The Aral Sea Disaster

The Aral Sea Disaster

Up until the 4th quarter of the 20th century the Aral Sea was the worlds 4th largest saline lake.

What led to it & Who was responsible, did they fix it?

When &Where

In the 1960's the Soviet Government decided to divert the Aral Sea's two main water sources, The Amu Darya and The Syr Darya Rivers, so that they could irrigate the desert region surrounding the sea for agriculture.The Aral Sea gets 1/5 of its water supply from rainfall and the rest from the two rivers. The sea's evaporation rate of the water was higher than the income rate of the water therefore, the diversion of water created an imbalance that caused the sea to slowly dedicate over time.

Environmental Effects

The Aral Sea lies between the Southern part of Kazakhstan and Northern Uzbekistan.

The crisis of the Aral Sea began in the 1960's.

As water quantity disappeared, the salinity rose to levels that were toxic for fish and other wildlife.The dust that comes from from the Aral Sea contains an unhealthy mixture of fertilizer and other agricultural chemicals and household waste, which are harmful to people, animals, and plants around the world. Salt and pesticide chemicals have sped into groundwater and caused health problems and complications for agriculture. The ecological disaster has also been directly linked by medical studies to diseases of blood, cancer, asthma, and heart malfunction.

Response of the community

What has been done in response? How was damage fixed?

References

Government of the states surrounding the Aral Sea tried to institute policies to encourage less water intensive agricultural practices, this did not really work. In 1994 Kazakhstan, kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan established a joint committee to coordinate efforts to save the Sea but it was difficult between the competitive states.

The Aral Sea soon reduced into three separate lakes. The smaller sea in the North and the larger sea in the south which divided into a long, narrow western lake and a larger, broader eastern lake. The World Bank funded the construction of a dam that was suppose to preserve the Northern portion of the sea. The Southern portion was said to be gone by the year 2020.

The Aral Sea damage has not yet been fixed but there are ways we can try to fix it.

The news.nationalgeographic.com says, “After the Soviet Union collapsed and Kazakhstan became independent in 1991, glimmers of hope appeared for the North Aral’s recovery." They claim that one way the sea can be repaired is by building a dam and refilling the Aral Sea, but it can be very costly. Ranging from 25-50 billion dollars just to refill and replenish the Sea with water and marine wildlife like fish. This would also take about 25-50 years for this to happen. Even though this process may be hard it is still worth the effort to try to restore which was once the beautiful Aral Sea.

In result of this disaster, Karakalpakstan and its Northwestern communities of Muyhak, Shumanay, and Kanlikul are faced with the insecurities of the Aral Sea. The drying up of the sea has affected the local economy and infrastructure which has increased salinisation in land and water resources. Also, the lack of food security and exposure to toxic dust storms have resulted in severe economic food, health, and environmental conditions.They have come together to help income generation and infrastructure rehabilitation activities and have had improvements to their primary health care system.

The UN Aral Sea Program is attempting an approach to human security in order to empower people to work together with the local government to help better address the needs of their community. For example, access to drinking water and irrigation water, renewable resources, and the renovation of public buildings are their top priorities.

"The Aral Sea Crisis." The Aral Sea Crisis. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.

"Aral Sea | Lake, Central Asia." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.

"Desiccation of the Aral Sea: A Water Management Disaster in the Soviet Union." Desiccation of the Aral Sea: A Water Management Disaster in the Soviet Union. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.

"Vital Water Graphics." The Disappearance of the Aral Sea -. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.

"The+aral+sea+crisis - Google Search." The+aral+sea+crisis - Google Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.