Ecological situation is critical. Who can stop violent officials?

In Uzbekistan, protecting the atmosphere from toxic fumes and pollutants, and addressing the severe air pollution in Tashkent, is an urgent agenda. The situation is serious and poses a direct threat to public health. Multiple factors are at play. Natural dust, desertification, climate change, drought, and global warming are compounded by human actions, including burning coal in greenhouses and vehicle tires. The destruction of trees represents one of the greatest threats to the environment.

While leaders at all levels in the country are struggling with environmental issues, in Fergana, tree-cutting is escalating, and even those protecting nature remain vulnerable.

Currently, in Buvayda district, a public outcry has arisen after the deputy head of the district administration, Saidali Khidirov, used force against inspector Akhrorjon Niyozov from the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change, taking him to the district police station with the help of National Guard personnel. According to local reports, the inspector had arrived quickly at a site where trees were being cut illegally, intending to document and stop the violation according to the established procedure. His lawful action was met with violent resistance.

Rasul Kusherboev, advisor to the head of the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change, strongly condemned the actions of the deputy and other officials, calling for them to be held accountable under the law.

Video footage shows that the Buvayda deputy district head, Saidali Khidirov, was not only using force against the inspector, but the National Guard and police personnel stood by as spectators. At one point, a National Guard officer physically grabbed the inspector by the collar. This raises questions: how long will those responsible for upholding the law continue to assist officials in breaking it?

So far, neither the National Guard nor the Interior Ministry has issued a statement regarding the incident.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has been paying close attention to environmental issues, issuing several decrees and establishing a special commission. Under the current circumstances, only the President’s protection seems to safeguard officials working in the field from violent and law-breaking superiors.

In a decree signed by President Mirziyoyev on November 19 this year, “On measures to create a management system in the fields of ecology and tourism capable of responding promptly to public demands,” it was stipulated that local branches and district-level employees of the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change would operate independently from local executive authorities and report directly to the Committee. Despite this, a week after the decree, local officials continue to disregard environmental inspectors, obstruct their work, and even use force against them, as if the presidential decree does not apply to them.

The current troubling situation has been significantly influenced by officials who authorize or ignore tree-cutting. Remarkably, even decrees signed by the President have not curtailed their hands from felling trees and harming nature.

Moratoriums have been declared, “Green Spaces” initiatives promoted, and public speeches made in support of protecting nature—but the outcome often ends with violence against environmental defenders.

For context, President Mirziyoyev recently signed a decree, “On urgent measures to improve the environmental situation in Tashkent city,” which established a special commission tasked with implementing immediate actions to improve the capital’s ecological conditions.

Problems like tree-cutting and the violent actions of deputy officials are not limited to Fergana. At the end of October, prior to Tashkent being engulfed in toxic dust, 174 trees and shrubs along Nukus and Bobur streets in the Yakkasaray district were cut down illegally, causing damage worth 1.46 billion soums.

Rasul Kusherboev reported that the felling was carried out at night by the municipal landscaping department, following instructions from Tashkent’s first deputy mayor, Bakhtiyor Rahmonov, to replace existing trees with new ones. However, Rahmonov faced no accountability for the destruction, while the municipal workers who carried out the orders were held responsible under Article 198, Part 2 of the Criminal Code, concerning illegal mass cutting of trees or plants.

Kusherboev criticized the lack of accountability, saying that it is “true cowardice” when those who give illegal orders go unpunished while subordinates bear the consequences.

The special commission established by presidential decree has the authority to impose restrictions on industrial enterprises, transport, and heating facilities during periods of severe dust storms; suspend operations of polluting industrial and greenhouse facilities; designate industrial zones for relocation; and enforce measures on construction sites, including installing dust suppression equipment.

Additionally, households and businesses importing air-purifying equipment (TIF TN code 8509 80) are exempt from customs duties. Efforts to restore Tashkent’s traditional irrigation canals are also underway.

Within a week, the commission is tasked with inspecting construction sites larger than 500 square meters to ensure compliance with greening requirements, installation of sprinklers, wheel-washing pools, proper handling of construction and household waste, and prevention of excessive dust emissions. For construction areas over 1,000 square meters, environmental monitoring stations must be installed and integrated with the National Committee on Ecology.

Importantly, all greenhouses in Tashkent and nearby areas will receive natural gas within one week. The Energy Ministry is responsible for ensuring uninterrupted supply.

Under the decree, the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change will draft a law introducing stricter administrative fines for companies and individuals whose greenhouse dust and gas purification systems are malfunctioning or absent, and establish criminal liability for illegally burning fuel or waste in greenhouses over 200 square meters.

Tashkent and surrounding regions have 6,517 registered greenhouses, 2,925 of which are inactive. Among them, 195 have non-standard boiler systems, only 53 are connected to natural gas, 100 have filters, 1,827 lack filters, and 3,592 rely on coal.

The question remains: can the special commission make a real impact? Will Tashkent’s air quality improve sustainably, or will these measures only have temporary effects? As officials continue to use force against environmental inspectors, significant ecological change seems uncertain. Follow developments on QALAMPIR.UZ.