By central Asia correspondent
Catherine Davis BBC News
 Locusts
are a costly menace to the region
Kazakhstan
has unveiled plans to use satellite technology to help tackle
its growing and costly locust problem.
The Kazakh
Space Research Institute has joined forces with a Canadian company,
Radarsat International, to use satellite data and information
on the ground to map and predict infestations of the insect.
Each year,
locusts swarm across the steppe like a moving carpet, devouring
crops and vegetation.
Kazakhstan
takes preventative measures, but since the end of the former Soviet
Union, experts say the locust problem has been getting worse.
Many Kazakh farmers can no longer afford to buy the pesticides
needed. Land has also been abandoned.
It is estimated
the country would need some $90m to adequately treat locust-affected
areas; a fraction of that is available.
Target
spraying
Kazakhstan
is an important wheat producer - third in the region after Russia
and Ukraine.
Concerned
about crop damage, it has sought international assistance.
 Locust
swarms: An annual feature in Kazakhstan
The Radarsat
project will focus on a number of sites across the country.
Meteorological
data, plus information on soil moisture and locust density, will
be used to pinpoint high-risk areas for infestations. These areas
can then be targeted for spraying.
Radarsat says
this could mean a 60% drop in the amount of pesticides used. It's
also hoped the technology will help to predict the direction of
locust migrations.
The idea is
to give Kazakhstan a more efficient and environmentally friendly
way to find the locusts before they find the country's crops.
The system
could also be extended to neighbouring countries.
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