Deep in the deserts of Central Asia lies a site that would put any post-apocalyptic film or scenario to shame. A rusted ship lies stranded in a sea of sand for miles and miles. The site is eerie, to say the least; only in a surrealist dream or nightmare would someone imagine a ship stranded in the middle of a vast desert.
Yet, this was something that happened not so long ago. The UN has labeled the drying of the Aral Sea "one of the most shocking environmental disasters of the century"Over a period of forty years the Aral Sea once the fourth-largest lake on Earth became an empty wasteland. The reasons for it are very much human, and the consequences were felt the most by those most dependent on it.
In 1960, the Soviet Union embarked on one of its biggest and most ambitious projects of all time. Inspired by what he saw as a fabulous vision for his beloved country to ascend to greatness Soviet Leader Joseph Stalin launched the " Great Plan for the Transformation of Nature". The goal of the project was to turn the deserts of Central Asia into an Agricultural and Economic Powerhouse. Stalin and his comrades imagined a world where the deserts would turn green, healthy, and prosperous. As part of this project, the waters of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya, the two rivers feeding the Aral Sea were diverted to support the cultivation of Rice and Cotton. Uzbekistan, which bordered the Aral Sea, became the world's largest producer of Cotton in 1988. Cotton continues to remain a major source of income for Uzbekistan even today. As the water continued to be diverted for agricultural and commercial purposes, the inflow into the Aral Sea drastically decreased. In building canals that diverted water, to the farms, 30 to 75% was lost due to leakage, evaporation, and poor efficiency of canals. The once-mighty sea began to shrink, and its water levels receded rapidly, exposing vast stretches of the dry lakebed and leaving behind the eerie sight of stranded ships amid the desert. By the early 2000s, the Aral Sea had lost about 90% of its original size, and its volume had diminished significantly
Today, most of the lake is now a wasteland. The receding sea has left huge plains covered with salt and toxic chemicals leading to salt storms and air and water pollution. High levels of salinity killed most of the lake's biodiversity. Air and Water contamination has become common. Many suffer from high rates of Cancer, Tuberculosis, Anaemia, and Kidney Related Ailments. Infant and Maternal Mortality is amongst the highest on Earth. The region's thriving Fishing Industry was entirely wiped out by the drying of the sea. Once employing more than 30,000 people, the entire sea is now nothing more than a graveyard for ships. Summers have become hotter and winters, shorter and drier thanks to the loss of the sea, which regulated the local climate.
The Aral Sea remains a haunting reminder of the real-life consequences of unsustainable practices on the environment. Many such practices are justified in the name of economic and commercial development, with little to no regard for their long-term implications At the time Soviet Officials saw the program as a way to boost the region's prosperity and transform the region. The plan worked for some time but now has damaging consequences that are irreversible. Upon gaining independence from the USSR, Uzbekistan a developing country continues to rely on cotton a heavily water-intensive crop. Water Shortages have become common and the entire area has become a polluted and arid industrial wasteland. With the reality of climate change and dwindling water supplies, these problems would just be accentuated. In light of the increased focus on the climate crisis and environmental degradation, the drying of the Aral Sea must serve as a cautionary tale of the impact of the ecosystem on societies. The unfolding of this event in our lifetimes must be evidence enough of the damage that unmitigated human exploitation of the environment. Perhaps that itself can be a powerful motivator for preserving our environment and building a more sustainable world.
