Mailuu-Suu
Script error: No such module "Settlement short description".Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters".Expression error: Unexpected < operator. Mailuu-Suu (Template:Langx, Template:Langx Mayli-Say)[1] is a mining town in the Jalal-Abad Region of southern Kyrgyzstan. It is a city of regional significance, not part of a district.[2] Its area is Script error: No such module "convert".,[3] and its resident population was 25,892 in 2021.[4] It has been economically depressed since the fall of the Soviet Union. From 1946 to 1968 the Zapadnyi Mining and Chemical Combine in Mailuu-Suu mined and processed more than Script error: No such module "convert". of uranium ore for the Soviet nuclear program.[5][6] Uranium mining and processing is no longer economical, leaving much of the local population of about 20,000 without meaningful work.[7] The town was classified as one of the Soviet government's secret cities, officially known only as "Mailbox 200".[8] Mailuu-Suu consists of the town proper, the urban-type settlement Kök-Tash and the villages Sary-Bee, Kögoy and Kara-Jygach.[2]
Population
<templatestyles src="Module:Historical populations/styles.css"/>Script error: No such module "Historical populations".
Uranium mills
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
_(4770415439).jpg){kind=link}
Uranium was initially found in the area in 1933, and by the early 1950s, Mailuu-Suu had produced 10,000 tonnes of uranium oxide.[9]
The USSR left 23 unstable uranium tailings pits on the tectonically unstable hillside above the town.[10] Unsecured uranium tailings on unstable slopes near Mailuu-Suu pose major health and environmental risks due to landslide threats.[11] The site heavily polluted rivers and farmland, severely affecting the health and economy of communities in both Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.[12] A breached tailings dam in April 1958 released Script error: No such module "convert". of radioactive tailings into the river Mailuu-Suu.[13] In 1994, a landslide blocked the river, which flowed over its banks and flooded another waste reservoir. A flood caused by a mudslide nearly submerged a tailings pit in 2002.[14]
Mailuu-Suu is most ecologically hazardous region in Central Asia,[15] and faces severe environmental challenges. Ranked by the Blacksmith Institute in 2006 as one of the 10 most polluted cities globally, its crisis stems from uranium waste left by decades of mining.[16] In 2014, the Institute reported that adolescents had elevated cancer rates and weakened immune systems.[17] The World Bank approved a US$5 million grant to reclaim the tailings pits in 2004,[14] and approved an additional $1 million grant for the project in 2011.[18] However, grave threats still persist.[19]
References
<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />
- ↑ Template:GSEn
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Template:Cite Kyrgyzstan census 2009
- ↑ Template:Cite Kyrgyzstan population 2021
- ↑ Djenchuraev, N. Current environmental issues associated with mining wastes in Kyrgyzstan. Department of Environmental Sciences and Policy of Central European University, Budapest, 1999.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".