The Aral Sea borders. Aral Sea (lake): map, photo, video, where it is located

ARAL SEA, Aral (Turk. "Aral" - an island; the original name of the area at the mouth of the Amu Darya River, and then the entire lake), a large drainless salty reservoir with characteristic sea and lake features, in the Turan lowland, in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. depression Aral Sea formed as a result of deflection earth's crust in the Upper Pliocene. His age is ca. 140 thousand years. The outlines have changed quite significantly as a result of climatic fluctuations, economic activity in its basin, the migration of the channels of the main rivers flowing into the sea - the Syr Darya and, especially, the Amu Darya. In the Quaternary, the Amu Darya ended its course alternately either in the Sarykamysh depression, not reaching the Aral Sea, or in the Aral Basin. Accordingly, the Aral Sea either grew shallow or increased in size. Over the past 4–6 thousand years, the amplitude of sea oscillations was more than 20 m. The great medieval regression occurred 400–800 years ago, when the level dropped to 31 m. The remains of saxaul thickets, ancient settlements, and the Kerderi mausoleum were found on the shallow bottom of the Aral Sea. All R. 20th century sea ​​level was relatively stable (minor fluctuations around 53 m). The Aral Sea was the fourth largest lake in the world. At this level, the area was 66.6 thousand km 2, volume 1068 km 3, maximum length 428 km, width 235 km, maximum depth 69 m (with an average depth of 16 m and prevailing depths of 20–25 m), average water salinity 10 -12‰. The water of the Aral Sea was distinguished by high transparency, especially in its central and western parts, far from the mouths of the Amudarya and Syrdarya, the water of which is characterized by increased turbidity. The color of the water in the center of the sea was blue, and off the coast it was greenish. The water was characterized by an alkaline reaction - the pH value was 8.2–8.4. The chemical composition of the water was dominated by sulfate and carbonate with a relatively small amount of chloride ions. The water was characterized by a low content of the main biogenic elements, and according to the trophic level, the reservoir was characterized as mesotrophic. In the Aral Sea to Ser. 20th century lived approx. 20 species of fish (thorn, bream, carp, roach, pike perch, etc.). In the 1950s–60s. 13 more species of fish were introduced. There were more than a thousand islands in the sea, the largest of which are Kokaral, Barsakelmes, Lazareva, Vozrozhdenie. In the south, there was the Akpetka archipelago, which was the sand dunes of the Kyzylkum desert flooded by sea waters. The northern shore is high in some places, low in some places, was cut by bays, the eastern one is low-lying, sandy with a large number of small islands and bays, the southern one is low-lying, occupied by the Amudarya delta, the western one is formed by a cliff (chink) of the Ustyurt plateau up to 250 m high. The climate is continental. average temperature air in summer 24–26 °С, in winter from –7 to –13.5 °С. The water temperature of the surface layer in summer is 28–30 °C. In winter, the northeastern and northern parts of the sea usually freeze. The input part of the water balance (64–65 km 3 /year) was mainly (about 90%) the river runoff of the Amudarya and Syrdarya. To share precipitation and a small influx of groundwater accounted for slightly more than 10%. The runoff of the Amudarya averaged 44–46 km 3 /year, the flow of the Syrdarya was approx. 10 km 3 / year.

From the beginning 1960s the relative stability of the state of the sea, supported by the inflow of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya waters, was disturbed, mainly due to the rapid increase in water withdrawals, mainly for irrigation needs. From 1960 to 2000, the area of ​​irrigated land in the Aral Sea basin increased from 4.5 to 8 million hectares. The total water intake accordingly increased from 60 to more than 100 km 3 /year. Prior to this, water withdrawal also increased, but the increase in irrigated lands was mainly due to tugai thickets along the rivers, which evaporate a lot of water, and as a result, the river flow changed little. Water intake began to significantly affect the flow of rivers, as soon as from the middle. 20th century irrigation began, often with an excess amount of water, of desert foothill areas remote from rivers, from where only a small part (10–20%) of the withdrawn water returned to the rivers in the form of collector-drainage water from irrigation systems. These waters, saturated with fertilizers and pesticides washed away from agricultural fields, made up the bulk of the sharply reduced river inflow into the Aral Sea, which in some years approached zero not only due to water withdrawal, but also due to natural low water determined by climatic conditions. According to most researchers, a 20% decrease in inflow to the Aral Sea is due to climate change, and 80% to anthropogenic factors.

During the period 1961–89, the sea level decreased by more than 14 m, the area of ​​​​the water area decreased by 2 times, and the volume - by 3 times. In 1988–89, at a mark of 39 m, the Aral Sea divided into two independent bodies of water - the Big Sea (Great Aral, southern Aral, the Aral Sea itself), fed by the waters of the Amu Darya, and the Small Sea (Small Aral, northern Aral), fed by the waters of the Syr Darya. The area of ​​the Big Aral at its separation was 33.5 thousand km 2, and the Small Aral - approx. 3 thousand km 2. During 1989–2000, the volume of water decreased from 329 to 175 km 3, the area decreased from 36.4 to 24.4 thousand km 2, the level decreased from 39.1 to 34.0 m (see table). The coastline has receded former position in many cases for tens of kilometers (see map). The salinity of the water increased from 29 to 46–59‰. Subsequently, the drying of the sea continued (see table). At a mark of 29 m, the Big Aral was divided into eastern and western parts, and now it has turned into a group of several reservoirs with water salinity in some of them exceeding 200‰.

