In 2019, over 76,000 tons of pollutants were released into the air by enterprises in the region. This marks a significant reduction from 2017 (~ 87,000 tons) and 2018 (84,500 tons). The primary air pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter, and carbon monoxide.
Pollutant emissions from stationary sources - 2017–2019
Substance | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
Sulfur dioxide | 18 | 19 | 18 |
Nitrogen oxides | 5 | 5 | 5 |
Suspended solid particulate | 36 | 34 | 31 |
Carbon monoxide | 18 | 20 | 19 |
Transportation, thermal power generation, and mining are the principal sources of air pollution in the region.
Stationary sources of air pollution, aggregate - 2017–2019
2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
18 324 | 19 068 | 17 584 |
Air quality monitoring in the city of Kokshetau was conducted at two locations - Stepnogorsk and Atbasar; in the Shchuchinsk-Borovsk recreation area at one post; and at eight posts of the Borovoye integrated background monitoring station. In the city of Makinsk and in the villages of Kalachi and Zerenda, monitoring was carried out intermittently.
Oblast residents have been provided access to natural gas to combat air pollution and improve air quality. 436 liquified natural gas (LNG) grouped storage tanks have been put into service. Kokshetau alone has 235 installations supplying 120,000 residents living in 238 multi-story residential buildings via 58 kilometers of supply lines from the storage tanks. Plans in 2020 include gasification for 20 towns in the Arshaly and Tselinograd Oblasts which are located along the route of the principal Saryarka gas pipeline.
In 2018, cars in the region numbered 177,000, trucks 25,000; in 2019, cars numbered 175,000, trucks 27,000
Air quality monitoring revealed levels of atmospheric emissions exceeding norms in the following instances: average monthly concentrations of nitrogen oxide in Kokshetau; ground-level ozone in the city of Stepnogorsk, at the Borovoye integrated background environmental monitoring station, and in the Shchuchinsk-Borovsk recreation area. In the villages of Kalachi, Zerenda and the city of Makinske, the maximum single-measurement formaldehyde concentration was exceeded.
Air quality monitoring revealed levels of atmospheric emissions exceeding norms in the following instances: average monthly concentrations of nitrogen oxide in Kokshetau; ground-level ozone in the city of Stepnogorsk, at the Borovoye integrated background environmental monitoring station, and in the Shchuchinsk-Borovsk recreation area. In the villages of Kalachi, Zerenda and the city of Makinske, the maximum single-measurement formaldehyde concentration was exceeded.
Water quality – Surface bodies of Water in the Akmola Oblast - 2019
Class | Body of Water |
2 | Vyacheslavskoye Reservoir |
3 | Silety River |
4 | Yessil River (Ishim River), Nura River, Nura-Yessil Canal, Lake Sultankeldy, Bettybulak River |
5 | Rivers Akbulak, Sarybulak, Zhabay, Aksu, Kylshykty and Shagalal; Lakes Sulukol, Zhukey, Zerendy, Kopa, Burabay, Ulken, Shabakty, Shchuchye, Kishi, Shabakty, Karasye and Katarkol, Tekekol, Maybalyk, Lebyazhye |
The Akmola Oblast has 552 lakes, 40 reservoirs, 6 trenches, 11 excavations, 57 dams. In total, the water surface area covers 447,000 hectares - 3% of the entire oblast. The most significant water resources include Lake Tengiz; the Yessil River – the oblast's principle waterway; the Shagalaly River – the principle water source for Kokshetau, the oblast center; and several large rivers including the Zhabay, Silety, Nura, Kylshykty and Tersakkan.
Water quality monitoring was conducted on 30 bodies of water in the Akmola Oblast: On the Yessil, Nura, Bettybulak, Akbulak, Sarybulak, Zhabay, Kylshykty, Shagalaly, Aksu, and Silety rivers; the Vyacheslavskoye Reservoir, the Nura-Yessil Canal; and Sultankeldy, Kopa, Zerenda, Burabay, Ulken Shabakty, Kishi Shabakty, Shchuchye, Karasye, Sulukol, Katarkol, Tekekol, Maibalyk, Lebyazhye, and Zhukey lakes.
Domestic wastewater discharge in 2017–2019
2017 | 2018 | |
Volume – wastewater discharge – 1 000 m³ | 9 308 | 29 |
Volume – pollutant discharge - kt | 8 450 | 27 |
Discharge of pollutants by enterprises - 2017–2019
2017 | 2018 | |
Volume – wastewater discharge – 1 000 m³ | 7 996 | 12 |
Volume – pollutant discharge - kt | 7 200 | 10 |
Incidents of elevated and extremely elevated pollution of oblast surface water resources - 2017-2019
Year | Extremely elevated pollution |
2017 | 9 |
2018 | 18 |
2019 | 0 |
The total oblast land area in 2019 amounted to over 14.5 million hectares – the total unchanged since 2017
Distribution of land by category – thousands of hectares - 2017-2019
Category | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
Agricultural land | 10 818 | 10 829 | 10 822 |
Residential land | 1 321 | 1 325 | 1 325 |
Land zoned for industrial, transport, communications, defense, and other non-agricultural purposes | 145 | 134 | 136 |
Protected nature preserves | 472 | 519 | 519 |
Forestland | 573 | 526 | 523 |
Surface water lands | 199 | 199 | 201 |
Undesignated Reserve land | 1 084 | 1 080 | 1 085 |
Lands zoned for exploitation in Nur-Sultan | 1 |
In the region in 2018, 174 common mineral exploration and/or production contracts were finalized.; in 2019, there were 168 common mined element production contracts and 40 exploration contracts finalized.
In 2018, oblast courts resolved 173 seizure claims for land misuse totaling 21,034 hectares. In 2019, 1505 thousand hectares of lands affected by misuse were registered. With a moratorium on inspections in place, satellite imaging will be employed to monitor land usage.
There are 15 natural areas in the region under protection.
Protected Natural Preserves - Akmola Oblast
State Nature Reserve | Korgalzhyn |
State National Park |
Burabay National Park Kokshetau National Park Buiratau National Park |
State Nature Sanctuary (Zoological) | State Nature Sanctuary Atbasar State Nature Sanctuary Bulandy Eastern State Nature Sanctuary |
State Natural Historic Site |
Shlem Hill (Sopka Shlem) Cape Verde (Zelyony Mis) Relict Plant Pond Smolnaya Hill (Smolnaya Sopka) Strekach Hill (Strekach Sopka) Cape Crimson (Malinovy Mis) Galochya Hill (Galochya Sopka) Pozharnaya Hill (Pozharnaya Sopka) |
96% of the lakes of the oblast are freshwater, allowing for significant fisheries. The principal species include crucian carp, perch, chebak, tench, Eurasian carp, vendace, pike, pelad, bream, carp, sander, roach, burbot, ide. To promote the conservation and reproduction of ichthyofauna, environmental management groups are assigned responsibility for the maintenance of one-third of regional lakes.
Public compliance with national environmental legislation is closely monitored in an effort to preserve flora and fauna. In 2018, 30 inspections were conducted in specially protected natural areas, 136 fines were administered. In 2019, 130 fines were administered, and 14 inspections conducted.
In 2019, six cases of illegal forestry were submitted for prosecution.
Akmola enjoys widely diverse array of fauna, with populations of moose, deer, roe deer, wild boar, lynx, wolf, and small predators like fox, corsac, badger, the common raccoon dog, ermine, weasel and steppe ferret. Hares and a groundhog-baibaks are ubiquitous in the oblast. Buirantau Nature Park hosts argali and Lake Teniz is the only location in the CIS where flamingoes nest. Many other rare species of animal also call the region home.
Number of rare and endangered species in the oblast - 2017-2019
View | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
Eastern Imperial Eagle | 3 | 31 | 0 |
Golden Eagle | 55 | 87 | 16 |
Eurasian Spoonbill | 12 | 12 | 7 |
Red-breasted Goose | 66 | 69 | 41 |
Ferruginous Duck | 19 | 8 | 39 |
Steppe Eagle | 138 | 153 | 133 |
Little Egret | 465 | 74 | 40 |
Sociable Plower | 32 | 30 | 29 |
White-headed Duck | 6 607 | 4 501 | 5 000 |
Flamingo | 11 226 | 3 340 | 5 000 |
Whooper Swan | 9 635 | 4 331 | 7 481 |
Dalmatian Pelican | 2 123 | 802 | 846 |
Pallas's ghull | 283 | 273 | 153 |
Common crane | 949 | 1 011 | 942 |
Little Bustard | 1 589 | 1 538 | 1 326 |
Demoiselle crane | 30 494 | 16 849 | 16 339 |
White-tailed eagle | 274 | 282 | 153 |
European pine marten | 598 | 789 | 736 |
Argali | 360 | 375 | 389 |
Numbers of primary ungulate species & fur-bearing species in the oblast, subject to hunting – 2017-2019
View | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
Moose | 841 | 946 | 1 030 |
Deer | 1 698 | 2 101 | 2 179 |
Roe deer | 16 248 | 13 629 | 13 609 |
Wild Boar | 2 557 | 3 003 | 3 242 |
Fox | 13 708 | 15 029 | 15 294 |
Hare | 77 958 | 72 112 | 73 149 |
In 2019, more than 40 tourist routes and trails operated in protected natural preserves
Available hiking trails and tourist routes - 2018–2019
2018 | 2019 | |
Tourist routes | 21 | 24 |
Hiking trails | 21 | 20 |
Gamma radiation levels in the region were monitored at 15 meteorological stations. A verage values of the gamma radiation background of the surface layer of the atmosphere for the settlements of the region and including values for daily radioactive fallout were in the normal , with a norm up range to 5 mSv/h. Overall, more than 120,000 dosimetry checks were conducted in the region in 2019; and in 2018 - more than 62,000.
