VZCZCXRO2583
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW
RUEHLA RUEHLH RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHSK
RUEHSL RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHNT #0314/01 0560233
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 241242Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY TASHKENT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1924
INFO ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
CIS COLLECTIVE
EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/USCENTCOM POLITICAL ADVISOR MACDILL AFB FL
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0113
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0103
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 0012
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 0025
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 0018
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 0255
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TASHKENT 000314 
 
SIPDIS 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/CEN, EEB/ES, OES 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL SENV EAID UZ
SUBJECT: UZBEKISTAN: UNDP ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS 
 
REF: TASHKENT 160 
 
TASHKENT 00000314  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: The United Nations Development Programme, one of 
the largest and most trusted donors in Uzbekistan, has a number of 
environmental and energy projects, including:  building ecosystem 
stability on degraded land in Karakalpakstan and the Kyzylkum 
desert; capacity building for a clean development mechanism; 
conservation of tugai forests in the Amu-Darya delta of 
Karakalpakstan; introducing biodiversity into Uzbekistan's 
oil-and-gas sector policies and operations; improving energy 
efficiency in public buildings; strengthening institutions and 
professional development; developing sustainability of the national 
protected area system; and developing a sustainable livestock 
sector.  END SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
UNDP ONE OF THE LARGEST AND MOST TRUSTED DONORS 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 
Uzbekistan Head of Environment and Energy Unit Abduvakkos 
Abdurahmanov outlined to the Regional Environmental Officer (REO) 
and Tashkent Environmental Specialist the UNDP's several 
environmental and energy projects in Uzbekistan.  (Note: 
Adurahmanov is an Uzbek national who studied public financial 
administration and policy analysis at Indiana University in 2006-07 
as a Muskie fellow.  End note.)  He said the UNDP is one of the 
largest donors in Uzbekistan and certainly one of the most trusted 
because it is perceived as impartial.  Its policies towards the 
environment in Uzbekistan also have a great impact on the region, 
with the major thrusts being conservation, climate change, land 
degradation, and sustainable land use.  In addition to projects in 
each of these fields, the UNDP is just beginning to design an 
integrated water resource management project for Uzbekistan. 
 
 
 
ECOSYSTEM STABILITY IN KARAKALPAKSTAN 
 
 
 
¶3. (U) Abdurahmanov said Uzbekistan is highly susceptible to 
environmental degradation, caused mainly by its inefficient 
irrigation system and practices, extensive agriculture, 
deforestation, and overgrazing.  Loose sand is also a major cause 
of land degradation, and approximately 2.3 million hectares in 
Bukhara Oblast and 4.5 million hectares in Karakalpakstan are 
affected by wind erosion.  Local experts estimate that the 
wind-blown sand directly affects the health of up to five million 
people and many more indirectly. 
 
 
 
¶4. (U) Abdurahmanov said UNDP's land degradation pilot project in 
Kyzyl Rovat (Bukhara Oblast) and Kazakhdarya (Karakalpakstan) is to 
plant grass, bush, and tree species that can thrive in desert and 
semi-desert ecosystems, thereby showing it is possible to stabilize 
mobile sands and rehabilitate degraded lands in deserts and 
semi-deserts.  He said UNDP hopes this project will also help 
revive traditional livelihoods as well as introduce new sustainable 
land management practices and promote their wide adoption by local 
communities. 
 
 
 
CAPACITY BUILDING FOR CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM 
 
TASHKENT 00000314  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶5. (U) Abdurahmanov said Uzbekistan signed the United Nations 
Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1998 and the Kyoto 
Protocol the following year.  The Kyoto Protocol provides 
opportunities to a number of developing countries, including 
Uzbekistan, to reduce their CO2 emissions and benefit from modern 
"clean energy" technologies investments via the Clean Development 
Mechanism (CDM) (reftel).  He said the energy sector accounts for 
approximately 83% of total green house gas emissions in Uzbekistan. 
The CDM project will raise awareness, improve the government's 
institutional framework, and train government staff and private 
partners on CDM concepts for sustainable development in Uzbekistan. 
The Ministry of Economy and Uzhydromet are the implementing 
partners; they will develop a number of projects that can benefit 
from clean energy investment. 
 
