Aral Sea

• History:

  • Water diverted away in 1950s by USSR for irrigation of cotton + fruit picking. They wanted to improve the local economy
• By 2007, the sea had declined to 10% if its original size
• Physical causes of water scarcity:

  • Low annual rainfall - 10mm / month (roughly)
• Physical causes of water scarcity:

  • Double landlocked counties
• Physical causes of water scarcity:

  • Pamir mountain range blocks warm moist air
• Dam built between small and large Aral Sea. 85% funded by WB, 15% Kazakhstan government
• Human health impact:

  • Chemicals in sea + nuclear weapon testing occured in region. Drinking water got heavily polluted
• Human health impact:

  • Food and drinking water very salty
• Human health impact:

  • 20% infant mortality rate - Kidney and heart failure
• Human health impact:

  • Dust and sand blew into villages - locals got respitaory illnesses and cancer
• Economic impact:

  • Fishing community affected - once employed 60k people
• Economic impact:

  • Livestock eats crops with high salt content causing them to die
• Economic impact:

  • Industry collapsed - ships rust away on the sea bed
• Economic impact:

  • Oil hoped to be found under the sea bed
• Economic impact:

  • Irrigation scheme allowed the country to be one of the largest cotton exporters
• Economic impact:

  • People can no longer feed themselfes due to infertile land. This has helped to cause up to 10m environmental refugees