Seasons, climate resources and rivers

Inland waters include rivers, lakes, glaciers and groundwater; rivers are the most important for people. Uzbekistan’s rivers belong to a closed basin: they begin in the mountains, are used for irrigation on the plains, seep into the ground and evaporate, and some end in the desert. On the plains the river network is very sparse (about 20 m of river per km²) and in mountains and foothills dense, because mountains have more precipitation and less evaporation. By feeding, rivers fall into groups: those fed by glaciers and permanent snow in the high mountains (Amudarya, Zarafshan) are full in July–August; those fed by snow and ice (Syrdarya, Chirchiq, Surkhandarya) in May–June; those fed by snow in low mountains (Ohangaron, Kashkadarya) in April–May; small streams fed by rain and snow are full in spring and dry in summer. The Amudarya is the region’s most water-rich river and the Syrdarya the longest. The Zarafshan (about 877 km long) begins at the Zarafshan Glacier, waters the Samarkand, Navoi and Bukhara oases and does not reach the Amudarya. A large part of the river water Uzbekistan uses is formed on the territory of its mountainous neighbours.