Radon mapping was carried out in the region 263 measurements with taken in 2018 and 1384 measurements in 2019. No spikes were recorded. In the village of Kalachi, the radon content was measured monthly at 20 points indoors and outdoors and all within indicators were normal ranges
.
There are seven regional enterprises in the region possessing a total of
48 sources of ionizing radiation in their inventories. There are no
ownerless sources of ionizing radiation in the region, but there are
inactive remediated uranium mines
— mine No. 1 RU-4: Ishimskoye deposit (Yesil district); The
Kubasadyrskoye and Prirechnoye fields (Zharkainsky District);
— mine No. 8 RU-3: Zaozernoye (Enbekshildersky district;
— mine No. 9 RU-3: Tastykolskoye (Enbekshildersky district);
— mine No. 14 RU-3 and RU-1: Glubokoe, Shatskoye, Koksorskoye,
Agashskoye (Enbekshildersky district); Balkashinskoye and Olginskoye
(Sandyktau district);
— Stepnogorsk Mining and Chemical Plant LLP has not worked the
Zvezdnoye and Vostok fields in Shantobe since 2013;
In the first half of 2019, 166,000 tons of household waste were generated in the region; in 2018 – 241,000 tons; in 2017 – 234,000 tons. Slightly more than 5% of all waste generated in 2018 and 2019 was recycled and disposed of.
Four enterprises in the region are engaged in sorted collection of solid domestic waste. Plans are in the offing to construct a waste processing complex with a capacity of 30,000 tons of waste processed annually by the environmentally friendly method of flameless gasification
44.5 % of the population has waste collection and transport services. The number of landfills in the region satisfying sanitation and environmental requirements is insufficient: of 130 landfills, 26 have official permits. Five oblast regions have no legal landfills; 10 regional centers have no solid domestic waste landfills. In 2020, in order to address the issue more than 50 million Tenge were allocated to develop a feasibility study for the construction of seven solid waste landfills covering six districts
The collection and processing of hazardous waste is receiving significant attention. In 2019, 49,000 mercury lamps and thermometers were collected and sent for disposal.
By 2023, plans are to increase the share of electricity generation from renewable
sources to 45%. Plans include four new projects with a total capacity of 184
megawatts:
— KB Enterprises LLP solar power plant plans to launch operations in 2020;
— Ereymentau Wind Power LLP wind power plant is scheduled to launch operations
in 2021;
— Golden Energy Corp LLP wind power plant has installed ten wind turbines, launch
is scheduled for 2021
— Vichi LLP and Vetro Invest Kokshetau LLP wind power plant have installed five
wind turbines, commissioning work is underway
In 2019, three wind farms were in operation in the region:
— First Wind Power Plant LLP in the Ereymentau district generated
more than 153 million kWh of electricity for the year.
— Agrofirma Rodina LLP wind power plant generated 1.3 million kWh
of electricity
— CATEK Green Energy LLP wind power plant in the Arshaly oblast is
still under construction. Following the launch of its first stage in 2019,
76 million kWh of electricity was generated
In 2019, 22% of oblast energy generated comes from renewable
energy sources (RES).
L akes Shchuchye, Burabay, Karasu, and Katarkol of the Shchuchinsk-Borovoye Recreation Zone are assigned Pollution Levels 3,4, and 5 - "moderately polluted", "polluted" and "heavily polluted". The Oblast Akimat has allocated two million Tenge to conduct a competitive tender for a lake cleaning project, with the source of project funding not yet determined. Prior to a cleaning process, the regional Department of Ecology lab conducts an analysis of the lake water
In the Zhaksy district, 10 of 15 landfills are licensed; in the Atbasar district, only 3 of 16 landfills are licensed; in the Zharkainsky district 3 of 14 are licensed; in the Yessil district, only 1 of 14 landfills is licensed. In 5 districts there are no licensed landfills. The deficit of licensed landfills results in the appearance of spontaneous landfills and environmental pollution. To combat pollution, the oblast administration monitors compliance with environmental legislation, identifies unauthorized landfills, and adopts measures to eliminate them
Lake Kopa and the Kylshakty River, the principal recreation destinations in Kokshetau, are polluted. In 2018, a partial cleaning of silt deposits on the lake bottom was conducted and a biomelioration project stocking the lake with predatory and herbivorous fish species. In 2019, an open call was held for a feasibility study on clearing silt deposits in the lake; also the "Cleaning the Kylshakty River in Kokshetau" was developed