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The Aral Sea was, until comparatively recently, the fourth largest inland body of water in the world. Its basin covers 1.8 million km 2 , primarily in what used to be the Soviet Union, and what is now the independent republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The environmental problems of the Aral Sea basin are among the worst in the world. Water diversions, agricultural practices, and industrial waste have resulted in a disappearing sea, salinization, and organic and inorganic pollution. The problems of the Aral, which previously had been an internal issue of the Soviet Union, became international problems in 1991. The five new major riparians- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan-have been struggling since that time to help stabilize, and eventually to rehabilitate, the watershed.^[2]

By 1989, the northern part of the Aral Sea had essentially split from the southern part.^[3] The Sea’s original volume had been reduced by 75% by 1996, and its surface area was at that point half what it once was.^[4] Between 2000 and 2001, the Southern Aral Sea had also separated into Eastern and Western parts, with only a small area connecting the two. In the first decade of the 21st century, the Southern Sea saw huge losses, and by 2012, very little of the Sea’s initial volume, and even that of ten years prior, remained. Less polluted and less saline, the Northern Sea has been the focus of most recent efforts to rehabilitate the area, while the Southern Sea continues (with small year to year fluctuations) to shrink.^[5][3]

With assistance from the World Bank, Kazakhstan built the Kok-Aral Dam in 2005, separating the Northern Sea from the Southern Sea. The project, which also included relief efforts along the Syr Darya, cost around $85.8 million dollars, but appears to have been a definite success.^[6] The Northern Sea reached its target water level in just seven months, far more quickly than the predicted five to ten years. While it is still far from what it once was, the Sea’s salinity decreased as a result of the dam, and some species of fish now live in its waters once again, inciting in many locals hope that the strong fishing industry they once had may someday return. Relief efforts along the Syr Darya allowed its capacity, by 2006, to reach a comfortable 700 cubic meters per second, allowing more water to reach the Northern Aral Sea.^[7] The increased capacity also gives farmers living along the river a little more water with which to irrigate their crops. It is the hope of the World Bank and of Kazakhstan that at some point more lakes will return to the regions along the river as well, where fish can grow to replenish the supply in the Northern Sea as necessary.^[4] In 2007, the World Bank approved a second loan to Kazakhstan to build an additional dam.^[8] This appears to still be in the works.^[9]

Case Studies linked to Aral Sea

• Efforts to Resolve the Aral Sea Crisis
• The Syr Darya River Basin Upstream Downstream Disputes
• Upstream Hydropower Development in the Syr Darya River Basin, Downstream Impacts, and Potential Opportunities

Articles linked to Aral Sea

External Links

• Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database (TFDD) (2012). Oregon State University.Aral Sea Basin. — The Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database (TFDD) This website is used to aid in the assessment of the process of water conflict prevention and resolution. Over the years we have developed this Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database, a project of the Oregon State University Department of Geosciences, in collaboration with the Northwest Alliance for Computational Science and Engineering.

Facts about Included Riparians

1. ^ Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database accessed online: http://www.transboundarywaters.orst.edu/publications/register/tables/IRB_asia.html and Query: http://ocid.nacse.org/tfdd/map/result.php?bcode=ARAL on February 25 2013
2. ^ Product of the Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database, Department of Geosciences, Oregon State University. Additional information about the TFDD can be found at: http://www.transboundarywaters.orst.edu/research/case_studies/Aral_Sea_New.htm
3. ^ ^{3.0 3.1} Earth Observatory, NASA. 2003. “Aral Sea: Image of the Day August 25, 2003.” Accessed July 25, 2013. http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=3730
4. ^ ^{4.0 4.1} The World Bank: Europe and Central Asia. 2005. “Saving a Corner of the Aral Sea.” Accessed July 25, 2013. http://go.worldbank.org/UI222F8DY0
5. ^ Earth Observatory, NASA. 2003. “World of Change: Shrinking Aral Sea.” Accessed July 24, 2013. http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/WorldOfChange/aral_sea.php
6. ^ Earth Observatory, NASA. 2007. “North Aral Sea Recovery: Image of the Day May 4 2007” Accessed July 24, 2013, http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=7645
7. ^ Pala, Christopher. 2006. “Once a Terminal Case, the North Aral Sea Shows New Signs of Life,” Science Magazine, accessed July 24, 2013, http://www.zin.ru/Labs/brackish/pdfs/external/Aral_Science_2006.pdf
8. ^ Antelava, Natalya. 2007. “Kazakhs get loan to save Aral Sea.” BBC News. Accessed July 30, 2013. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6538073.stm
9. ^ The World Bank. 2013. “World Bank Group—Kazakhstan Partnership Program Snapshot, April 2013.” Accessed July 30, 2013. http://www.worldbank.org/content/dam/Worldbank/document/Kazakhstan-Snapshot.pdf