Chu River
| Chu River (Чу, Чүй, Шу) | |
| River | |
 In the Chuy Valley below Tokmok
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| Countries | Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan |
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| Tributaries | |
| - left | Ala-Archa River, Kara-Balta River, Ysyk-Ata River, Alamudun River, Ak-Suu River |
| - right | Chong-Kemin River, Kichi-Kemin River |
| Source | confluence of Joon Aryk and Kochkor River |
| - elevation | 1,802 m (5,912 ft) |
| - coordinates | 42°13′15.60″N 75°44′29″E / 42.221°N 75.74139°E |
| Mouth | Akjaykyn system of lakes |
| - elevation | 135 m (443 ft) |
| - coordinates | 44°59′N 67°43′E / 44.983°N 67.717°E |
| Length | 1,067 km (663 mi) |
| Basin | 67,500 km2 (26,062 sq mi) |
"Chui River" redirects here. For the South American Chuí or Chuy River, on the Brazil-Uruguay border and Brazil's southernmost point, see Chuí River. For the Nam Sam River or Chu River, on the Lao-Vietnam border, see Nam Sam River.
The Chu (or Chui or Chuy) (Russian: Чу, Kyrgyz: Чүй, Kazakh: Шу) is a river in northern Kyrgyzstan and southern Kazakhstan. At approximately 663 miles (1067 km[1]) in length, it is one of the longest rivers in Kyrgyzstan.
Chuy Oblast, the northernmost and most populous administrative region of Kyrgyzstan, is named after the river; so are the Chuy Avenue, the main street of Bishkek, and the city of Shu in Kazakhstan's Zhambyl Province.
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[edit] Course
The Chu River is formed by the confluence of rivers Joon Aryk and Kochkor in Kochkor District of Naryn Province. After approaching lake Issyk Kul within a few kilometers (near Balykchy), without either flowing into the lake or draining it, it turns to the northwest. After passing through the narrow Boom Gorge (Russian: Боомское ущелье), it enters the comparatively flat Chuy Valley, within which the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek and the Kazakh city of Shu are located. Much of the Chu's water is diverted into a network of canals to irrigate the fertile black soils of the Chuy Valley for farming, both on the Kyrgyz and Kazakh sides of the river.
As the Chu flows through the Chuy Valley, it forms the border between Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan for more than a hundred kilometers, but then it leaves Kyrgyzstan and flows into Kazakhstan, where, like many other rivers and streams that drain northern Kyrgyzstan it eventually disappears in the steppe, short of reaching the Syr Darya, of which it would drain to during wet years.
[edit] History
The area of this river was originally home to the Iranian Sughds who spoke Soghdian, an East Iranian language.[2]
During the Middle Ages, the area was strategically important. It was the setting of Suayub, the capital of the Western Turkic Khaganate, and Balasagun, the capital of the Kara-Khitans.
Chu River posed a risk of flooding for settlements located in Chu Valley. In winter 1878, an ice gorge formed on Chu River upstream town Tokmok that was the center of Semirechye Province. This was followed by severe flooding that damaged the town and the center of the province was moved in Pishpek (Bishkek). After this, Tokmak gradually lost its significance.[3]
[edit] Ecology and Environment
[edit] Environmental monitoring
The Kyrgyz State Agency on Hydrometeorology and Kazakhstan Hydrometeorological Service (Kazhydromet) operate a number of water quality monitoring stations on the Chu River and its tributaries.[4]
[edit] Water quality
According to Kyrgyz State Agency on Hydrometeorology, in 2004-2008, water pollution index of the Chu River in Chu Valley ranged from 0.25 to 0.7 units that is interpreted as Class II ("Clean water"). The only exception was a monitoring point downstream Vasilyevka village where water pollution index ranged from 0.4 to 1.2 unit and water quality was assessed as Class II(Clean)/Class III ("Moderately polluted").[4]
According to Kazakhstan Hydrometeorological Service (Kazhydromet), water pollution index of Shu (Chu) River in Jambyl Province of Kazakhstan amounted to 2.01 (Class III, "Moderately polluted") in 2008, and 1.83 (Class III, "Moderately polluted") in 2009. Such water quality parameters as biochemical oxygen demand, nitrites, copper, phenols exceeded the maximum allowable concentrations.[5]
[edit] Major tributaries
In Kyrgyzstan, 4892 rivers and canals flow into Chu River.[6] The list of the major tributaries include:
- Chong-Kemin River
- Kichi-Kemin River
- Kara-Konuz River
- Shamshy River
- Ysyk-Ata River
- Alamudun River
- Ala-Archa River
- Jylamysh River
- Ak-Suu River
- Kara-Balta River
[edit] Gallery
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In the Boom Gorge
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A medieval balbal near Burana Tower in the Chuy Valley
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In the Chuy Valley near Milyanfan
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Near Korday border crossing
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Near Shu, Kazakhstan
[edit] References
- ^ Great Soviet Encyclopedia
- ^ Barthold, W.. "Balāsāg̲h̲ūn or Balāsaḳūn." Encyclopaedia of Islam.. Brill Online. UNIVERSITEITSBIBLIOTHEEK LEIDEN: Brill Academic Publishers. http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_SIM-1131.
- ^ "Profile of town Tokmok (in Russian)". http://www.citykr.kg/tokmok.php#ser1. Retrieved 2010-03-10.
- ^ a b "Kyrgyz State Agency on Hydrometeorology: water quality". http://www.meteo.ktnet.kg/unzps/unzps_voda_arch.php. Retrieved 2010-03-10.
- ^ Information Bulletin on Status of the Environment in the Republic of Kazakhstan in 2009 (Report). Ministry of Environment Protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan. 2010. http://www.eco.gov.kz/ekolog/buleten/bul_2009.rar.
- ^ (in Kyrgyz and Russian) Чүй облусу:Энциклопедия [Encyclopedia of Chuy Oblast]. Bishkek: Chief Editorial Board of Kyrgyz Encyclopedia. 1994. pp. 718. ISBN 5897500835.
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