Dr. Gulnura Issanova obtained her PhD in Natural Sciences. Currently she is a researcher at U. U. Uspanov Kazakh Research Institute of Soil Science and Agrochemistry and a Scientific Secretary at Research Centre of Ecology and Environment of Central Asia (Almaty). Her research interests are focused on soil degradation and desertification problems, in particular the role of dust and sand storms in land/soil degradation.Jilili Abuduwaili is a professor at Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is an Associate Editor of the “Journal of Arid Land”; Editor in chief of the “Arid Land Geography” and “Arid Land Research” journals (both in Uyghur language); Editorial Board Member of the journal “Arid ecosystems” and “Soil Science and Agrochemistry. His research interests are in the area of resource environment in arid region, eco-security and change in landscape as well as cooperative research between Russia and countries in Central Asia.iv>

• Introduction.- Status of storms in central Asia and environmental problems.- Natural conditions of central Asian deserts and land cover changes.- Spatial and temporal distribution of dust and sand storms.- Storms and land degradation relationship.- Dust storms in Kazakhstan.- Aeolian transportation of dust and sand in deserts of Kazakhstan.- Conclusions.