The shrinkage of the Aral Sea in recent decades has occurred mainly due to the Large Aral, mainly due to the fact that the Small Aral was separated from the Large Aral by a dam. The dam, built in 1994, was washed away in 1999 during spring storm, but in 2003–05, a more powerful Kokaral earthen dam was erected, 13 km long, 6 m high, 100-150 m wide. The dam includes a concrete dam with a hydraulic gate to pass excess water into the Big Aral. Due to this, the flow of the Syr Darya accumulates in the Small Aral. By 2008, the water level in it had risen to 42 m, the salinity had decreased to 10–13‰, which made it possible to begin the restoration of the fishery.

Changing parameters of the Aral Sea

In general, the drying up of the Aral Sea is one of the largest environmental disasters of the 2nd half. 20 - early. 21st century, which had an extremely negative impact on the economy of the region. If in ser. 20th century 30-50 thousand tons of fish were caught in the sea, then by the beginning. 1990s it has completely lost its fishery significance. A significant part of the population has lost their jobs. In the beginning. 21st century fish have completely disappeared in most of the Aral Sea. Fishing is now carried out only in the Small Aral. In 2007 the catch was approx. 2 thousand tons and tends to grow. Shipping stopped. The remains of ships can be seen tens of kilometers from the shores of the Big Aral - on the dry bottom of the sea, which has turned into a desert with vast salt marshes and highly saline lands. The dried part of the seabed became the source of large dust storms and wind removal (over 100 thousand tons annually) of salt mixed with various chemicals and poisons, adversely affecting all living things at a distance of up to 500 km. The drying up of the sea affected the climate of the region immediately adjacent to the former water area of ​​the sea (at a distance of up to 100 km from the former coastline), which became more continental: summers became drier and hotter, winters colder and longer.

Economic losses associated with the drying up of the Aral Sea are estimated at several hundred million to several billion US dollars annually.

In the near future, the Great Aral Sea is threatened with complete disappearance, unless the states in its basin take measures to reduce water withdrawal by modernizing the existing irrigation system, switching to less water-consuming irrigation methods and cultivating less moisture-loving crops, transferring part of the production from irrigated lands to non-irrigated ones. It is also important to streamline the use of fertilizers and pesticides. These measures would make it possible to maintain in an acceptable ecological state, if not the entire Big Aral, then water bodies and adjacent ecosystems at the mouth of the Amu Darya.

The fate of the Small Aral is more optimistic. To maintain its ecological state, only 2.5 km 3 / year of pure Syrdarya water is needed. But in the Syr Darya basin, measures to save water and improve its quality are very relevant.

The expected warming of the climate, leading to a decrease in the stock of snow and ice in mountainous areas the Aral Sea basin, the main source of water for the Amudarya and Syrdarya.

The tragedy of the Aral Sea is well known today. Its rapid disappearance from the world map is considered one of the largest environmental disasters of our time. In place of the water surface, the Aralkum desert now spreads. Whether the shrinking of the once vast lake-sea is a consequence of climate change or human activity remains a moot point. Most likely, a combination of a number of factors has led to the current deplorable state. Now Aral Sea can only boast of a sandy-saline plain, dry grass and lonely lakes of water. Its desert beauty fascinates and continues to attract travelers, lovers vivid impressions and antiquities.

The birth of the sea in the place of the desert

Aral Sea arose on the site of a desert pit twenty-four thousand years ago. By the standards of history, it can be considered quite young.

Probably, the change in the channel of the Amu Darya served as the reason for its occurrence. fast and deep river fed the Caspian, however, due to soil erosion and landscape changes, it deviated, carrying its waters to the Aral. Together with it, the Amu Darya filled the Syrykamysh depression, forming a large bitter-salty lake. It was located between the Aral and Caspian seas. When the depression overflowed, water poured out of it into the Caspian, forming a natural outflow - the now dried-up branch of Uzboy.

At the very beginning of its inception Aral Sea fed by other rivers, such as Turgay, powerful tributaries of the Syr Darya: Zhanadarya and Kuandarya. abundance water resources turned the Aral Sea into one of largest lakes in the world, but not for long.

Aral in the works and maps of scientists of the ancient world

Famous historians and travelers Ancient Greece and Rome in their treatises have repeatedly mentioned the Aral Sea. Some descriptions can be considered controversial and contradictory. An important fact one thing remains: in ancient times, the Aral Sea was known and not only existed as an inland water resource, but was a significant center of the ancient world.

Great ancient historians such as Hecateus of Miletus, Herodotus, Aristotle, Erastofen did not know about the Aral Sea. But they were well aware of the existence of the Caspian Sea. It was Herodotus in the 5th century BC. e. concluded, and quite rightly, that the Caspian or Hyrcanian Sea is cut off from big water an independent body of water, while on ancient maps it was depicted as connected with the oceans.

The Aral was first mentioned by historians of the late Hellenistic period. In the famous "Geography" of Strabo (I century AD) Aral Sea called Oxian or Oxian Lake. The name comes from the obsolete name of the Amudarya River - Oxus. Interestingly, a century later, the second great scientist-geographer Claudius Ptolemy, describing the Caspian Sea in detail, does not mention the Aral Sea at all. Meanwhile, the map compiled by him very accurately conveys the outlines of these two seas as if they had merged into one. The scientist, following Herodotus, wrote about him as one.

Aral Sea in medieval view

The first accurate descriptions and maps of the Aral Sea appear among Arab scientists since the 10th century. If ancient authors relied on the stories of merchants and navigators, theoretical calculations and legends, then medieval historians from the Arab countries relied on their own observations.

The tenth-century traveler and scholar Al-Istakhri was the first to describe in detail Aral Sea and mapped it out. He has it called the Khorezm Sea. Right here, between the water surface salt lake and the sands of the Karakum grew the ancient Khorezm civilization.

