Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) - On 4 and 5 November 2019, the next water-saving eco-marathon UzWaterAware was held in the city of Gulistan, Syrdarya region, this time combined with the republican campaign of the Yuksalish Public National Movement “Bir Million Darakht”.

As part of this joint action, 300 trees were planted using the "hydrogel" technology, which will subsequently allow the rational use of water resources during irrigation. In the near future, similar joint water-saving actions on tree planting using the hydrogel technology will be held in Kashkadarya and Surkhandarya regions.

The UzWaterAware project is aimed at increasing water awareness of the population and is implemented by the Regional Environmental Center of Central Asia with financial support from the European Union. The national partner of the project is the Ministry of Water Resources of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The two-day event united around the idea ofmaintaining the ecological balance, as well as a productive and economical approach to the natural resources of city improvement services employees, representatives of local authorities, teachers from universities and schools, students, NGOs and the media.

Hydrogel technology specialist Shavkat Shirinov, doctor of technical sciences and senior researcher at the Tashkent Scientific Research Institute of Chemical Technology, spoke in an open workshop about the hydrogel and the possibilities of using it to reduce water and fertilizer consumption in an arid climate and limited water resources.

Immediately after the workshop, specialists from the local Obodonlashtirish boshqarmasi, as well as students from Gulistan State University, took a direct part in the planting of 300 apple quince, pomegranate and plum seedlings using the hydrogel technology.

On the second day, as part of the UzWaterAware project, the trainers of the Center for the Development of Modern Journalism conducted an interactive eco-lesson for biology and chemistry teachers from 16 secondary schools in Gulistan. The main goal of eco-friendly eco-lessons is to transmit knowledge on the topic of water consumption and water conservation to school teachers in an interesting format, so that later they can talk in a similarly exciting way about the importance of rational use of water resources. Teachers also received information booklets and hydrogel samples, the properties of which they can now clearly demonstrate to their students.

The first water-saving eco-marathon UzWaterAware was held in the spring in Kokand (Ferghana region). Then, several measures were taken to increase public awareness of the rational use of water resources, including workshops on planting 2,000 trees using the hydrogel technology. In Nukus, the eco-marathon was held in the form of a training on the coverage of water and environmental topics for practicing journalists of the Republic of Karakalpakstan and the Khorezm region, as well as for students of the journalism department of Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh.