Barkash lake is the third largest lake after the Curie sea and the dry alar inland lake on earth. It is located in the arid area of Central Asia, Southeast of Kazakhstan. Balkhash Lake covers an area of 413000 square kilometers, including 113000 square kilometers, or more than 27% of the area in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. Ili River is the main source of water for outer balkashi lake. Ili River ensures 80% of the clean water flows into balkashi lake. The water resources (surface water) formation area recovered every year is mainly located in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China, so more than 60% of the Yili River Runoff flows into the adjacent lakes. The monograph provided is dedicated to the assessment of modern ecological conditions in Ili - barkash Lake Basin.

The book consists of 10 chapters. The first chapter provides a general description of the natural conditions of the balkashi Lake Basin; the second chapter provides the results of the economic analysis of the Ili balkashi Lake Basin; the third and fourth chapters provide an in-depth analysis of the fish fauna of the balkashi lake, the Ili River Delta and the kapchagai reservoir; the fifth chapter describes in detail the areas outside Kazakhstan of the Ili balkashi Lake Basin The sixth chapter provides a fair and objective evaluation of groundwater conditions in the balkashi Lake Basin; the seventh and eighth chapters show the interaction between the balkashi lake and the Ili River Delta, and describe the river bed evolution process of small tributaries in the delta. The development and expenditure stages of water resources depend on these stages. Chapter 9 provides the current situation of plants in balkashi Lake Basin, including alpine forest, piedmont grassland and sandy plateau in plain and Ili River Delta. In Chapter 10, the process of wind erosion in the sandy plateau of barkash lake, South China, is evaluated.