Tourist places in Kyrgyzstan filled up with garbage

Tourist places in Kyrgyzstan are filled with garbage, MPs said at a meeting of the Parliament today.

«How can we talk about development of tourism, when garbage is lying around, packages are flying, there’s hardly a breath in the air,» Bakirdin Subanbekov said.

His colleague Irina Karamushkina added that a garbage dump formed at Too-Ashuu Pass: «This is an area where tourists go. And a dump was made not by foreign citizens, but our people.»

She suggested announcement of a daily summary of the air pollution level in the news and punishing someone for exceeding the permissible rates.

Irina Karamushkina also asked who was checking the quality of fuel and lubricants. «Is the air carcinogenic from those fuels and lubricants that we use in transport?» she asked.

«The main release of harmful substances into the atmosphere comes from motor vehicles, and its number is growing. Over 1 million units have been registered in the republic, including more than 450,000 vehicles in Bishkek, according to official data. Plus, about 50,000 cars enter the capital every day,» representatives of the State Agency for Environmental Protection and Forestry said.

At the meeting, amendments to the laws On the Protection of Atmospheric Air and On Environmental Expertise are being discussed.