Interestingly, the Aral Sea as an independent sea does not appear on European medieval maps until the 16th century. According to the tradition originating from the “Geography” of Claudius Ptolemy, it continued to be depicted as merging with the Caspian for a long time.

In 1562, the world saw the famous Jenkinson's Map of Russia, compiled by an English merchant during his journey through Central Asia. It shows a certain Lake China (Kitaia), which originates from the Syr Darya River and flows into the Ob. Most likely, this is Aral Sea. Despite obvious inaccuracies, confused names and the absence of many objects that the traveler was unaware of, Jenkinson's map has long been considered the most detailed guide to this region.

Mysteries of the Aral Sea

The absence of a large natural reservoir on the maps for many centuries still causes some bewilderment of scientists. As a rule, this is explained by the imperfection of knowledge of that time, however, other versions appear. One of possible causes- the confluence of the Aral Sea with the Caspian, as it was indicated by Herodotus. Perhaps, at some period, the high water of these two seas reached such proportions that the space between them was flooded. Another reason is the drying up of the sea, which has already taken place in its history.

Due to the constant processes of soil degradation and changes in the surface topography, the connection with the rivers was interrupted. The channels deviated, dried up, and were lost in the sands of the Karakum. As studies show at least twice in the twenty-four thousand years of its existence Aral Sea dwindled to almost complete extinction.

Today, archaeological excavations are underway on the surface. The mausoleum of Kedderi and the remains of settlements of the Khorezm culture of the 11th-14th centuries testify that the sea dried up during this period. Subsequently, the water level recovered, and the buildings were at a depth of 20 meters.

The rapid disappearance of the reservoir in the last 50 years can be both a consequence of technogenic factors, and the result of a changing climate and a natural cyclical phenomenon.

Why go to the Aral

Despite the sand and wind, poor ecology and the remains of a dying lake salted through and through, the Aral attracts travelers. Fans of wild recreation and harsh nature will like the snow-white Aralkum. The atmosphere of the desert is mesmerizing and seems to take you back millions of years. The earth before the beginning of time, and here it stops. People come here for the beauties of nature in order to get in touch with the tragedy and think about what unreasonable human intervention leads to.

Among the popular objects is the ship cemetery in the former port city of Muynak. Dozens of forgotten fishing schooners and cargo trawlers lie among the sands and salt marshes, gradually rusting and crumbling. The sea has long receded, the city is dying, and only the remains of ships blacken against the white background of the desert. It may seem that this is just a fantastic decoration for the film, but no - it is harsh reality modern Aral, very impressive.

For lovers of history, a trip to the site of excavations of the remains of the mausoleum and medieval settlements of Khorezm will be interesting. You should definitely include a visit to Nukus in the program. In the city itself there is a museum with a huge collection of decorative and applied arts of Central Asia. In the village of Khodjeyli near Nukus, the architectural ensemble of the Belaya Khanaka caravanserai, the remains of an ancient fortress, and the medieval mausoleums of the rulers of Khorezm have been preserved.

The Aral Sea is an endorheic salt lake in Central Asia, on the border of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Since the 1960s of the XX century, the sea level (and the volume of water in it) has been rapidly decreasing due to the withdrawal of water from the main feeding rivers of the Amudarya and Syrdarya. Prior to the start of shallowing, the Aral Sea was the fourth largest lake in the world. Excessive abstraction of water for irrigation of agricultural land has turned the world's fourth largest lake-sea, before rich in life into the barren desert. What is happening with the Aral Sea is a real ecological catastrophe, the fault for which lies with the Soviet government. At the moment, the drying Aral Sea has moved 100 km from its former coastline near the city of Muynak in Uzbekistan.

Nearly all of the water inflow Aral Sea provided by the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers. For thousands of years, it happened that the channel of the Amu Darya went away from the Aral Sea (towards the Caspian Sea), causing a decrease in the size of the Aral Sea. However, with the return of the Aral River, it was invariably restored to its former borders. Today, the intensive irrigation of cotton and rice fields consumes a significant part of the flow of these two rivers, which drastically reduces the flow of water into their deltas and, accordingly, into the sea itself. Precipitation in the form of rain and snow, as well as underground sources, give the Aral Sea much less water than it is lost during evaporation, as a result of which the water volume of the lake-sea decreases, and the salinity level increases


In the Soviet Union, the deteriorating state of the Aral Sea was hidden for decades, until 1985, when M.S. Gorbachev made this ecological catastrophe public. In the late 1980s the water level dropped so much that the whole sea was divided into two parts: the northern Small Aral and the southern Big Aral. By 2007, deep western and shallow eastern reservoirs, as well as the remains of a small separate bay, were clearly identified in the southern part. The volume of the Big Aral has decreased from 708 to only 75 km3, and the salinity of the water has increased from 14 to more than 100 g/l. With the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the Aral Sea was divided between the newly formed states: Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Thus, the grandiose Soviet plan to transfer the waters of distant Siberian rivers here was put to an end, and competition for possession of the melting water resources began. It remains only to rejoice that it was not possible to complete the project for the transfer of the rivers of Siberia, because it is not known what disasters would follow this

Was the collector-drainage water flowing from the fields into the bed of the Syrdarya and Amudarya caused deposits of pesticides and various other agricultural pesticides, appearing in some places on 54 thousand km? former seabed covered with salt. Dust storms carry salt, dust and pesticides to a distance of up to 500 km. Sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate are airborne and destroy or slow down the development of natural vegetation and crops. The local population suffers from a high prevalence of respiratory diseases, anemia, cancer of the larynx and esophagus, as well as digestive disorders. Diseases of the liver and kidneys, eye diseases have become more frequent.

