On April 12, 2023, in the village of Kurmenty, Tyup district, in the building of the house of culture, a round table was held on the topic “The role of the public in the implementation of the principles of the Aarhus Convention. Prevention of environmental problems in the regions, a key factor in social stability”, organized by the Issyk-Kul Aarhus Center with the support of the OSCE Program Office in Bishkek.

The headman of Kurmenty village A. Sydykov, the chief specialist of the Issyk-Kul-Naryn Territorial Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision E. Shaabaev, an employee of the Tyup District Department of Internal Affairs, senior police lieutenant K. Oskonbaev and residents of the village of Kurmenty took part in the round table. The headman of the village of Kurmenty A. Sydykov delivered a welcoming speech, who expressed gratitude to the organizers of the round table and called on the participants to actively participate in the work of the event.

Then the manager of the Issyk-Kul Aarhus Center S. Tursunakunov spoke. He spoke in detail about the Aarhus Convention, its principles, informed about the Aarhus Centers of Kyrgyzstan, about the activities of the Issyk-Kul Aarhus Center for 2021-2022, and answered questions from the participants.

The chief specialist of the Issyk-Kul-Naryn Territorial Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology and Technical Supervision E. Shaabaev acquainted the participants of the round table with the activities of the Department of the Ministry, spoke about the ongoing work to fulfill the environmental tasks in the region.

An employee of the Tyup District Department of Internal Affairs, senior lieutenant of militia K. Oskonbaev spoke about the activities of the tourist-ecological police, about the work being done to combat poaching, about the work to clean the bottom of Issyk-Kul Lake from debris and answered questions.

During the discussion of the information materials presented, the round table participants raised the environmental problems of the village of Kurmenty, in particular, the impact of a private lime plant located on the territory of the cement plant on people’s health and dried trees as a result of exposure to smoke from the plant’s kiln. They offered to install filters for chimneys, take samples of soil, water and make analyzes.

As a result of the round table, it was decided to:

1. Send a request to the relevant state authorities to install a filter for the chimneys of a private lime shop located on the territory of the Kurmenty cement plant.
2. Take soil and water samples around the Kurmenty cement plant, analyze and provide information to the public.

At the end of the round table, the participants got acquainted with the state of trees and lands near the lime plant.

According to the decisions made, appeals will be sent to the relevant state bodies, and the answers will be communicated to the public.