The main tasks of water management system is regulation of flow, delivery of water to all water users, the main of which is irrigation, and preservation of the environment.
The large-scale irrigated farming in Amudarya basin is mostly based on a well developed system of irrigation and drainage facilities, including unique projects such as the Karshi Steppe, where pumping stations with a total capacity of 350 m3/s lift water for 180 m, Amu-Bukhara canal lifts about 200 m3/sec of water for 130 m, and a several large-scale gravity irrigation systems with the longest in the World Karakum canal, which length is about 1000 km and the mean annual water withdrawal is about 700 m3/s. Karakum canal diverted about 18 km3 of water per year from the flow of the Amudarya river to the southern part of Turkmenistan.
More than 35 reservoirs were constructed in the Amudarya basin with a capacity of over 10 million m3 each. The aggregate capacity of these water reservoirs exceeds 29.8 km3. The Amudarya cascade of reservoirs operates according to specific scheme, allowing regulation by two main river channel reservoirs (Nurek and Tuyamuyun) and several on-system reservoirs on the Karakum, Karshi and Amu-Bukhara canals and small rivers. Total capacity of reservoirs on the main river is about 17 km3.
The principle scheme of flow regulation regime along the Amudarya is as following. The Nurek water reservoir provides multi-year water storage for area up to Kerki gauging station. Water releases depend on run-off variations of the Pyandj, Kafirnigan, Surkhandarya and Kunduz rivers, and water demands of downstream area from Kerki. Tuyamuyun reservoir is operating with a seasonal regime. It catches over released water from the Nurek reservoir and some additional flow of the Amudarya. Releases from it start usually in February-March.
As level regime in the river is very important issue for providing of the required withdrawal to the main canals, their intakes schedule should be agreed with releases from the Nurek reservoir. Intake to the Karakum canal executes during low flow, and vs, to the Karshi and Amu-Bukhara – during high flow along the river. BWO is responsible for monitoring these processes in linkage with water storage in the Nurek and Tuyamuyun reservoirs.
On-system reservoirs are playing role of seasonal water storage (unconsumed autumn-winter flow). Some of them were constructed within the cascades of pumping stations: Talimardjan reservoir on the Karshi canal with a capacity of 1.5 km3, Tudakul and Kuyumazar reservoirs on the Amu-Bukhara canal. The same and also as sediment regulator – Hauskhan reservoir on the Karakum canal with capacity of 0.9 km3. A few water reservoirs were constructed on the small rivers. These are South Surkhan reservoir on the Surkhandarya river with total capacity of 800 million m3, reservoirs on the Tedjen and the Murgab rivers, and 14 small reservoirs in the Kashkadarya river basin with total capacity about 1.5 km3.
Dynamics of inflow to the reservoir during the growing and non-growing seasons
Dynamics of water releases from the reservoir during the growing and non-growing seasons
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1980-2016
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1980-1991
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1992-2016
Dynamics of inflow to the reservoir during the growing and non-growing seasons
Dynamics of water releases from the reservoir during the growing and non-growing seasons
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1980-2017
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1980-1991
Monthly operation regime of the reservoir over 1992-2017
Annual operation regime of the reservoir over 1980-2017