The drying up of the Aral Sea had the most severe consequences. Due to a sharp decrease in river flow, spring floods stopped, supplying the floodplains of the lower reaches of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya fresh water and fertile deposits. The number of fish species that lived here decreased from 32 to 6 - the result of an increase in the level of salinity of the water, the loss of spawning grounds and forage sites (which were preserved mainly only in river deltas). If in 1960 the fish catch reached 40 thousand tons, then by the mid-1980s. local commercial fishing simply ceased to exist, and more than 60 thousand related jobs were lost. The most common inhabitant was the Black Sea flounder, adapted to life in the salty sea ​​water and brought here in the 1970s. However, by 2003, it also disappeared in the Great Aral, unable to withstand water salinity of more than 70 g / l - 2–4 times more than in its usual marine environment.

Navigation in the Aral Sea has ceased. the water receded for many kilometers from the main local ports: the city of Aralsk in the north and the city of Muynak in the south. And keeping ever longer canals to ports navigable proved too costly. With the lowering of the water level in both parts of the Aral, the groundwater level also dropped, which accelerated the process of desertification of the area. By the mid 1990s. instead of the lush greenery of trees, shrubs and grasses, only rare bunches of halophytes and xerophytes, plants adapted to saline soils and dry habitats, were visible on the former seashores. At the same time, only half of the local species of mammals and birds have been preserved. Within 100 km of the original coastline, the climate has changed: hotter in summer and colder in winter, the level of air humidity has decreased (accordingly, the amount of precipitation has decreased), the duration of the growing season has decreased, droughts have become more frequent


Despite its vast drainage basin, the Aral Sea receives almost no water due to irrigation canals, which, as the photo below shows, take water from the Amu Darya and Syr Darya for hundreds of kilometers of their flow through the territory of several states. Among other consequences - the disappearance of many species of animals and plants


However, if we turn to the history of the Aral, the sea has already dried up, while again returning to its former shores. So, what was the Aral Sea like for the last few centuries and how did its size change?

In the historical era, there were significant fluctuations in the level of the Aral Sea. So, on the retreating bottom, the remains of trees that grew in this place were found. In the middle of the Cenozoic era (21 million years ago), the Aral was connected to the Caspian. Until 1573, the Amu Darya flowed into the Caspian Sea along the Uzboy branch, and the Turgai River into the Aral. The map compiled by the Greek scientist Claudius Ptolemy (1800 years ago) shows the Aral and Caspian Sea, the Zarafshan and Amu Darya rivers flow into the Caspian. At the end of the 16th and the beginning of the 17th centuries, the islands of Barsakelmes, Kaskakulan, Kozzetpes, Uyaly, Biyiktau, and Vozrozhdeniye were formed due to lowering of the sea level. The rivers Zhanadarya since 1819, Kuandarya since 1823 ceased to flow into the Aral. From the beginning of systematic observations (XIX century) and until the middle of the XX century, the level of the Aral practically did not change. In the 1950s, the Aral Sea was the fourth largest lake in the world, occupying about 68 thousand square kilometers; its length was 426 km, width - 284 km, maximum depth - 68 m.


In the 1930s, large-scale construction of irrigation canals began in Central Asia, which was especially intensified in the early 1960s. Since the 1960s, the sea has become shallow due to the fact that the water of the rivers that flowed into it was diverted in increasing volumes for irrigation. From 1960 to 1990, the area of ​​irrigated land in Central Asia increased from 4.5 million to 7 million hectares. The needs of the national economy of the region for water have increased from 60 to 120 km? per year, of which 90% is for irrigation. Since 1961, the sea level has been decreasing at an increasing rate from 20 to 80-90 cm/year. Until the 1970s, 34 species of fish lived in the Aral Sea, of which more than 20 were of commercial importance. In 1946, 23 thousand tons of fish were caught in the Aral Sea, in the 1980s this figure reached 60 thousand tons. In the Kazakh part of the Aral Sea there were 5 fish factories, 1 fish cannery, 45 fish receiving points, in the Uzbek part (Republic of Karakalpakstan) - 5 fish factories, 1 fish canning factory, more than 20 fish receiving points.


In 1989, the sea broke up into two isolated reservoirs - the North (Small) and South (Big) Aral Sea. In 2003, the surface area of ​​the Aral Sea is about a quarter of the original, and the volume of water is about 10%. By the early 2000s, the absolute sea level had dropped to 31 m, which is 22 m lower than the initial level observed in the late 1950s. Fishing was preserved only in the Small Aral, and in the Big Aral, due to its high salinity, all the fish died. In 2001, the South Aral Sea split into western and eastern parts. In 2008, exploration work was carried out in the Uzbek part of the sea (search for oil and gas fields). The contractor is the PetroAlliance company, the customer is the government of Uzbekistan. Summer 2009 East End South (Big) Aral Sea has dried up.

The receding sea left behind 54,000 km2 of dry seabed covered with salt and, in some places, also with deposits of pesticides and various other agricultural pesticides, once washed away by runoff from local fields. Currently, strong storms carry salt, dust and pesticides to a distance of up to 500 km. North and northeast winds have an adverse effect on the Amudarya river delta located to the south, the most densely populated, economically and ecologically most important part of the entire region. Airborne sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, and sodium sulfate destroy or slow down the development of natural vegetation and crops - in a bitter irony, it was the irrigation of these crop fields that brought the Aral Sea to its current deplorable state.


According to medical experts, the local population suffers from a high prevalence of respiratory diseases, anemia, cancer of the throat and esophagus, and digestive disorders. Diseases of the liver and kidneys have become more frequent, not to mention eye diseases.


