The Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change has finished all the necessary preparations and submission of official documents for the Sudochye Lakes system’s inclusion in the Nomination of internationally significant wetlands under the Ramsar Convention. As a result, the site has been officially added to the List as Object No. 2522.

For reference: Uzbekistan previously declared the Sudochye Lakes system in the Republic of Karakalpakstan as an internationally significant wetland. Sudochye Lake with defined boundaries, have been officially included in the List of internationally significant wetlands in accordance with Article 2.1 of the Ramsar Convention.

Currently, the total number of internationally significant wetlands in Uzbekistan has reached four sites, with total area of 674,400 hectares. Previously, Lake Dengizkul (2001), the Arnasay Lakes system (2008), and the Tudakul and Kuymazar reservoirs (2020) were included in the list.

It is worth noting that the Ramsar Convention Secretariat’s statement emphasizes that the inclusion of the new site in the List demonstrates Uzbekistan’s commitment to implementing the Ramsar Convention, which aims to conserve and sustainably use the world’s most significant wetland areas.

The inclusion of a wetland in the List embodies the government’s commitment to take the steps necessary to ensure that its ecological character is maintained. The Convention includes various measures to respond to threats to the ecological character of Sites.

For reference: Sudochye used to be a bay of the Aral Sea, which was once considered the fourth-largest lake in the world during the 1960s. This May, the lakes system was added to Uzbekistan’s List of Ramsar internationally significant wetlands, making it the country’s fourth site to receive this recognition.