At present day, Turkmenistan joined more than twenty international ecology treaties, adopted numbers of natural protection laws and legislative acts. The measures for mitigation of the consequences related to the climate change have been included to the main State programmes.
Understanding the necessity of adaptation measures, Turkmenistan implements the Strategy on climate change.National forest programme is important component of this strategy.National Strategy and Action Plan for protection of biodiversity until 2020 has been developed to support the Global Strategy on Biodiversity.
Both Government and non-government organizations as well as national, joint and regional ecological projects carry out environmental protection measures stipulated by these documents.
One of the projects “Ecosystem approach toward the management of land and woodland resources in Amudarya River zone for the improvement of life of local community as the adaptation to the climate change” is coming to the end.
Two-year Turkmen German project was aimed at the protection of exposed tugay forests with rare species of living organisms, reduction of ecological, social and economic problems risen by atypical weather conditions, lack of water supply and by the growth of the population.
At the same time, the assistance was given for the improvement of the laws and institutional base.
The project was carried out in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding between National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna of the State Committee on Natural Protection and Land Resources and Michael Zukkov’s Fund (Germany)
The methods of efficient management of land resources, natural pastries and tugay forests have been tested.Scientific and practical work was carried out on the territory of the northern-eastern part of Lebap Velayat including at the base of Amudarya State Natural Reserve.
Educational work with the population, ecological actions, training on forestry, combating salinization of irrigated lands have been carried out.The booklet “Sustainable management of land resources of Amudarya River zone” has been published under the project for improvement of the awareness of the inspectors of the Reserve and personnel of forest farms.
The experiment in land management of riverside ecosystems was one of the natural methods for recovery of salinized lands proposed for agriculture, namely the growing of salt-resistant halophytes as forage crops on the lands without stable water supply.
Turkmen specialists shared this practice with the participants of the seminar on adaptive management of the risks at specially protected territories held in Hiva (The Republic of Uzbekistan).
Regional map of the location and condition of riverside tugay forests of the middle stream of the Amudarya has been made by the results of the tests and physical and geographic characteristics of the are has been given.
More than seven hectares of riverside valleys of farm association Dostluk near the city of Seydi have been surveyed.Later, 4500 mulberry trees have been planted on the first section; saxaul, sand acacia and kandym have been planted on the second section.
The acclimation rate of the trees makes 30 to 90 percent what is adequate to natural and climate conditions of the region.Personnel of Amudarya Reserve, local power bodies, representatives of scientific circles as well as farmers were the partners of the project in this activity.
The practice of the attraction of ecological segment to agricultural production will serve to the improvement of agriculture, implementation of innovations taking into account soil and climate conditions.
Rational agriculture, balanced use of lands and pastries meet both Government natural protection policy and the interests of local population. Coordinated activity of the ecologists and agrarians supports the promotion of the reforms and stable growth and improvement of agricultural production and entrepreneurship initiative.