Another, very unusual problem is connected with the Renaissance Island. When he was far out to sea, Soviet Union used it as a testing ground for bacteriological weapons. The causative agents of anthrax, tularemia, brucellosis, plague, typhoid, smallpox, as well as botulinum toxin were tested here on horses, monkeys, sheep, donkeys and other laboratory animals. In 2001, as a result of water withdrawal, Vozrozhdeniye Island joined the mainland from the south side. Doctors fear that dangerous microorganisms have retained their viability, and infected rodents may become their distributors in other regions. Besides, dangerous substances may fall into the hands of terrorists. Waste and pesticides, once thrown into the water of the harbor of Aralsk, are now in full view. Severe storms carry toxic substances, as well as huge amounts of sand and salt, throughout the region, destroying crops and damaging people's health. You can read more about Renaissance Island in the article: The most terrible islands in the world



Restoration of the entire Aral Sea is impossible. This would require four times the annual inflow of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya compared to the current average of 13 km3. The only possible remedy would be to reduce the irrigation of the fields, which accounts for 92% of water withdrawals. However, four out of five Soviet republics in the Aral Sea basin (with the exception of Kazakhstan) intend to increase the amount of irrigation of farmland - mainly to feed the growing population. In this situation, switching to less moisture-loving crops, such as replacing cotton with winter wheat, would help, but the two main water-consuming countries in the region - Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan - intend to continue to grow cotton for sale abroad. It would also be possible to significantly improve the existing irrigation canals: many of them are ordinary trenches, through the walls of which a huge amount of water seeps and goes into the sand. The modernization of the entire irrigation system would help save about 12 km3 of water annually, but would cost $16 billion.


Within the framework of the project “Regulation of the bed of the Syrdarya River and the Northern Aral Sea” (RRRSAM), in 2003-2005, Kazakhstan built the Kokaral dam with a hydraulic gate (which allows excess water to pass through to regulate the level of the reservoir) from the Kokaral peninsula to the mouth of the Syrdarya, which separated the Small Aral from the rest of the (Greater Aral). Due to this, the flow of the Syr Darya accumulates in the Small Aral, the water level here has risen to 42 m abs., salinity has decreased, which makes it possible to breed here some commercial varieties of fish. In 2007, the fish catch in the Small Aral was 1910 tons, of which 640 tons fell to the share of flounder, the rest - freshwater species(carp, asp, pike perch, bream, catfish). It is assumed that by 2012 the catch of fish in the Small Aral will reach 10 thousand tons (in the 1980s, about 60 thousand tons were caught in the entire Aral Sea). The length of the Kokaral dam is 17 km, the height is 6 m, the width is 300 m. World Bank, the remaining funds are allocated from the republican budget of Kazakhstan). It is assumed that an area of ​​870 square km will be covered with water, and this will allow the restoration of the flora and fauna of the Aral Sea region. In Aralsk, the Kambala Balyk fish processing plant (capacity 300 tons per year) is currently operating, located on the site of a former bakery. In 2008, it is planned to open two fish processing plants in the Aral region: Atameken Holding (design capacity 8,000 tons per year) in Aralsk and Kambash Balyk (250 tons per year) in Kamyshlybash.


Fishing is also developing in the delta of the Syr Darya. A new hydraulic structure was built on the channel of the Syrdarya - Karaozek throughput more than 300 cubic meters of water per second (Aklak hydroelectric complex), which made it possible to water lake systems that contain more than one and a half billion cubic meters of water. For 2008 total area lakes is more than 50 thousand hectares (it is expected to increase to 80 thousand hectares), the number of lakes in the region has increased from 130 to 213. Within the framework of the second phase of the PRRSAM project in 2010-2015, it is planned to build a dam with a hydroelectric complex in the northern part of the Small Aral, to separate Saryshyganak Bay and fill it with water through a specially dug channel from the mouth of the Syr Darya, bringing the water level in it to 46 m abs. It is planned to build a navigable channel from the bay to the port of Aralsk (the width of the channel along the bottom will be 100 m, length 23 km). To provide a transport connection between Aralsk and the complex of facilities in the Saryshyganak Bay, the project provides for the construction of a category V highway with a length of about 50 km and a width of 8 m parallel to the former coastline of the Aral Sea.


The sad fate of the Aral begins to be repeated by other large water bodies of the world - primarily Lake Chad in Central Africa and Lake Salton Sea in the south of the US state of California. Dead tilapia fish litter the shores, and because of the immoderate water intake for irrigating the fields, the water in it is becoming saltier. Various plans are being considered to desalinate this lake. As a result of the rapid development of irrigation since the 1960s. Lake Chad in Africa has shrunk to 1/10 of its previous size. Farmers, shepherds and locals of the four countries adjacent to the lake often fight fiercely among themselves for the remaining water (lower right, blue), and the lake is today only 1.5 m deep. The experience associated with the loss and then partial restoration of the Aral Sea can go for everyone's benefit.
Pictured is Lake Chad in 1972 and 2008

Almost the entire inflow of water into the Aral Sea is provided by the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers. For thousands of years, it happened that the channel of the Amu Darya went away from the Aral Sea (towards the Caspian Sea), causing a decrease in the size of the Aral Sea. However, with the return of the Aral River, it was invariably restored to its former borders. Today, the intensive irrigation of cotton and rice fields consumes a significant part of the flow of these two rivers, which drastically reduces the flow of water into their deltas and, accordingly, into the sea itself. Precipitation in the form of rain and snow, as well as underground sources, give the Aral Sea much less water than it is lost during evaporation, as a result of which the water volume of the lake-sea decreases, and the salinity level increases.

