Residents of Belbulak near Almaty complain restaurant waste is polluting irrigation ditch

Residents of the village of Belbulak in Almaty Region say a local restaurant is spreading contaminated water through the settlement, turning an irrigation ditch into a sewage channel. The villagers' complaints and the akimat's response were reported by infohub.kz.

According to KTK television channel, villagers are convinced that one of the local restaurants has been continuously dumping waste into the ditch, where it accumulates for months. As a result, residents have endured foul odors for years. Fat, bottles and other garbage are carried downstream by the water into a neighboring settlement, so instead of clean water people are left with mud and stench.

Vegetable growers feel the problem most acutely: the ditch water was once used for irrigation, but residents now fear opening the taps because dirt and fat flow along with the water.

"This dirt, this sewage, it's systematic. The stench in summer. It's still there. It pollutes the village, and there's nothing to water with. The irrigation water comes from the ditch, and people, grandmothers, water their gardens with it," said villager Daulet Sekishev.

The restaurant itself says it has cleared garbage from the area before and notes that waste enters the ditch not only from its grounds.

"We were told to fence off this area. We fenced it all off. We removed everything around it and cleaned it up. Yes, I understand the residents' complaints. But this is a big restaurant, it has been operating for 15-20 years. We also have to face difficulties," said Symbat Almazbek, an administrator at the establishment.

The akimat says it has repeatedly sent letters to the relevant authorities. The restaurant has been fined before, and its management was ordered to install a garbage container.

"As for the garbage and fat being dumped here, I am seeing this for the first time. Appropriate measures will be taken. This issue will certainly be reviewed. We will invite sanitary-epidemiological service staff again, and if violations of the law are found, those responsible will be fined," assured Gauhar Amirkhanova, deputy akim of the Belbulak rural district.

Residents are now filing another complaint and awaiting a new inspection. The restaurant has again been ordered to dispose of its waste, but locals fear the result will once again be temporary.