Economic potential

Kazakhstan – Trivia

Kazakhstan – the 9th largest country in the world, 2nd largest among the former USSR states.

Area - 2,724,900 sq km. ~1/3 of the territory of the USA; ~4 times the size of Texas

Bordering Countries: China 1,533 km, Kyrgyzstan 1,051 km, Russia 6,846 km, Turkmenistan 379 km, Uzbekistan 2,203 km. Kazakhstan also borders 1183 miles (1894 km) of the Caspian Sea. Kazakhstan
population is about 16433000 (01.01.2011), the population density - 6.03 inhabitants

Regions in Kazakhstan: 14 provinces (oblasts)

Ethnic groups: Kazakh 45%, Russian 35%, Ukrainian, Uzbek, Tatar, Uyghur, Korean, German & others.

Province	Capital	Area (km²)	Population
Akmola	Kokshetau	121,400	0,829,000
Aktobe	Aktobe	300,600	0,661,000
Almaty	Almaty	000,324.8	1,226,300
Almaty Province	Taldykorgan	224,000	0,860,000
Astana	Astana	000,710.2	0,692,000
Atyrau	Atyrau	118,600	0,380,000
Baikonur	Baikonur	000,057	0,070,000
East Kazakhstan	Oskemen	283,300	0,897,000
Karagandy	Karagandy	428,000	1,287,000
Kostanay	Kostanay	196,000	0,975,000
Kyzylorda	Kyzylorda	226,000	0,590,000
Mangystau	Aktau	165,600	0,316,847
North Kazakhstan	Petropavl	123,200	0,586,000
Pavlodar	Pavlodar	124,800	0,851,000
South Kazakhstan	Shymkent	118,600	1,644,000
West Kazakhstan	Oral	151,300	0,599,000
Zhambyl	Taraz	144,000	0,962,000

Astana - the new capital of Kazakhstan since 1998, located in the geographic center of the country.

Population ~ 692,000 (in 2010).

Astana - center of agricultural machine-building. Main areas: cattle-, sheep-, horse-breeding, poultry farming. Special economic zone in Astana (till 2007) attracted investors to Kazakhstan.

Economic potential

Kazakhstan is rich in mineral resources.

Current oil reserves: 35 billion barrels (twice as much as the North Sea).

Projected oil reserves: 100-110 billion barrels by 2015 (would be in top 3 of the world).

Current natural gas reserves: 2 trillion cubic meters.

Projected natural gas reserves: 5 trillion cubic metres by 2015.

The world’s largest reserves of barite, lead, tungsten, and uranium; second largest reserves of chromite, silver, and zinc; third largest of manganese, significant deposits of copper, gold, and iron ore.

Kazakhstan major trade partners: Russia, EU, USA, China

2. The main landscape zones in Kazakhstan

Table The major biomes in Kazakhstan:

Landscape zones	Area, %	The largest landscape zone of Kazakhstan is desert.
Desert Steppe Semi – desert Mountains Forest – steppe

3. The major ecological problems in Kazakhstan

· Emissions of greenhouse gases: greenhouse gases per GDP (3.38 kg/$, one the highest in the world); 13.3 tons of CO₂ per person (13^th place in the world).

Domestic energy needs are covered by: coal (51%), Gas (25%), Oil (23%), and Renewables (except for large hydropower plants) (1%).

· Air pollution (the main air pollutants: ammonia, dust, phenols, formaldehyde, lead)

· Water pollution (the situation around Aral sea, Caspian sea, Lake Balkhash; the most polluted watersheds and basins are the Irtysh and Ural rivers)

· Loss of biodiversity (the drastic reduction of Caspian Sea sturgeon population, flora and fauna damage)

· Land degradation and desertification (current land desertification rate in Kazakhstan is about 70%).

· Accumulation of untreated industrial waste

· Radioactive contamination (Semipalatinsk nuclear testing: nearly 500 tests, including 116 tests above the ground)

Industrial pollution (especially from mining and heavy industries). The most ecologically hazardous complexes are:

lead-zinc industry in Ust-Kamenogorsk, lead and phosphate industry in Shymkent, oil and gas industry in Western Kazakhstan)

· Insufficient infrastructure for water and solid waste

· Health problems

· Zones of ecological disasters (Aral Sea problem due to extensive irrigation during 1960-1990)

Дата добавления: 2015-10-02