Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 31
By Huseyn Hasanov – Trend:
The construction of a unique water structure, the Altyn Asyr Lake, continues in the center of the Karakum Desert, the "Neutral Turkmenistan" newspaper wrote.
Thanks to the well-functioning drainage channels, saline water flows from the country's croplands into the lake, which leads to a decrease in the groundwater levels, and, ultimately, to improvement of land-reclamation conditions, increase in crop yield, enrichment of the local flora and fauna, the message says.
The collector and drainage effluents from the Mary, Akhal and Balkan regions used to accumulate previously in the lowlands of Karakum, flooding, among other areas, the desert pastures. Turkmen scientists believe the creation of a large artificial reservoir in the Karakum Desert will increase the productivity of agriculture and prevent soil salinization.