ROUTE OF MAIN TURKMENIAN CANAL SETTLED

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP07-02247R000200230004-1
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 18, 2011
• Sequence Number: 4
• Content Type: PHOTO

Approved For Release 2011/07/18: CIA-RDP07-02247R000200230004-1
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ROUTE OF'. MAIN
TURKMENIAN CANAL
SETTLED
The detailed route to be taken by the
Main Turkmenian Canal, nearly 700 miles
long, has now been settled.
W INTER in the Kara Kum desert is always harsh. 'Even the frost-
cloaked saksaul thickets between the sand dunes seem to be dead.
Two winters ago large numbers of people appeared in the desert, driving
new lorries, heavily laden. with provisions and equipment of many kinds.
The Turkmenian shepherds were amazed to discover that these people,
scientists of many different specialities, proposed spending several years
in the Kara Kum, surveying it for the Main Turkmenian Canal. " Why
spend so much time on it?." they asked. " All you need do is map out.
the route of the canal, and the job's done."
At first even some of the explorers had an oversimplified picture of
their task. But they soon discovered that
the mapping of the canal route across the
little known Kara Kum desert was a most
complicated task. There were hundreds of
problems-for the expeditions, in co-operation
with the scientists back in the laboratories,
to solve. Really exhaustive data had to be
prepared before the canal could be properly
panned.
The very first?trips brought the geologists
and drillers many surprises. In several
places where the building of hydro-technical
constructions was proposed, extensive chalk
deposits were discovered. Dissolving in the
waiter, these would form huge underground
It has been established that a considerable
section of the Uzboy, ancient dried up river
bed nearly 500 miles long which had been
selected for the canal route, was unsuitable.
Scores of thousands of acres of additional
territory had to be investigated' by the
expeditions of the Turkmenian Geological
Administration, which has carried out a
tremendous amount of work. All the 1952
tasks of these expeditions-the '38111 topo-
graphical party, the Aral-Caspian, the Uzboy
Far larger area
than expected
will be
irrigated and
watered
Members of an expedition of the USSR
Academy of Sciences compare notes on
the banks of the Uzboi
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 Approved For Release 2011/07/18: CIA-RDPO7-02247ROO0200230004-1
3092012
This prelitninury b)-pass canal has been completed; in the area-where the D'lairt
Tnrrlwuuiwi,l C:unul will bediu
and other expeditions-have been completed
successfully.
The whole route which the waters of the
Amu Darya will take across the Kara Kum
has now been mapped out. All the special
requirements for the building of great hydro-
constructions and the growing development
of Turkmenia's national economy have been
taken into account.
It is already clear that the canal will make
possible the irrigation, watering and cultiva-
tion of far more land and pasturage than
had been. anticipated.
Effective methods of consolidating the
sands, removing the salt from the soil,
and dealing with the silting-up of the canal,
have been worked out by parties of scientists
from the U.S.S.R. Academy of Sciences and
the Academies of Sciences of the Central
Asian republics, Kazakhstan and Georgia.
Over the past few months the work lilts
assumed still wider scope. The expeditions are
ascertaining the desert's reserves of mineral raw
materials, so that they can be used on the con-
struction of the canal.
Last year tremendous deposits of rock., gypsum,
road metal, lime and gravel were discovered in
the Kara Tau mountains. Scientists have con-
firmed that there are quite suitable local materials
for the. construction of dwelling houses and other
buildings.
Similar riches have been found by the geolo-
gists in Khodjeili, Kizyl Arvat and other areas.
The Central Asian hydro-construction organisa-
tion has already built several factories for the
production of concrete, brick and foam-glass
products.
The finding of sources of fresh water was a
particularly difficult task. Some experts believed
it was a waste of time to look for underground
lakes in the sands, where the saksaul roots go
down dozens of yards. But hydrogeologists of
the Turkmenian Geological Administration found
underground water in the Kara Kum lowlands.
Dr. V. N. Kunin, outstanding mineralogist,
came from Moscow to help the. investigation.
After studying the results of the hydrogeologists'
work he concluded that it would be possible to
supply the low-lying western part of the Kara
Kum with water from underground sources.
Further investigation confirmed that this
district could supply all the water needs of the
builders of Kazandjik and Kizyl Arvat. The
explorers are now drilling new wells and are
engaged in laboratory examination and analysis
of the data gathered.
in the two years the members of the expedi-
tions have gained wide experience and have
learned to overcome difficulties with the least
expenditure of effort.
-G. Vasilyev
Approved For Release 2011/07/18: CIA-RDPO7-02247ROO0200230004-1