ASIA’S URANIUM LEGACY | SPECIAL REPORT
Above left: Remediation works are underway in Shekaftar in the Kyrgyz Republic. The site includes three closed mines and eight tailings dumps Source: EBRD
Above right: ERA is conducting remediation at this site 75 km east of the Uzbek capital, Tashkent Source: EBRD
now co-ordinated by Rosatom) and the EBRD. Support also comes from Germany, Norway, France and Belgium as well as other member states. CGULS activities include:
● Facilitating meetings between member states and international organisations planning remedial activities in their countries;
● Proficiency testing for laboratories conducting work under the project;
● Expert missions to explore remediation strategies; ● Scientific visits to sites using good practices; ● Expert missions to evaluate remediation activities; ● Advisory missions to evaluate support facilities and coordinate reviews of remediation plans;
● Expert assistance in developing site specific monitoring plans; and
● Developing regulatory guidance documents related to the remediation of existing sites.
The CIS Programme for remediation of ULSs in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan is based on a concept developed during 2008–2012 for remediation of the territories of EurAsian Economic Community (EurAsEC) member states affected by uranium mining. Funding is being provided by CIS member states participating in the programme - Russia (75%), Kazakhstan (15%), Kyrgyzstan (5%) and Tajikistan (5%) Their contributions are based on various socioeconomic indicators, including GDP. In 2015, the Environmental Remediation Account for
Central Asia (ERA) managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development (EBRD) was established at the initiative of the European Union (EU) to address the Soviet legacy. The EU is ERA’s biggest donor, with contributions also coming from Belgium, Lithuania, Norway, Spain, Switzerland and the USA.
The strategic master plan In 2017, Central Asian countries where remediation projects planned endorsed a Strategic Master Plan (SMP) developed with CGULS. This prioritised remediation in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The IAEA, EC and EBRD signed a joint commitment on coordinating remediation efforts under the SMP. The EBRD estimated the cost of measures outlined in the plan at €210m ($222m), of which €56m had already been made available by the EU, the CIS and the World Bank.
The SMP promoted a step-by-step approach, focusing
first on those ULSs judged to present the highest risks, which were already part of active remediation programmes. The Technical Baseline Document ranked risks and relative priorities taking into account two active major international remediation programmes – EBRD’s ERA and the Inter-State Targeted Programme on Remediation of Member State Territories affected by Uranium Mining Industries (CIS Programme). The ERA programme covers Mailuu-Suu, Min-Kush and
Shekaftar in Kyrgyzstan, Istiklol and Degmay in Tajikistan, and Charkesar and Yangiabad in Uzbekistan. The CIS Programme covers Min-Kush (tailings) in Kyrgyzstan, and Istiklol (Yellow Hill and tailings 1-4) in Tajikistan. At the Kadji-Say site in Kyrgyzstan remediation has already been completed under the CIS Programme. Coordination between ERA and the CIS Programme is
supported by two mechanisms: ● A 2018 Memorandum of Understanding between Rosatom
and EBRD on cooperation in the remediation of former uranium production sites:, and
● Implementation of joint activities based on a 2020 Action plan to raise public awareness in regions with ongoing and expected ULS remediation projects in the Kyrgyz Republic, signed by the Kyrgyz Ministry of Emergency Situations, Rosatom, OSCE, and the ERA-supported PMU in Kyrgyzstan. The plan is updated annually.
In 2021, the CIS Economic Council appointed Rosatom’s Fuel Company TVEL as the basic organisation of the CIS countries responsible for managing used nuclear fuel and radioactive waste and for decommissioning nuclear and radiation hazardous objects. The CIS includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Georgia withdrew its membership in 2008 and Ukraine ended its participation in the CIS in 2018. As a base organisation, TVEL assumed responsibility
for: consolidation and systematisation of accumulated experience and scientific knowledge; development of common approaches; harmonisation of the regulatory framework; and training of personnel. It was also responsible for direct assistance in implementing various projects and programmes for nuclear decommissioning and rehabilitation of territories, including the construction and operation of storage facilities for nuclear materials.
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