Mayluu-Suu
Майлуу-Суу | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 41°14′45″N 72°26′53″E / 41.2457479°N 72.448039°E | |
Country | Kyrgyzstan |
Region | Jalal-Abad Region |
City Status | 1946 |
Area | |
• Total | 120 km2 (50 sq mi) |
Elevation | 1,300 m (4,300 ft) |
Population (2021) | |
• Total | 25,892 |
• Density | 220/km2 (560/sq mi) |
Postal code | 721100 |
Area code | (+996) 3744 |
Mayluu-Suu ( Kyrgyz: Майлуу-Суу, Russian: Майли-Сай Mayli-Say) [1] is a mining town in the Jalal-Abad Region of southern Kyrgyzstan. It is a city of regional significance, not part of a district. [2] Its area is 120 square kilometres (46 sq mi), [3] and its resident population was 25,892 in 2021. [4] It has been economically depressed since the fall of the Soviet Union. From 1946 to 1968 the Zapadnyi Mining and Chemical Combine in Mayluu-Suu mined and processed more than 10,000 short tons (9,100 t) of uranium ore for the Soviet nuclear program. [5] Uranium mining and processing is no longer economical, leaving much of the local population of about 20,000 without meaningful work. [6] The town was classified as one of the Soviet government's secret cities, officially known only as "Mailbox 200". [7] Mayluu-Suu consists of the town proper, the urban-type settlement Kök-Tash and the villages Sary-Bee, Kögoy and Kara-Jygach. [2]
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
1970 | 22,963 | — |
1979 | 27,424 | +1.99% |
1989 | 32,422 | +1.69% |
1999 | 23,008 | −3.37% |
2009 | 22,853 | −0.07% |
2021 | 25,892 | +1.05% |
Note: resident population; Sources: [3] [4] |
The USSR left 23 unstable uranium tailings pits on the tectonically unstable hillside above the town. [8] A breached tailings dam in April 1958 released 600,000 cubic metres (21,000,000 cu ft) of radioactive tailings into the river Mayluu-Suu. [9] In 1994, a landslide blocked the river, which flowed over its banks and flooded another waste reservoir. A flood caused by a mudslide nearly submerged a tailings pit in 2002. [10] Mayluu-Suu was found to be one of the 10 most polluted sites in the world in a study published in 2006 by the Blacksmith Institute. [11]
The World Bank approved a US$5 million grant to reclaim the tailings pits in 2004, [10] and approved an additional $1 million grant for the project in 2011. [12] However, grave threats still persist. [13]