Dried up wheat fields, dead livestock gripping Kazakhstan as extreme drought takes hold

By Meiramgul Kussainova

NUR SULTAN, Kazakhstan (AA) -Kazakh environmentalist Orınbasar Togcanov told Anadolu Agency on Thursday that in the southeastern region of Mangystau in Kazakhstan the volume of rain has steadily decreased in recent years resulting in dried up wheat fields and dead livestock

In 1986 and 2014, the region experienced dry seasons but now is the first time that not a single drop of rain has fallen, he said.

Kazakhstan, the largest country in Central Asia, have been struggling with the consequences of global warming.

Particularly in the southern and western areas, the extreme drought is something that has never been experienced.

The heat, combined with the drought, has taken a toll on agriculture and husbandry.

More than 178,000 hectares of wheat fields have dried up while an excess of 2,000 animals, including livestock and horses, have died.

Togcanov said global warming and its consequences also threaten the Caspian Sea, noting that rivers and creeks, which run into the sea, also suffer from a decrease in rain volume.

* Writing by Ahmet Gencturk