BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 12. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are working to strengthen environmental regulation and accelerate the adoption of best available technologies (BAT) in industry.
This was reflected in the statement by the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change of Uzbekistan.
The discussions took place at Uzbekistan’s State Center for Environmental Expertise, under the National Committee for Ecology and Climate Change, with the participation of Kazakh environmental specialists, represented by K.B. Masenov, managing director and head of the Bureau of Best Available Technologies at the International Green Technologies and Investment Projects Center, and Abilaykhan Talgatov, head of the Department for Monitoring, Analysis and Integrated Environmental Permits.
The Kazakh delegation presented its practical experience in transitioning industrial enterprises toward BAT principles, including comprehensive technological audits, the collection and analysis of sector-specific data, and the development and application of BAT reference documents.
The sides also discussed approaches to determining technological and environmental performance indicators for different industrial sectors and using them to modernize enterprises and reduce their environmental impact.
“Experience gained in Kazakhstan can help Uzbekistan build its national best available technologies system around practical solutions that support both environmental protection and industrial modernization,” the committee said.
Uzbekistan presented its ongoing efforts to improve environmental impact assessment and state environmental review procedures, as well as establish national mechanisms for introducing BAT across industry.
A key focus of the meeting was a joint project to develop a digital BAT platform. The sides discussed a potential implementation framework that would include a unified database of technological information, digital BAT reference documents and tools for comparing technologies used by industrial enterprises.
The proposed platform is expected to help organize data on industrial processes and environmental performance, improve the quality of regulatory decisions and provide a digital foundation for wider BAT adoption.
The working program continued at Green University, where specialists and industry experts exchanged views on the broader role of BAT in environmental regulation and industrial development.
Participants emphasized that BAT should not be viewed solely as a regulatory tool, but also as a mechanism for technological modernization, improved resource and energy efficiency, lower emissions and wastewater discharges, and reduced waste generation.
The exchange of experience with Kazakhstan is expected to help Uzbekistan incorporate proven approaches as it develops its national BAT framework and moves toward a more technology-driven and preventive model of environmental regulation.
