OREANDA-NEWS. January 24, 2013. These days the water reservoirs in the country collect seasonal precipitation waters and flood waters in order to reserve water for various agricultural needs. According to the Ministry of Water Industry of Turkmenistan, water storage reservoirs will collect 2,766 million cubic meters of water by watering season.

The systematic work on increasing the capacity of water reservoirs allows reserving water and effectively distributing the reserves in seasons.

The bowls of the largest water reservoirs in the country - the 15 years of independence of Turkmenistan and Hauzhan Reservoir are expanded. These man-made water bodies play a special role in the functioning of the grandiose hydraulic system of the Karakum River supplying life-giving water to several regions. This water artery occupies a key place in the water supply system of the country. A great number of the up-to-date equipment work on its shores at present to clean up the channel, improve its water discharge capacity and repair of protective bank and water control structures.

The bowl of the Saryyazyn water reservoir on the Murgab River is also expanded. Collecting large amounts of flood waters, this man-made lake promotes widening the cultivated areas in Murgab Oasis.

The current arrangements on efficient management of winter and spring flood waters, including large amounts of water flowing down from the slopes of the Kopetdag Mountains, will significantly increase the water supply to the national agricultural industry. Moreover, the new and existing water reservoirs in the foothills conrolling the power of mountain streams protect human settlements, economic objects and crop areas from flooding. A number of such reservoirs are built at the foothills of the Kopetdag Mountains and this important for the country work gains a higher rate each year. Thus, the units of the Ministry of Water Industry of Turkmenistan are building a new water reservoir on the Gozganchay River in Kaahka Etrap, Ahal Velayat.

A new water reservoir is under construction in Kunya Urgench Etrap in Dashoguz Velayat. The bowl of the Mammetkel reservoir in Balkan Velayat is also extended.

Flood control works, measures to strengthen banks, rectify channel, repair dams are carried out on the Amu Darya and Murgab Rivers. The Zahmet-Turkmengala machine channel in Mary Velayat is reconstructed. New powerful pumps produced by leading manufacturers are installed on its water-lifting stations. As is known, one of the most exciting implemented in this area is the revival of the Yylgynagyz channel on the right bank of the Amu Darya River that allowed expanding sown areas, develop new fields watering them with moisture.

The large-scale work on reconstruction of drainage and irrigation systems has been launched in the regions of the country that will increase the efficiency of agricultural activities, water fields to be sown with cotton and ensure a high yield of important crops.

The preservation and increase of soil fertility, protection from secondary salinization is one of the major concerns of agricultural workers. After putting the first phase of the Altyn Asyr Turkmen Lake onto operation, collectors were combined into a single high-performance hydraulic system. As a result, the quality of irrigated lands is improved and discharge of drainage water into the adjacent waterways is prevented. These measures help to improve the environmental situation in Turkmenistan and the Central Asian region in general. Putting the second turn of an ambitious project into operation opens up huge prospects of reusing drainage waters for agricultural needs. This is particularly important given the limited water sources in Central Asia. Addressing the problem of drainage water disposal, Turkmenistan sets an example to many other water users in the region.

Within the framework of the changes taken place in the agricultural complex particular attention is paid to strengthening the material and technical base of the water sector. Modern agricultural workers use high-performance earth moving equipment, including Caterpillar, Komatsu and ЗTZ brands as well as the most advanced water-lifting equipment.

High technical equipment allows improving the effectiveness of such promising areas and modern methods of using life-giving water as drip irrigation, sprinkler irrigation that have proved their effectiveness on Turkmen fields and are able to significantly reduce water consumption through science-based water use. This is another way to solve the important problem - to increase the area under crops.

Calling for efficient water management, development of constructive cooperation on the use of transboundary waters, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov put forward the relevant initiatives in this field focusing on international law and the best interests of all countries in the region. A significant step in this direction was Turkmenistan’s accession to the UN Convention of the European Economic Commission “On protection and use of transboundary watercourses and international lakes” in 2012.