DUSHANBE
, May 11, Asia-Plus — International conference on the
Lake
Sarez
problems will be held in
Dushanbe
on May 22-23.
According to the Dushanbe NGO For Earth, the conference organizers are
Tajikistan
’s Committee for Emergency Situations and the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) in
Central Asia
.
The conference aims to consider issues related to ways to support efforts of the Tajik government to prevent the possible destruction of the lake’s natural dam and select long-term solution to this problem on the basis of results and recommendations of the Lake Sarez Risk Mitigation Project as well as results of the scientific surveys conducted over the past ten years.
Lake
Sarez
was formed in 1911 after an enormous landslide caused by an earthquake in the
Pamir
Mountain
range of
Tajikistan
blocked the
Murgab
river valley.
The
Lake
Sarez
, approximately 60 kilometers in length, contains close to 17 cubic kilometers of water.
The natural dam, which retains the lake, named Usoy, is located at an altitude of 3200 meters.
With a height of 567 meters from the lake bottom, it is the tallest dam, natural or man-made, in the world.
For many years, scientists have been concerned that the dam could break, sending the water from the lake into populated areas and ultimately into the
Amudarya
River
, with catastrophic results for not only
Tajikistan
, but also for
Uzbekistan
,
Afghanistan
, and
Turkmenistan
.
The Inter-Agency Secretariat of the ISDR (UN/ISDR) is the focal point in the UN System to promote links and synergies between, and the coordination of, disaster reduction activities in the socio-economic, humanitarian and development fields, as well as to support policy integration. It serves as an international information clearinghouse on disaster reduction, developing awareness campaigns and producing articles, journals, and other publications and promotional materials related to disaster reduction. The UN/ISDR headquarters in
Geneva
conducts outreach programs through its regional units in
Latin America
,
Africa
and
Asia
. The outreach office covering
Central Asia
is located in
Dushanbe
.
In Central Asia UN/ISDR aims to facilitate national adjustments to guidelines outlined in the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) and strengthen coordination both at a regional and national level. Consultative Meetings for Central Asian has been established as a forum for regional cooperation.