In the Soviet Union, the deteriorating state of the Aral Sea was hidden for decades, until 1985, when M.S. Gorbachev made this ecological catastrophe public. In the late 1980s the water level dropped so much that the whole sea was divided into two parts: the northern Small Aral and the southern Big Aral. By 2007, deep western and shallow eastern reservoirs, as well as the remains of a small separate bay, were clearly identified in the southern part.

Excessive withdrawal of water for irrigation of agricultural land has turned the world's fourth largest lake-sea, formerly rich in life, into a barren desert.

The volume of the Big Aral has decreased from 708 to only 75 km 3 , and the salinity of the water has increased from 14 to more than 100 g/l. With the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the Aral Sea was divided between the newly formed states: Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Thus, the grandiose Soviet plan to transfer the waters of distant Siberian rivers here was put to an end, and competition for possession of the melting water resources began.

dry seabed

The drying up of the Aral Sea had the most severe consequences. Due to a sharp decrease in river flow, spring floods stopped, supplying the floodplains of the lower reaches of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya with fresh water and fertile sediments. The number of fish species that lived here decreased from 32 to 6 - the result of an increase in the level of salinity of the water, the loss of spawning grounds and forage sites (which were preserved mainly only in river deltas). If in 1960 the fish catch reached 40 thousand tons, then by the mid-1980s. local commercial fishing simply ceased to exist, and more than 60 thousand related jobs were lost. The Black Sea flounder, adapted to life in salty sea water and brought here back in the 1970s, remained the most common inhabitant. However, by 2003, it also disappeared in the Greater Aral, unable to withstand water salinity of more than 70 g / l - 2–4 times more than in its usual marine environment.

Navigation on the Aral ceased because the water receded for many kilometers from the main local ports: the city of Aralsk in the north and the city of Muynak in the south. And keeping ever longer canals to ports navigable proved too costly. With the lowering of the water level in both parts of the Aral, the groundwater level also dropped, which accelerated the process of desertification of the area. By the mid 1990s. instead of the lush greenery of trees, shrubs and grasses, only rare bunches of halophytes and xerophytes, plants adapted to saline soils and dry habitats, were visible on the former seashores. At the same time, only half of the local species of mammals and birds have been preserved. Within 100 km of the original coastline, the climate has changed: it has become hotter in summer and colder in winter, the level of air humidity has decreased (accordingly, the amount of precipitation has decreased), the length of the growing season has decreased, and droughts have become more frequent.

Toxic substances

The retreating sea left behind 54 thousand km 2 of dry seabed, covered with salt, and in some places also with deposits of pesticides and various other agricultural pesticides, once washed away by runoff from local fields. Currently, strong storms carry salt, dust and pesticides to a distance of up to 500 km. North and northeast winds have an adverse effect on the Amudarya river delta located to the south, the most densely populated, economically and ecologically most important part of the entire region. Airborne sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, and sodium sulfate destroy or slow down the development of natural vegetation and crops - in a bitter irony, it was the irrigation of these crop fields that brought the Aral Sea to its current deplorable state.

According to medical experts, the local population suffers from a high prevalence of respiratory diseases, anemia, cancer of the throat and esophagus, and digestive disorders. Diseases of the liver and kidneys have become more frequent, not to mention eye diseases.

Another, very unusual problem is connected with the Renaissance Island. When it was far away at sea, the Soviet Union used it as a testing ground for bacteriological weapons. The causative agents of anthrax, tularemia, brucellosis, plague, typhoid, smallpox, as well as botulinum toxin were tested here on horses, monkeys, sheep, donkeys and other laboratory animals. In 2001, as a result of water withdrawal, Vozrozhdeniye Island joined the mainland from the south side. Doctors fear that dangerous microorganisms have retained their viability, and infected rodents may become their distributors in other regions. In addition, dangerous substances can fall into the hands of terrorists.

Hope for the Northern Small Aral

Restoration of the entire Aral Sea is impossible. This would require a fourfold increase in the annual inflow of the Amudarya and Syrdarya compared to the current average of 13 km 3 . The only possible remedy would be to reduce the irrigation of the fields, which accounts for 92% of water withdrawals. However, four of the five former Soviet republics in the Aral Sea basin (with the exception of Kazakhstan) intend to increase their farmland irrigation, mainly to feed their growing population. In this situation, switching to less moisture-loving crops, such as replacing cotton with winter wheat, would help, but the two main water-consuming countries in the region - Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan - intend to continue to grow cotton for sale abroad. It would also be possible to significantly improve the existing irrigation canals: many of them are ordinary trenches, through the walls of which a huge amount of water seeps and goes into the sand. Modernization of the entire irrigation system would help save about 12 km 3 of water annually, but would cost $16 billion. So far, the countries of the Aral Sea basin have neither the money nor the political will to do this.

Kazakhstan, however, has made an attempt to at least partially restore the northern Small Aral. In the early 1990s an earthen dam was built - in order to prevent the outflow of water to the south, where it was lost in vain due to evaporation. Despite the fact that the dam was destroyed as a result of a catastrophic breakthrough in April 1999, the attempt made showed that it was possible in principle to raise the water level and reduce its salinity. Kazakhstan and the World Bank allocated $85 million to address this problem. The main element of the new structure, completed in November 2005, was a much larger earth dam 13 km long, including a concrete dam with a hydraulic seal to control water flow. The large volume of flow of the Syr Darya the following winter marked the beginning of the restoration of the northern Small Aral. As a result, in just eight months, the water level here rose from 40 to 42 m above the level of the World Ocean - to a pre-calculated height. The water surface area has increased by 18%, and the salinity of the water, starting from about 20 g/l, has steadily decreased and today has reached a level of 10 g/l. Fishermen have started catching representatives again various kinds fish - including such valuable ones as zander and carp.

