. The situation could cause international problems. Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan already have frequent armed conflicts over water rights. All we can do is pray.

Let Us Pray!

  • Pray for the Lord to show the way to a just and merciful answer (The Bible, Micah 6:8).
  • Pray that if there is a disaster, the Lord will use it to bring these Muslims to seek the Lord (The Bible, Lamentations 3:17-18).
  • Pray for Christ followers to provide needed help, glorifying the Name of the Lord among Kyrgyz Muslims (The Bible, Matthew 5:16).

 

Sources:

The Straits Times. Unstable nuclear-waste dams threaten fertile Central Asia heartland. April 24, 2024.
Earth Journalism Network. Mailuu-Suu: Cleaning up Central Asia’s toxic uranium legacy. September 3, 2020.
Borgen Project. Eight Facts About Water Quality in Kyrgyzstan. August 6, 2017