Report on the implementation of field activities under the ESERA project

In the period from August 25 to September 14, the Kazakh-German University together with the Executive Board of the International Fund for saving the Aral sea in the Republic of Kazakhstan and Barsa-Kelmes State Nature Reserve held field events within the framework of the ESERA (Ecosystems, Society and Economics of the Region of Aral) project in Aral district of Qyzylorda region.

The ESERA project is aimed at studying the problems and current state of the environment and socio-economic infrastructure of the Aral Sea region. The main goal of the project is to increase the research potential of young researchers through case studies aimed at monitoring the current state and assessing the impact of climate change on the regional environmental and socio-economic security of the region.

The field activities consisted of two components: The Second Aral Sea Summer School (educational component) and field research within the research component, which involved two different groups of participants, respectively.

The Second Aral Sea Summer School was held from 25 to 30 August 2020 and was attended by 11 young researchers from all over Kazakhstan. During the Summer school participants received a lot of useful information from experts about the history of the region, environmental disaster and its consequences, visited the Kokaral dam, Barsa-Kelmes former island, had a unique opportunity to see kulans and gazelles on the Kaskakulan section of the Barsa-Kelmes Nature Reserve, but most importantly — made new friends and received a huge amount of positive emotions.

The research component of field work (August 25-September 14, 2020) consisted of conducting field research by young scientists in three areas:

1. Study of fish protection structures and devices on the Kokaral dam, as well as the study of potential reservoirs for the development of fisheries;
2. Study of distribution and survival of saxaul in pilot areas located on the drained bottom of the Aral Sea and study of effectiveness of phytomelioration measures in localities;
3. Study of climate change impact and the consequences of the disaster on the local population.

The data collected during field events will be used for further research work, the results of which will be published in the Central Asian Journal of Water Research.

In case of any questions, please contact ESERA Project Manager Almas Kitapbayev.

Tel: +7−727 355 05 51 (int. 243); +7 702 100 77 67

E-mail: kitapbayev@dku.kz