Uzen Oilfield Rehabilitation Project, Kazakhstan

Under a World Bank-funded program, E & E provided environmental protection and remediation services—including the design/setup of an environmental laboratory—for the largest fully operational oilfield in Kazakhstan, which is operated by Uzenmunaigas.  The general objectives were to assess the extent of environmental degradation; develop remedial strategies; conduct pilot studies for soil treatment and revegetation; and help Uzenmunaigas strengthen its environmental management capacity, including the capacity to measure/monitor the environmental effects of field operations.

Mitigation and rejuvenation of the former Soviet Uzen Oil Field required archaeological investigations reconnaissance as a part of an Environmental Audit. These investigations were undertaken in accordance with the World Bank Operational Directive 4.5, which specifies the Bank’s approach to protection of historical and archaeological resources. E & E established relations with the Kazakhstan Institute of Archaeology and assisted with the development of appropriate archaeological field strategies, an established quality control/quality assurance system for data collection, and preparation of technical documents. We coordinated the development of required special logistical arrangements for archaeological investigations, due to their locations in contaminated areas in the remote arid plateau region of the Caspian Sea basin in Kazakhstan.