Kazakhstan Environment - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Environment - current issues

radioactive or toxic chemical sites associated with former defense industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe in some cities; because the two main rivers that flowed into the Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; desertification; soil pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Air pollutants

particulate matter emissions: 11.32 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions: 247.21 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions: 45.03 megatons (2020 est.)

Climate

continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid and semiarid

Land use

agricultural land: 77.4% (2018 est.)

arable land: 8.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 68.5% (2018 est.)

forest: 1.2% (2018 est.)

other: 21.4% (2018 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 58.2% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 1.19% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

Revenue from forest resources

forest revenues: 0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Revenue from coal

coal revenues: 0.99% of GDP (2018 est.)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually: 4,659,740 tons (2012 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually: 136,064 tons (2012 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 2.9% (2012 est.)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Ozero Balkhash - 22,000 sq km; Ozero Zaysan - 1,800 sq km

salt water lake(s): Caspian Sea (shared with Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Russia) - 374,000 sq km; Aral Sea (north) - 3,300 sq km; Ozero Alakol - 2,650 sq km; Ozero Teniz 1,590 sq km; Ozero Seletytenzi - 780 sq km; Ozero Sasykkol - 740 sq km

Major rivers (by length in km)

Syr Darya river mouth (shared with Kyrgyzstan [s], Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan) - 3,078 km
note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Internal (endorheic basin) drainage: Tarim Basin (1,152,448 sq km), Amu Darya (534,739 sq km), Syr Darya (782,617 sq km), Lake Balkash (510,015 sq km)

Total water withdrawal

municipal: 2.347 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial: 6.984 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

agricultural: 15.12 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Total renewable water resources

108.41 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Kazakhstan on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Kazakhstan 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Kazakhstan 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.