Ecologist Mels Yeleussizov. Photo by Yaroslav Radlovskiy©
Kazakhstan's biggest city Almaty was not intended for the population of the current size, Interfax-Kazakhstan reports citing chairman of Tabigat ecological union Mels Yeleussizov. "This is a common knowledge. A research was held in the Soviet Union to define the ecological capacity of the city. Almaty's population should not have exceeded 700 thousand people, whereas it reaches 2 million at times," Yeleussizov said. He stressed that further urban sprawl "threatens with water deficit, air pollution with emissions and power shortages". "The authorities are responsible for that. They had to think twice before expanding the city. The process continues: any spare piece of land get occupied, while Almaty needs more parks," the ecologist said. According to the official information, 1.5 million people live in Almaty.
Kazakhstan's biggest city Almaty was not intended for the population of the current size, Interfax-Kazakhstan reports citing chairman of Tabigat ecological union Mels Yeleussizov.
"This is a common knowledge. A research was held in the Soviet Union to define the ecological capacity of the city. Almaty's population should not have exceeded 700 thousand people, whereas it reaches 2 million at times," Yeleussizov said.
He stressed that further urban sprawl "threatens with water deficit, air pollution with emissions and power shortages". "The authorities are responsible for that. They had to think twice before expanding the city. The process continues: any spare piece of land get occupied, while Almaty needs more parks," the ecologist said.
According to the official information, 1.5 million people live in Almaty.