Sorbulak Lake near Almaty: wastewater reservoir and birds

Sorbulak is not a holiday lake. Since the early 1970s Almaty has piped its treated wastewater into this closed basin north-west of the city, and the city utility Almaty Su runs it as a storage reservoir (Bes.media, 09.10.2026). The lake system is also listed as a Key Biodiversity Area for its breeding and migrating waterbirds.

The reservoir in numbers

The reservoir has a smaller, fresher south-eastern basin and a deep main basin with more mineralised water, separated by shallows and a large island (Zakon.kz). Its story is tied to the neighbouring Zhamankum depression: a 1968 plan sent wastewater into the Zhamankum sands, Zhamankum overflowed in 1971 and discharge was switched to Sorbulak (Wikipedia, ru).

Why not swim or eat the fish

In 2024 part of the water samples failed microbiological and parasitological standards, and stirred-up bottom silt can re-contaminate the water (Zakon.kz, 2026). In February 2024 police caught an 11-strong gang netting fish here and seized about 3 tonnes of carp (Informburo). We found no official health assessment of the fish; an ecologist quoted by Khabar in 2021 considered it unsafe to eat, which is an opinion rather than a test. Rules for legal fishing elsewhere are on our fishing in Kazakhstan page.

Birds of the Sorbulak lake system

The Sorbulak Lake System is a Key Biodiversity Area and Important Bird Area under criteria A1a, A1c and D1a, covering 183.8 km² at 550–750 m. The figures below come from its 2007 assessment, the most recent we found.

We found no source placing pelicans or flamingos at Sorbulak. Threats listed in the assessment: farms around the lake multiplied four- to fivefold in a decade, livestock damage the shores, breeding ducks have declined sharply, and illegal netting and motorboat fishing happen especially in winter. For other birding sites, see birds of Kazakhstan and wildlife watching.

Is the dam safe?

The operator says the reservoir poses no danger (Zakon.kz, 20.01.2026). Two low earth dams, designed in 1988 and built in 1991, were reinforced with automatic monitoring in 2019–2020, with 21 observation wells and two gauging posts (Bes.media). In recent years the volume has stayed below 830 million m³. Reconstruction of canals, a siphon under the Kaskelen river and 36 km of sludge pipelines is planned for 2027–2030.

The 2025 helicopter crash

On 25 July 2025 an Air Defence Forces EC-145 helicopter with three people aboard vanished from radar on its way back to base in Almaty Region. Wreckage was found in Sorbulak on 26 July. More than 400 people searched at least 89 km² of water and 3 km of reed marsh with zero underwater visibility. The crew were recovered from about 14 m on 10, 11 and 12 August 2025; no cause had been made public (Tengrinews).

Visiting

Sorbulak lies in Ili District, Almaty Region, around 43.683, 76.583 (Wikipedia). Distances from Almaty vary between sources from 40 to 80 km, depending on where you reach the shore. We found no official visitor access point, rules or facilities, so treat it as a place for experienced birders with their own transport. For a beach day, Kapchagay has official beaches.