Degradation of lands occurs in Kyrgyzstan due to growing livestock numbers, uncontrolled cattle grazing and climate change. Some plots, specialists say, are exposed to degradation in 70-80 per cent.
Many problems
Kyrgyzstan has over 9 million hectares of pasture lands. Natural pastures were and will be the largest and cheapest sources of fodder. But because of the annual burden and lack of proper maintenance, they produce less fodder due to degradation and erosion processes.
Natalia Kilyazova, chief of the pasture and fodder department of the Kyrgyz Research Institute for Livestock Farming and Pastures (NIIJP), explained that natural pastures and hayfields are composed of desert, semi-desert, steppe, meadow-steppe, and meadow (high mountain, subalpine, and alpine) ones by the nature of vegetation. The biggest area, according to her, is occupied by steppe pastures (3.1 million hectares), little less area is occupied by meadow-steppe pastures (2.4 million hectares), meadow pastures (1.3 million hectares), desert (1.8 million hectares), and comparatively smaller area is occupied by high mountain tundra-like pastures (0.15 million hectares).
There is an acceptable height of grazing for re-vegetation peculiar to every type. For example, meadow pastures must have 5-7 centimetres of vegetation remaining, while steppe pastures must have at least 2 centimetres. “The better the root system develops, the more crops it will produce. So, plants must be left for regeneration, and rotation of lands must be practised,” said Natalia Kilyazova.
However, there are frequent cases of early grazing, when a stand of grass has not still reached the pasture maturity and does not have the sufficient amount of nutrients, as well as excessive grazing, when animals eat plants literally to the root and the soil becomes exposed.
According to Abdimalik Egemberdiev, head of the National Association of Pasture Users of Kyrgyzstan ‘Kyrgyz Zhaiyty’, land management plans are developed at local levels, grazing schedules are made up, areas and times where and when cattle can graze.
“Unfortunately, many people do not follow the rules: they choose some spot in early spring and use it until deep autumn. Thus, they do much harm to pastures. We tell pasture users about the importance of land rotation,” he said.
The simplest scheme of pasture rotation was used previously: lands were divided into four parts, three of which were used throughout the pasture season, and one was left for rest period, thus helping the plants grow well and spread seeds. In case of severe winter, the pastures could be used as hayfields. However, after the collapse of the Union, no one managed the pastures; their use was not regulated; pasture rotation was forgotten, and as a result many lands were degraded.
“Pastures near villages were degraded the most as grazing schedules were disrupted. Cattle graze there almost all the year round, and even in winter animals have to graze through the snow. And the reason is that people fail to procure the sufficient amount of fodder on time,” Natalia Kilyazova said.
However, distant pastures are often not used. Back in the Soviet period, the cattle was driven in an organised way with the state support. Now the infrastructure is destroyed and needs to be recovered. And the most important thing is that there are no water sources, which a shepherd needs to have when driving the cattle.
Climate change also has led to the shift in seasons. Grass starts to grow earlier and finish earlier in grasslands. As a result, pastures get dry in August and livestock have nothing to eat. So, livestock need to be driven to other pastures. So, diseases and pests develop.
Undergrazing is bad, too
Some pasture lands, according to Natalia Kilyazova, are exposed to degradation in 70-80 per cent, but it does not mean that it has reached this level.
According to Myktybek Kalandarov, director of Department of Livestock Breeding, Pastures and Fodders, 137 thousand hectares of pastures degraded in Kyrgyzstan; 614 thousand hectares are considered underproductive, they are mainly lands near villages.
Experts warn: if the process of worsening pasture conditions is not stopped, it can lead to deplorable consequences, when the land productivity cannot be raised.
What negative consequences does degradation have? First of all, it is the loss of biodiversity. The pastures of Kyrgyzstan have over 3.5 thousand species of plants, including pasture grasses, medicinal herbs, weeds, endangered plant species. In case of early grazing, livestock mow down young plants, and they stop growing further. Secondly, fodder supply decreases, and agricultural producers have lower profits, respectively.
According to specialists, underutilisation of pastures causes damage as well. It is even worse when pastures are not used at all. The dead sod develops in the pastures: the grass accumulates, dies, accumulates again, and over time only strong weed plants can penetrate through it. Therefore, it is important to use allocation so that all lands could be involved in the system.
Invasion of weeds
Weeds can cause a serious problem, too. According to the cabinet of ministers, Suusamyr Valley with over 470 thousand hectares of pastures has recently faced the increase in the area of wild prickly pea-shrubs (Caragana), which lead to extinction of some species of fodder grasses. This year, the valley has faced another problem – locust, which destroys nutritious grass.
The primary attention in the weed control in the pastures should be given to preventive measures, i.e. prevention of weed invasion. Mechanical, biological and chemical methods are used to fight the weeds.
According to Natalia Kilyazova, the most effective and affordable method of fight in the pastures with prolifically grown weeds and shrubs, which impair its yield, is chemical one with the use of herbicides, and mechanical one with the use of agricultural machinery.
NIIJP tested two low-toxicity herbicides – glyphosate and Garlon DX, as part of the research at Suusamyr. It was found out that glyphosate kills Caragana by 70-80 per cent, but also affects all pasture herbage, while Garlon DX (selective action) showed high efficiency – 90-95 per cent of Caragana died. Fodder grasses and even animals, which accidentally crossed the barbed enclosure, did not suffer from the herbicide, while Caragana went dry.
