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DE RUEHAH #1186/01 2600651
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 170651Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3483
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
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RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 3264
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 3928
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1152
RHMCSUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 3911
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 001186 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB 
ANKARA FOR AGRICULTURE COUNSELOR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR ETRD SENV TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN:  CHEMICALS AND ENVIRONMENTAL 
DAMAGE 
 
¶1. (U) Sensitive but Unclassified.  Not for Internet 
Distribution. 
 
¶2. (U) SUMMARY:  Although information about 
environmental hazards is difficult to obtain in 
Turkmenistan, occasional reports indicate the 
existence, if not the scope, of such problems.  In two 
separate cases, the uncontrolled release of poisonous 
chemicals into the environment caused the death of 
livestock.  While procedures exist to minimize the 
risk of such damage, in practice a lack of expertise 
and resources undermines effective implementation.  In 
order to avoid penalties, local officials did not 
report the incidents and the owners of the livestock 
were not compensated.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶3. (U) On August 24, a resident of Serdar Etrap in 
Balkan Province told a Pol/Econ local staff member 
that forty sheep were poisoned and killed by a 
chemical that was present in the water.  Apparently, a 
defoliant that was used by a state farm contaminated 
the water in the irrigation canal, which the villagers 
used as a watering place for their livestock.  The 
contact said the incident went unnoticed by local 
officials and the owners of poisoned sheep were not 
compensated. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The head of the National Plant Research 
Station told Pol/Econ local staff member that any 
agricultural chemical, before it is passed to farmers, 
undergoes an approval process.  The station's 
specialists develop recommendations on the method of 
its application and dosage.  It is the responsibility 
of the State Concern on Fertilizers and Chemicals 
"Turkmendokunhimiya" to apply pesticides, herbicides 
and defoliants on wheat and cotton fields.  However, 
lack of skilled specialists in this area does not 
allow state farms to carry out these measures in 
compliance with the recommendations of the National 
Plant Research Station.  The contact said that it is 
the responsibility of the Ministry of Nature 
Protection to monitor and assess the environmental 
impact of the release of chemicals into the 
environment.  In practice, because local officials 
want to avoid penalties, they hide, rather than 
report, the incidents of uncontrolled release of 
chemicals into the environment. 
 
¶5. (SBU) In 2006, several cows in Yashlyk village of 
Ahal Province were poisoned and killed by chemicals 
dumped from a nearby cellulose production plant.  A 
local veterinary specialist, who investigated the 
incident, said that the plant's waste water, dumped 
into the valley where the livestock was grazing, 
caused the death of the animals.  Local officials 
threatened the owners of the cows with a penalty for 
grazing their cattle on state-owned land in order to 
pressure them not to raise the issue of compensation. 
The Ministry of Nature Protection turned a blind eye 
on the incident.  However, shortly after the incident, 
the government suspended the plant's operation due to 
technological shortcomings. 
 
¶6. (SBU) COMMENT:  These two incidents are likely the 
tip of the iceberg when it comes to environmental 
damage caused by inappropriate handling of chemicals 
in Turkmenistan.  For example, defoliants have 
widespread use in preparing cotton fields for 
 
ASHGABAT 00001186  002 OF 002 
 
 
mechanical harvesting.  Enforcement of the 
environmental protection law is problematic due to 
inaction and fear of government officials to face 
possible penalties.  Apparently, the unwritten law of the 
Niyazov era, that forbids government officials from 
disclosing negative aspects of Turkmen society "for 
the sake of the nation's stability and prosperity," is 
still in force.  END COMMENT. 
 
CURRAN