Asel Raimkulova, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision, addressed the issue of environmental oversight of mining companies during the MINEX Central Asia forum in Bishkek.
Kyrgyzstan has over 100 companies engaged in mineral extraction and processing. The Ministry of Natural Resources oversees their compliance with environmental and industrial safety requirements.
Despite this, the deputy minister highlighted the need for additional measures, such as equipping environmental laboratories with modern equipment.
“In some cases, environmental protection is effectively limited to mining companies’ payments for pollution,” Raimkulova stated.
The Ministry conducts state environmental assessments to determine the ecological risks of projects and decisions. Legislation also provides for public environmental reviews and monitoring.
However, the deputy minister emphasized that public reviews are rare due to limited financial resources.
The Ministry is working on improving and developing new regulations to protect the environment at the legislative level.
This involves adopting international standards, including environmental audits, environmental insurance, and modern methods for calculating pollution from industrial activities.
Companies impacting the environment must:
- Conduct environmental impact assessments;
- Develop environmental protection measures;
- Implement environmental monitoring programs.
Raimkulova reminded that Kyrgyzstan is a party to 13 international environmental conventions and 3 protocols, entitling it to technical and financial assistance from developed countries in this field.
