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CASE STUDIES FROM UNDP SUPPORTED, GEF FINANCED PROJEC TS IN THE EUROPE AND CIS REGION
A new Biosphere Reserve and local communities are two elements of success in conserving Uzbekistan’s tugai forests
focused on extending protected areas, demonstrating a new multi-zoned approach to protected area planning, raising awareness about the value of tugai, and involving local communities in conservation of the forest. When the project started in 2005, protecting the lower Amu Darya Delta was a priority, but it was
clear that simply enlarging existing strict protected areas would not work. A solution was required that would stop ecosystem degradation by addressing the underlying causes of that degradation. Thus, the idea of a Biosphere Reserve emerged. By early 2007, the project team had managed to transform the prevailing local misunderstanding and even hostility towards the proposed Biosphere Reserve
Tugai forest Almost 6 percent of Uzbekistan is included in the national system of protected areas, but certain ecosystems are significantly underrepresented, most notably the tugai forests. ‘Tugai’ is the term used across Central Asia for the unique ecosystem that flanks rivers in the region’s arid areas. The tugai ecosystem includes reeds, river-side gallery forests, drought-resistant shrubs and associated grassland and desert landscapes.
PROJEC T:
Conservation of tugai forest and strengthening the protected areas system in the Amu Darya Delta of Karakalpakstan (2005-2010)
The overall objective of this project was to conserve tugai forest and to include it in Uzbekistan’s system of protected areas. Specifically, the project
Tugai forests were formerly widespread in Central Asia, especially along the Amu Darya River. Today, only 10 percent remains (in highly fragmented form) of the original tugai of the Amu Darya Delta in the southern Aral Sea area. The reasons for this decline include changes in the hydrological regime, reduced water quantities, increased salinity, and overexploitation and degradation of the forests through grazing and wood cutting for fuel and construction. The most extensive area of tugai remaining today is about 300 km2, around 75 percent of the total remaining in Uzbekistan and 20 percent of what is left in the whole of Central Asia. Tugai is a unique and spectacular ecosystem, supporting a wealth of biodiversity in ‘linear oases’ crossing the arid regions of Central Asia that, if well managed, can provide essential resources for the communities of the region.
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