Return to well-being

The authors of this article expect that the salinity of the water in the Small Aral will eventually settle in the range of 3–14 g/l, depending on the location. With such indicators, many other local species will also have to recover (although the sea flounder will disappear almost everywhere). The general restoration of the reservoir will also continue. For example, if the average annual flow of the Syr Darya is increased to 4.5 km 3 by improving the irrigation system, then the water in the Small Aral will stabilize at a level of about 47 m. In this case, the coastline would be located 8 km from the former large port city of Aralsk - close enough to carry out dredging and bring the old channel into working order. On it, large fishing vessels could again go to sea, and shipping would resume. A further decrease in water salinity should have a favorable effect on the state of coastal floodplains and on the abundance of fish. In addition, the outflow of water to the reservoirs of the southern Big Aral could increase, contributing to their restoration. The implementation of such a plan would require the construction of a much longer and higher dam, as well as the reconstruction of the existing hydraulic gate. However, it is not yet clear whether Kazakhstan has the means and desire to undertake this project. So far, the country is thinking about ways to solve a much more modest problem: how to bring the Aral Sea closer to Aralsk.

Plan for the southern Great Aral

The Big Aral is going through hard times: it continues to shrink rapidly. The shallow pool in the east and the deeper western pool are now connected only by a long narrow channel, and there is no certainty that one day it will not completely dry up. According to our estimates, if the countries through which the Amu Darya flows do not change anything, then the isolated eastern reservoir, at the current rate of groundwater inflow and evaporation, can stabilize on an area of ​​4300 km 2. At the same time, its average depth would be 2.5 m, and the salinity of the water would exceed 100 g/l, possibly even reaching 200 g/l. The only inhabitants of such an environment would be brine shrimp and bacteria.

The fate of the western reservoir depends on the inflow of groundwater. One of the authors of this article (Aladin) noticed numerous freshwater springs on the western coastal ledges. According to our careful calculations, this reservoir should retain an area of ​​​​about 2100 square meters. km. It will remain relatively deep water, reaching a depth of 37 m in places, but its water salinity will be well over 100 g/l.

Large-scale construction of a number of hydraulic structures could contribute to the restoration of the western reservoir. One old plan for the restoration of the entire Aral Sea, which Miklin recently made adjustments, will also come in handy. Since this project has not been carefully evaluated, the cost of its implementation is unknown, but it can be a significant amount. It provides for a rather modest increase in the flow of the Amu Darya through rational improvements in the irrigation system in drainage basin rivers. An important element of the plan is also the restoration of local reed floodplains.

Similar work began in the late 1980s. in the Soviet Union, continued today by Uzbekistan. At present, we can already talk about minimal success in the restoration biodiversity reservoirs, fisheries and natural filtration of wastewater with the help of aquatic vegetation (primarily reeds), but there is no quick solution to the problem. The drying up of the Aral Sea continued for more than 40 years. Long-term, sustainable solutions will require not only major capital investment and technical innovation, but also fundamental political, social and economic transformations.

Lesson for the whole world

Until recently, many experts considered the Aral Sea irretrievably lost. However, progress in restoring the northern Small Aral shows that significant areas of this reservoir may well become ecologically and economically productive again. The history of the Aral Sea is not only good example the ability of modern technological society to destroy the natural world and people themselves. It also demonstrates the enormous potential of man in the matter of restoration. environment. There are other large bodies of water in the world that are beginning to repeat the sad fate of the Aral Sea - in particular, Lake Chad in Central Africa and Lake Salton Sea in the south of the US state of California. We hope that the lesson learned was well learned by everyone, and the right conclusions will now be drawn from it.

People can quickly destroy the natural environment, but its restoration is a long and difficult process. Before taking any active action, designers should carefully evaluate all possible consequences large-scale intervention in this or that natural system, which was not done in the Soviet Union.

The absence of serious problems today is no guarantee for the future. Irrigation of agricultural lands was widespread in the Aral Sea basin for many centuries and did not cause serious damage to the lake-sea until the 1960s, when further expansion of the irrigation network unbalanced the hydrological system of the entire region.

Hasty steps in dealing with complex environmental and social problems should be guarded against. Although a significant reduction in cotton cultivation could increase the flow of water into the sea, this would damage the national economy, causing unemployment and social discontent. Decisions being made require not only financing and an innovative approach - they must be politically, socially and economically justified.

The natural environment has an amazing ability to restore, so do not lose hope and stop trying to save it. At one time, many experts considered the Aral Sea doomed, but today its significant parts can be considered ecologically restored.

The creation of a number of hydraulic structures and the reduction of water losses in irrigation canals could help in restoring the western reservoir of the Big Aral. The implementation of this plan will improve the local climate and create favorable conditions for the habitat of birds and waterfowl. The outflow to the eastern reservoir would gradually desalinate the water in the western reservoir, since more salt would be carried out of the latter than was supplied; the salinity of the water in it could probably drop below 15 g/l, allowing the fish to return here. In the water of the eastern reservoir, which has become supersaline, only crustaceans from the genus Artemia and bacteria could now live. The area of ​​the Small Aral would continue to increase, reviving industrial fishing and shipping from Aralsk.

Additional literature:
1) Hydrobiology of the Aral Sea. Edited by Nikolay V. Aladin et al. Dying and Dead Seas: Climatic vs. Anthropic Causes. NATO Science Series IV: Earth and Environmental Sciences. Vol. 36. Kluwer, 2004.
2) The Aral Sea Disaster. Philip Micklin in Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. Vol. 35, pages 47–72; 2007.

