Main Idea 3:
Key natural resources in Central Asia include
water, oil and gas, and minerals.
• River water used mostly to irrigate cotton fields
• So much water from the rivers is used for irrigation that
almost no water reaches the Aral Sea today.
• Main water sources are the Syr Darya and Amu Darya
rivers.
• Conflict between Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan over how
to use the water from the rivers
• Central Asia’s rivers also supply power.
• Large dams on the rivers generate hydroelectricity.