The following year after the treatment, plants were dry, but after a year, the grass revived due to root stalks and seeds that remained in the soil. The pricks started to decompose only in the fifth year of their persistence. However, the frequency of herbicide use was not studied, and it required the repeated treatment the following year or after a year, but the project was completed, and the staff of the institute failed to do it and record the results.
The department of pastures fought Caragana mechanically. It is a labour-intensive, expensive method, which must be followed by overseeding of pasture grasses. Besides, strong weeds appear in cleared plots. Therefore, chemicals are essential in such large areas as pastures.
Resources are not endless
According to the National Statistical Committee, there are over 6 million sheep and goats (small cattle), 1.8 million heads of cattle, over 500 thousand horses in the republic. And the livestock is increasing every year.
According to Myktybek Kalandarov, there is a large number of cattle and sheep and goats in Kyrgyzstan, while their yield is low, so the department pays particular attention to upgrading of breeding animals.
Abdimalik Egemberdiev agrees with him.
“More attention should be paid to quality, not quantity of livestock, then we would have more yield and preserved the pastures,” he said.
Moreover, pasture fees are going to be increased. Local councils approve the cost of cattle grazing.
According to Myktybek Kalandarov, in some places, one head of sheep is charged 10-15 som (0.12-0.18 dollars). In his opinion, this is a very low price, it should be at least 20 som (0.23 dollars), or even 30-40 som (0.35-0.47 dollars) in some places, and cattle and horses could be charged at least 120 som ().
“Our task is to increase fees by results of every year,” said Myktybek Kalandarov.
The money will be used for their designated purpose to improve the condition of pastures, build and repair the bridges, arrange a watering point, install drinking troughs.
The government decree approves the standards of cattle burden on pastures: there should be one nominal head of cattle or 5 heads of sheep and goats per one hectare.
However, these standards are not usually maintained.
“If the number of grazing livestock exceeds the limits of the maximum pasture capacity, the degradation will be imminent,” said Natalia Kilyazova.
She explained that the optimal load on pastures maintains their productivity, their botanical composition gets stable. However, the cattle load on pastures is a variable, which depends on the rotation of normal climatic years and dry years.
Therefore, the load must change in proportion to the productive capacity of grass stand on pastures depending on specific conditions.
What to do?
The most important thing, according to Natalia Kilyazova, is to use pastures systematically. Therefore, it is important to train farmers. To this end, the research institute publishes brochures, booklets, organises outdoor training events.
NIIJP has developed a system to improve pastures. The approach to agricultural lands must be individual. It is enough to irrigate some pastures, spread fertilisers in other pastures, while other pastures need to have rotational grazing, use enclosure-pasturing system, overseeding.
During the project, NIIJP made a research across the country and organised demo plots, which were enclosed by barbed wire to restrict access to livestock. The soil held a reserve of seeds, and within a year, the grass stand noticeably restored itself.
“In other words, one of the most effective ways to improve and restore pastures is simply to give them a rest,” Natalia Kilyazova said.
The first step towards improvement is monitoring and assessing the current state of the pasture to identify the most degraded areas. Control should be carried out locally by the locals because no one knows their lands better than the residents themselves.
At the request of the Ministry of Agriculture, a new guide for monitoring and assessing the condition of pastures has been developed for local governments. Natalia Kilyazova is one of the co-authors. According to her, this is a simplified monitoring that can be carried out by the pasture users themselves, but the presence of state management of the lands is essential.
The guide provides a table, which completion makes it clear which indicator puts the pastures in a poor or very poor condition. So, it needs to be worked at. The parameters allow us to assess the botanical composition of the grass stand, the presence of soil erosion, stones, weeds and harmful plants, the presence of plant litter, and erosion processes.
In addition, it is necessary to improve the conservation of fodder (hay, haylage, silage). Reserves will allow grasses – the main focus is on grain varieties – to reach pasture maturity.
Advanced pasture users use biological fertilisers to increase pasture productivity and accumulate humus and, if necessary, overseed grasses. The main thing is to seed only those grasses that grow in the area.
One of the difficulties of working with perennial grasses is that you have to wait for a long time. Most of the grass stand in pastures consists of grasses, and at the initial stages of growth they are very weak and tender and reach their maximum development only in the third year of life. That is, in the first year they practically do not yield, in the second year they are still weak plants, and only by the third year they reach normal growth, after which they can give a good harvest for several years. Therefore, grazing should be prohibited on these lands for a year.
According to Myktybek Kalandarov, the condition of 10 thousand hectares out of 137 thousand hectares of degraded land was improved in 2023, and this year the plan is to cover 30 thousand hectares. To improve the condition of the land, pasture grasses are being planted, land plots are being rotated, and some lands are allowed to rest. For example, in 2023, 350 thousand hectares of pastures were not used, and in 2024, 371 thousand hectares are at rest.
“A legislative act was recently passed on the rest of pasture lands that are located near villages. Farmers have the opportunity to use remote lands,” he said.
According to Myktybek Kalandarov, the budget allocated 30 million som (approximately 347 thousand dollars) for the improvement of pasture lands in 2023, and 85.7 million som (about 991 thousand dollars) in 2024. These funds are used mainly to purchase grass seeds, including from Russia.
To some extent, artificial glaciers also help to combat pasture degradation.