[3] A 2011 report by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe listed the discharge of wastewater, surface run-off, sediments and riverbank erosion as damaging to water quality.

[1] The Maly Uzen has its sources on the western edge of the Obshchy Syrt to the north of Yershov town.

The river runs parallel to the Bolshoy Uzen, some 50 kilometres (31 mi) further east.

At Maly Uzen village the discharge varies from 3.4 to 782 cubic metres per second (120 to 27,620 cu ft/s).

The Maly Uzen freezes over in December, and stays icebound to the end of March or beginning of April.