An Overview of Policies Influencing Air Pollution from the Electricity Sector in Central Asia (Russian Translation)

Research output: NRELTechnical Report

Abstract

The electricity sector is a substantial source of air pollution and associated health problems in Central Asia and elsewhere. Fossil-fueled power plants emit a wide variety of harmful pollutants and their chemical precursors. The pollutants with the greatest health impacts are particulate matter and ozone. Once released into the atmosphere, there is no practical way to remove air pollutants, which means that policies designed to improve air quality have to limit the pollutants before release. However, tackling such pollution is challenging, particularly in developing economies, due to the need to provide electricity as a basic necessity for citizens and as an engine of economic growth. This report provides examples of policies impacting air pollution from the electricity sector in the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. It is a partner publication to an earlier report that addressed policies in South Asia. As with the South Asia report, information on policies in some countries was difficult to locate; therefore, this is not a comprehensive study, but rather an overview or "scan" of the sector that includes examples of: (1) policies that directly regulate air quality by limiting emissions from specific point sources (by restricting operating hours, for instance); and (2) indirect policies that incentivize or disincentivize polluting activities, such as policies to encourage fuel switching to or from cleaner renewable resources. Note that this report was prepared before the Russia-Ukraine conflict and therefore doesn't address consequences of that war for Central Asia. The report finds: (1) That Central Asian countries typically have relatively few policy instruments available for regulating national air emissions; (2) That many countries, especially those that have a mismatch between seasonal demand and resource availability, could improve energy security and reduce air pollution through increased cross-border electricity trade; (3) That some countries have seemingly contradictory policies (promoting both coal and renewables, for instance). This report is also available in English: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy23osti/81861.pdf.
Original languageRussian
Number of pages69
DOIs
StatePublished - 2022

Bibliographical note

See NREL/TP-7A40-81861 for English translation

NREL Publication Number

  • NREL/TP-7A40-85192

Keywords

  • air pollution
  • air quality study
  • Asian electricity sector
  • Central Asia
  • emissions
  • energy policies
  • fossil-fuel electricity sector
  • Kazakhstan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • renewable energy
  • renewable resources
  • South Asia
  • Tajikistan
  • Turkmenistan
  • Uzbekistan

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