Residents of Almaty have raised concerns over the unusual state of the Bolshaya Almatinka River, after footage posted on social media showed the water's surface covered in foam. According to infohub.kz, specialists inspected the river and collected water samples for laboratory analysis after the video was published.
The author of the post, @rotvikofficial on Threads, said she filmed the river just below Zhandosov Street. She was alarmed not only by the amount of foam but also by the debris that she said regularly appears along the waterway.
"Why is there so much foam along the entire length of the river? (...) Is it some kind of algae, powder, waste, a natural phenomenon?" the Almaty resident asked.
The post sparked lively discussion. Some users suggested that household waste or chemicals may have entered the water. Others called for its quality to be checked and samples taken for analysis. Another group of residents also expressed concern about the state of the river and suggested testing whether the water is safe.
The Almaty ecology department responded to the post. "In order to verify the stated fact, employees of Tau Su Qyzmet LLP conducted an on-site inspection, during which the presence of foam in the riverbed was confirmed, starting from the section below Zhandosov Street. The largest accumulation of foam was observed in the area of Satpaev Street. In addition, specialists from Eco Almaty LLP went to the site to collect water samples and conduct laboratory tests to determine its chemical composition and establish the possible causes of the foam formation," the statement said.