Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 26
By Nigar Guliyeva – Trend:
The area of arable land in Kazakhstan decreased by 10.6 million hectares over the past 25 years, Deputy Agriculture Minister of Kazakhstan Erlan Nysanbayev said.
"Analysis of the dynamics of the land fund shows that despite the annual increase in the turnover of arable land, the area of cultivated land declined by 10.6 million hectares over the past 25 years," Kazinform reported citing Nysanbayev, who spoke at an event at the Kazakh Parliament.
"The main period of reduction fall to the period from 1991 to 2000. Since 2000, the arable land area is around 24 million hectares, "said Nysanbayev.
He further noted that the largest arable lands are concentrated in Kostanay, Akmola and North-Kazakhstan regions, the share of which in the arable land of the republic is 67.6%.
As for reasons for the decrease, Nysanbayev said that the trend is linked with firstly the transfer of the arable land to the category of reserve lands because of economic conditions of economic entities in the initial period of land reform and non-use of lands in the reformed agricultural enterprises.
"Secondly, due to the increase in the area of fallow lands of agricultural significance and the lack of irrigation systems. Thirdly, because of the transfer of the arable land to other types of farmland. But, the main factors for the fall in the fertility of cropland soils, along with improper use, were the absence of mineral fertilizers, as well as organic fertilizers, and the failure to observe crop rotation and agrotechnical measures," he said.
Nysanbayev reminded that the land balance of the republic is around 2.2 million hectares, of which 1.7 million hectares fall on agricultural land.