Part of the former test site territory to be introduced into agricultural use

More than 640 thousand hectares of land from the former Semipalatinsk nuclear test site are planned to be converted into pastureland. The decision is закреплено by a Government resolution, according to which a total area of 832.9 thousand hectares has been classified as reserve land.

These territories have been included in the nuclear safety zone and distributed among the Karaganda, Pavlodar regions, and the Abai region.

In the Karaganda region, 41.6 thousand hectares will be included in the land reserve of the Karkaraly district, of which 38.66 thousand hectares will be pasture and 2.94 thousand hectares will be other land.

In the Pavlodar region, 285.9 thousand hectares will be transferred to the Maysky district, including 280.1 thousand hectares of pasture and 5.8 thousand hectares of other land.

In the Abai region, 505.4 thousand hectares have been allocated to the Zhanasemei district, of which 328.7 thousand hectares will be used as pasture and 176.7 thousand hectares will fall under other categories.

Thus, in three regions of Kazakhstan, 647.46 thousand hectares of the former test site will be used as pastureland.

It should be noted that since January 1, 2024, the law “On the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Safety Zone” has come into force in Kazakhstan, under which part of the former test site territory — approximately 1 million hectares — can be introduced into agricultural circulation.