Kyrgyzstan lifts uranium extraction ban despite concerns

Kyrgyzstan on Thursday lifted a ban on uranium extraction to boost the economy despite safety and environmental concerns in a country with a heavy Soviet nuclear legacy.

"Lawmakers overturned the 2019 law banning the research, exploration and development of uranium reserves," the Kyrgyz parliament said in a statement.

The issue is particularly sensitive in the Central Asian country bordering China.

Kyrgyzstan still has millions of cubic metres of toxic and radioactive waste left over from Soviet times and the ban was introduced following anti-nuclear protests.

The government has said it is lifting the ban because of a "serious need for alternative sources of revenue" but has stressed it will respect environmental norms.

Kyrgyzstan's economy suffered during the Covid-19 pandemic. It has also been hit more recently indirectly by Western sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine invasion.

Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov said he wanted "to bring the country to a new level of development" by resuming extraction.

In 2019, Kyrgyzstan banned uranium exploration after anti-nuclear demonstrations in the north of the country.

Kyrgyzstan has a total of 92 sites containing toxic and radioactive waste.

Decontamination projects are being carried out in conjunction with Russian nuclear giant Rosatom which is also hoping to build the first nuclear power stations in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Earlier this month, there were concerns about radioactivity when a Rosatom truck plunged into a river in central Kyrgyzstan.

Officials have offered differing accounts on the truck's precise contents but have said radioactivity levels remain "normal".