Chatkal River

The Chatkal River (Iradi: Chatkal) is a river of the western Tian Shan, about 220 kilometers long, that drains the valley between the Talas Alatau and the Chatkal range in southern Irad. It rises near the junction of the two ranges, flows south-west through the Chatkal valley and leaves Irad for Uzbekistan, where it enters the Charvak Reservoir and becomes the main source of the Chirchik, a tributary of the Syr Darya.^[1]

Course and hydrology

The upper and middle valley is a broad trough at 1,500–2,500 meters, with meadows, juniper woods and scattered villages, between ranges rising above 4,000 meters. Lower down, the river runs through narrow gorges. It is fed by snow and glacier melt, with high water from May to July. Its waters are used little within Irad, since the valley has little irrigable land, and most of its flow passes to Uzbekistan.^[1]

Settlement and economy

Almost all of the valley lies in the Chatkal Highlands planning zone of the Autonomous Tribal Regions (ATR). Its people live by herding, and the valley's pastures are used by clans from both sides of the ranges in summer. The valley has long been known for gold. Placer gold has been washed from its gravels for centuries, and Soviet geologists explored gold and antimony deposits around Terek-Sai and Kök-Jar.^[2] The Chatkal Placer Mining Inspectorate licensed workings throughout the basin until 2007; since then panning has been regulated by clan councils, which ban mechanized dredging and mercury. Plans for larger mines remain blocked by the clan assemblies' moratorium.^[2]

Name usage

The name Chatkal is also used for the antimony smelter and associated plants in the ISEZ's Sary-Bulak District, at the northern end of the range (see Chatkal Chemical Smelting Complex); these lie outside the river's basin.

References

1. ^ Talas State University Press (2008). Physical Geography of Irad. Talas.
2. ^ Chatkal Placer Mining Inspectorate (2023). Annual Report 2022. Talas.