From November 2, 2026, to March 19, 2027, Almaty will test its heating networks using a special organic dye, turning the water in the pipes bright green or yellow-green, infohub.kz reports.
According to Almaty Heating Networks LLP, an organic indicator — Uranine A (fluorescein disodium salt) — will be added weekly to the water at boiler houses. This allows hidden leaks and pipe defects to be detected quickly and helps prevent illegal draining of water from radiators.
The testing will cover boiler houses that supply heating only, without hot water service. They are located in the Alatau, Zhetysu, Medeu and Turksib districts of the city. The company has published the full list of addresses.
The company assured that the substance is of low toxicity, safe for the environment and used at a permitted concentration of 1.0 g/m³.
"If you see green water in the street (where steam is rising or pipes have burst), don't be alarmed! It means our indicator is working and helping specialists fix the problem quickly. To speed things up, you can report it to the unified service number 109," Almaty Heating Networks LLP said.