 
 
TUGAI FORESTS AND AMUDARYA DELTA 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) Abdurahmanov said that tugai forests were once quite common 
in Central Asia.  Tugai are unique riparian forests of arid areas 
that include reeds, river-bed gallery forests, drought-resistant 
bushes and grass, and desert landscapes.  However, changes in the 
Amudarya River's hydrology and water salinity, villagers cutting 
trees for heating and cooking, cattle grazing, and fires have 
combined to greatly reduce the historical tugai areas.  The local 
government of the Karakalpakstan region, the United Nations 
Development Program (UNDP) and the Global Environmental Facility 
(GEF) are carrying out a "Conservation of Tugai Forests and 
Strengthening Protected Areas System in the Amudarya Delta of 
Karakalpakstan" joint project designed to conserve and restore 
these important tugai ecosystems.  The government plans to build a 
Biosphere Nature Reserve in Karakalpakstan and educate local 
communities to use forest and land resources better. 
 
 
 
BIODIVERSITY IN THE OIL-AND-GAS SECTOR 
 
 
 
¶7. (U) Abdurahmanov said the government will prepare a detailed 
assessment of the legal, policy, and institutional environment that 
can support biodiversity in the oil-and-gas sector at the national 
and regional levels.  One important goal is to harmonize national 
laws with U.N. legal documents.  It will also include an analysis 
of the potential conflicts between energy developers on the one 
hand and conservation objectives on the other, and develop 
recommendations to address the conflicts. 
 
 
 
ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN PUBLIC BUILDINGS 
 
 
 
¶8. (U) Abdurahmanov noted that Uzbekistan inherited an 
infrastructure with public buildings that are not energy efficient. 
The projected demand for energy will increase in Uzbekistan as the 
population grows, so making existing and future buildings more 
energy efficient will help reduce overall energy use.  He said 
there are currently no national standards for the design and 
construction of energy efficient buildings in Uzbekistan, and there 
is no monitoring of actual energy consumption in public buildings. 
This project will assess the energy performance of public buildings 
and identify the major barriers to, as well as opportunities for, 
improving energy efficiency.  It will also examine existing 
policies, legal, and regulatory frameworks for energy management in 
public buildings. 
 
TASHKENT 00000314  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
SUSTAINABILITY OF THE NATIONAL PROTECTED AREA SYSTEM 
 
 
 
¶9. (U) Abdurahmanov said Uzbekistan adopted the National 
Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan in 1998, recognizing the need 
for protected areas and for the conservation and sustainable use of 
its biodiversity.  One major concern is government funding for the 
protected areas, even after Uzbekistan adopted a new law "On 
Protected Areas" in 2004 that provides additional financing 
opportunities for biodiversity protection.  The project will 
improve the management capacity of the nature reserves and of the 
Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, as well as help them 
to take advantage of opportunities created by the new law, which 
now allows for the involvement of local communities in decision 
making. 
 
 
 
SUSTAINABLE LIVESTOCK DEVELOPMENT 
 
 
 
¶10. (U) Abdurahmanov said livestock is important in Uzbekistan's 
economy.  At present, inefficient use of pasture land and limited 
access to pedigree sperm, fodder production, and other important 
breeding components are holding back development in this sector. 
He said the government adopted the National Program for Livestock 
development for 2006-2009, but it has no implementing mechanism. 
In addition, overgrazing has caused land degradation.  The 
livestock project, with the Ministry of Agriculture and Water 
Resources as a partner, seeks to develop a sustainable livestock 
sector.  It will also establish artificial insemination and 
veterinarian services at local levels. 
NORLAND