Qosh Tepa Canal
Water transmission project in Afghanistan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Qosh Tepa Canal (Persian: کانال قوش تپه; Pashto: د قوشتېپې کانال; Uzbek: Qoʻshtepa kanali; Southern Uzbek: قۉشتېپه کانالی) is a canal being built in northern Afghanistan to divert water from the Amu Darya.[1] The main canal is expected to be 285 km long and the overall initiative seeks to convert 550,000 hectares of desert into farmland.[2] The Qosh Tepa Canal starts in the Kaldar District of Balkh Province, then proceeds through Jowzjan Province and finally comes to an end in the Andkhoy District of Faryab Province.[3][4]
| Qosh Tepa Canal | |
|---|---|
A bridge over the Qosh Tepa Canal in Balkh Province, Afghanistan | |
 Interactive map of Qosh Tepa Canal | |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 285 km (177 miles) |
| Status | Under construction |
| History | |
| Original owner |  Afghanistan |
| Construction began | 2022 |
| Geography | |
| Start point | Kaldar District, Balkh Province |
| End point | Andkhoy District, Faryab Province |
Beginning coordinates | 37.084797°N 67.773767°E |
| Branch of | Amu Darya |
The Taliban-run government of Afghanistan has made the canal a priority project and the construction began in early 2022.[1] Images supplied by Planet Labs showed that from April 2022 to February 2023 more than 100 km of the canal had been excavated.[2] The first phase of the project was completed in October 2023,[5][6] with the second phase immediately commencing, by December 2024 the second phase was ninety percent completed.[7][8][9] The entire project is expected to be completed in late 2026.[3]
Independent experts and engineers have expressed skepticism and concern about the project, stating that the Afghan government does not possess the know-how to effectively complete the canal. In particular, they have noted that there is a lack of oversight with "rudimentary" construction methods being employed.[10] In December 2023, it was reported that the canal had experienced a major breach, with satellite images showing a large body of water forming near the place where the embankment had collapsed.
Name
According to some sources, the canal is named after Qosh Tepa District in Afghanistan's Jowzjan Province.[11] The word "qosh" (Uzbek: qoʻsh) is a Turkic word meaning "a pair" or a "twin".[12] "Qoʻshtepa" means "twin" or "adjoining hills" and is a common Uzbek toponym.[13] Therefore, the canal's name translates to "Twin Hills Canal". In a few sources, the canal is mistakenly referred to as the "Qush Tepa Canal",[14] which means "Bird Hills Canal".
Water use regime on the Amu River
A formal regime to divide the Amu's waters among the four ex-USSR republics of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan was made during the Soviet period. Being internal to the USSR, these agreements did not reflect Afghanistan's interests.[15] When construction of the canal began in 2022, Afghanistan was still not a party to any regional or international treaty on using transboundary river waters.[16] As such, no pre-arranged dispute resolution procedures were in place to address the other Amu River basin countries concerns. The Afghan government argued that Afghanistan has a generic right to use the waters of Amu River, irrespective of a formal agreement being in place.[17]
International reaction
Uzbekistan, the main down-river country potentially affected, has expressed concern that the canal will have an adverse effect on its agriculture.[18]
Environmental concerns
Environmental experts have raised concern that the Qosh Tepa Canal will make the Aral Sea situation worse by diverting even more water from Amu River.[19] A detailed analysis of the project by the independent CABAR.asia analytical publication found that construction methods employed appeared "rudimentary" and concluded the likelihood of water losses in the canal was high.[10][20]
2023 breach reports
In December 2023, it was reported that the Qosh Tepa Canal had experienced a major breach, with satellite imagery obtained from Sentinel-2 showing a large body of water stretching for nine kilometers on the northern bank of the canal.[21][22][23] The body of water was reported to increase further during the subsequent days.[24][25] Afghan officials denied the reports, claiming the waters of the canal were temporarily redirected to a nearby area in a deliberate move.[26]
