Solutions of desertification in the current Amudarya delta

Samarkand State University named after Sharaf Rashidov, Samarkand, 140104, Uzbekistan

^* Corresponding author: dunyobekxursanov171@gmail.com

Abstract

This article presents several factors contributing to the desertification processes in the current delta of the Amu Darya River. It also examines how the gradual process of desertification, along with the acceleration of soil salinization and the expansion of saline areas, is occurring due to the lowering of the groundwater levels in the current delta of the Amu Darya. The northern part of the present delta of the Amu Darya is divided into small deltas of varying ages: the highlands of the Amu Darya channel, the Kazakdarya, Raushan, Kipchakdarya, Oqboshli, and Erkindarya, while the southern part is separated into the highlands of the Amu Darya channel, the Uldarya, Kiyatjargan, Shurtomboy, and Kizketken-Chimboy. Due to the high and very high salinization of the soils in the inter-channel depressions in the eastern part of the Kizketken-Chimboy small delta, their use for agricultural purposes is inefficient, and their use as pastures for livestock is suggested. A comparison was made between the desertification processes in the Kazakdarya branch and the Kohnadarya branch. In the lower part of the Kohnadarya branch, salinization occurs due to salts brought from the Aral Sea in the geochemical composition of the eluvial elementary landscape. In the upper parts of the small deltas, desertification is slow due to the influence of the Amu Darya, while in the lower parts of the deltas, desertification is progressing more intensively. In general, the importance of relief features such as channel heights, their slopes, and inter-channel depressions related to surface water flow has been highlighted in the deterioration of the geoecological condition in deltas.