Translation: A.N. Bozhko

Once upon a time, the Aral Sea was indeed a sea. Back in the 50s of the XX century, this reservoir, located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, had an area of ​​68 thousand square meters. km. Its length was 428 km, and its width was 283 km. The maximum depth reached 68 meters. IN early XXI century, the situation was completely different. The area of ​​the reservoir was 14 thousand square meters. km, and the most deep places corresponded only to 30 meters. But the sea has not only decreased in area. It also broke up into 2 reservoirs isolated from each other. Northern became known Small Aral, and the southern Big Aral because it has more area.

20 million years ago, the Aral Sea was connected to the Caspian Sea. At the same time, at the bottom of the reservoir were discovered ancient burials dated to the middle of the 1st millennium. Therefore, the sea became shallow, and then again filled with water. Experts believe that the change in water level is subject to certain cycles. At the beginning of the 17th century, another of them began. The level began to decrease, islands formed, and some rivers stopped flowing into the reservoir.

But that didn't mean disaster. The sea, or rather a lake with salt water, since it is not connected with the World Ocean, continued to be a large body of water. Both sailing ships and steamships sailed along it. The salt lake even had its own Aral military flotilla. Her ships fired cannons and reminded the Kazakhs that they were subjects of the Russian emperor. In parallel, research and scientific work on the study of a huge deep reservoir.

Once the Aral Sea was a full-flowing reservoir

An alarming herald of a future tragedy was the start of the construction of irrigation canals in Central Asia. Popular enthusiasm flared up in the 30s of the XX century, but for another 30 years the reservoir was in relative safety. The water level in it was kept at the same level. Only from the beginning of the 1960s did it begin to decrease at first slowly, and then more and more rapidly. In 1961, the level decreased by 20 cm, and after 2 years by 80 cm.

In 1990, the area of ​​the reservoir was 36.8 thousand square meters. km. At the same time, the salinity of the water increased 3 times. This, of course, had a negative impact on the local flora and fauna. At all times, fishermen hunted on the sea. They caught thousands of tons of a wide variety of fish a year. Along the banks of the reservoir, fish factories, canning plants and fish receiving points worked around the clock.

In 1989, the Aral Sea ceased to exist as a whole. Having broken up into 2 reservoirs, it ceased to be a source of fishing. There are no more fish in the Big Aral today. She all died because of the high concentration of salt. Fish are caught only in the Small Aral, but in comparison with the past abundance, these are tears.

The reason for the drying up of the Aral Sea

The fact that the Aral has ceased to exist as a full-flowing reservoir is a big problem, first of all, for those people who live along its banks. The fishing industry is practically destroyed. As a result, people lost their jobs. This is a tragedy for the natives. And it is aggravated by the fact that the fish that is still found in the lake is “stuffed” with pesticides above any norm. This is not good for people's health.

But why did the tragedy happen, what is the reason for the drying up of the Aral Sea? Most experts point to the incorrect distribution of those water resources that have fed the Aral Sea at all times. The main water sources were the Amudarya and Syrdarya. In the year they gave the reservoir 60 cubic meters. km of water. Today this figure is 5 cubic meters. km per year.

This is what the Aral Sea looks like on the map today
It broke up into two reservoirs: the Small Aral and the Big Aral

These Central Asian rivers start their journey in the mountains and flow through such states as Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Since the 1950s, river flows have been diverted to irrigate agricultural land. This also applied to the main rivers and their tributaries. According to the original project, people wanted to irrigate up to 60 million hectares of land. But taking into account water losses and irrational use of diverted flows, 10 million hectares are irrigated. Almost 70% of the withdrawn water is lost in the sands. It does not fall either on the fields or in the Aral Sea.

But there are, naturally, supporters of other theories. Someone sees the reason in the destruction of the bottom layers of the reservoir. As a result, water flows into the Caspian Sea and other lakes. Some experts sin on the global climate change of the blue planet. They also talk about the negative processes going on in the glaciers. They are mineralized, which has a deplorable effect on the Syrdarya and Amudarya. After all, they originate from mountain streams.

Climate change in the Aral Sea region

In the 21st century, a process of change has begun climatic conditions in the Aral Sea. It largely depended on the huge water mass. The Aral Sea was a natural regulator. It softened the cold of the Siberian winds and reduced the summer temperature to a comfortable level. Today, the summer has become dry, and a significant drop in temperature is observed already in August. Accordingly, the vegetation dies, which does not affect the livestock in the best way.

But if everything was limited to the Aral Sea region, then the problem would not look so global. However, the drying up reservoir affects a much larger area. The fact is that powerful air currents pass over the Aral Sea. They raise thousands of tons of a dangerous mixture of salt, chemicals and poisonous dust from the bare bottom. All this gets into the high layers of the atmosphere and spreads not only over the territory of Asia, but also over Europe. These are whole salt streams that move high in the air. With precipitation, they fall to the ground and kill all living things.

Once upon a time, the sea splashed in this place

Today, the Aral Sea region is known throughout the world as a territory prone to environmental disaster.. However, the states of Central Asia and the international community are concerned not with the restoration of the reservoir, but with smoothing out the conflict situation that arose as a result of its drying up. Money is allocated to maintain the living standards of the population, to preserve infrastructure, which is only a consequence, but not the cause of the tragedy.

One cannot discount the fact that the Aral Sea is located on a territory rich in natural gas and oil. International corporations have been conducting geological developments in this area for a long time. If global investment flows like water, then local officials will become very rich people. But it will not bring any benefit to a dying reservoir. Most likely, the situation will become even worse, and the ecological situation will worsen.

Yuri Syromyatnikov