Climate Change Fueling Disappearance of Central Asia's Aral Sea
2024-02-14
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1Climate change is quickening the disappearance of the Aral Sea.
2Once a single body of water, the lake now exists in pieces in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
3Many years ago, it was one of the world's largest inland bodies of water.
4But, that changed substantially over the last century.
5The Aral has shrunk to less than 25 percent of its former size.
6Engineering projects and agricultural programs are to blame for much of the lake's early losses.
7Now, climate change is adding to the destruction.
8Summers in the area are longer and hotter.
9Winters are shorter and colder.
10The area lacks water supplies.
11And experts say much of the water that does exist is too salty to support plant life.
12The Aral is fed by rivers that heavily depend on glacial melt.
13For many years, it held many fish, supporting a fishing industry.
14The area brought in thousands of migrants for jobs in the past, also.
15Today, a few remaining towns sit quiet along the Aral's dry seabed.
16Dust storms often pass through.
17In the 1920s, the Soviet government began to empty the sea to provide water to crops like cotton.
18By the 1960s, it was half its former size.
19By 1987, the Aral's level was so low it divided into two bodies of water: the northern and southern seas.
20The United Nations Development Program calls the destruction of the Aral Sea "the most staggering disaster of the 20th century."
21It points to the Aral's loss as the cause of desertification, drinking water shortages, and worsening health conditions, among others.
22National governments, international aid organizations, and local efforts have made attempts to save the sea, including dams and plant growth projects.
23But experts say climate change has only quickened the dying of the Aral, and will continue to worsen local peoples' suffering.
24The loss of much of the Aral Sea caused dust storms to blow through towns.
25They spread toxic chemicals from a former weapons testing center and farms into the lungs and eyes of local peoples.
26The U.N. says this has increased rates of diseases related to breathing and cancer.
27A U.N. report says dust storms, rising world temperatures, and wind are destroying the glaciers on which the feeder rivers depend.
28The remaining water is getting saltier and evaporating faster.
29The report warns that melting ice and changing river flows may further cause problems for water supply and food supply.
30Hydropower plants could suffer.
31In Uzbekistan, Adilbay and his friends fish in the Aral's remaining waters.
32The fish are small and few.
33The 62-year-old holds his arms wide to demonstrate how big the Aral fish used to be.
34"Now there is nothing," he said.
35As the water disappeared, a nearby fish processing plant closed.
36Adilbay's friends and relatives moved to Kazakhstan looking for new jobs.
37There, fisherman Serzhan Seitbenbetov and others find success.
38In an hour, he caught a hundred fish, some 2 meters long.
39"Now all the villagers make good money being fishermen," he said.
40That is the result of an $86 million dam project led by Kazakhstan, with assistance from the World Bank.
41It was completed in 2005.
42Known as the Kokaral Dam, it saves and gathers water from the Syr Darya River.
43The dam performed better than expected, leading to an increase of over 3 meters in water levels after seven months.
44That helped restore local fisheries and caused an increase in clouds and rainstorms in the local area, the World Bank says. Population grew.
45But it could not replicate life before the water started drying up, said Sarah Cameron.
46She is a professor at the University of Maryland who is writing a book about the Aral.
47"It does not support the same amount of people and the fishing industry in the same way," Cameron said.
48Uzbekistan's restoration efforts have been mixed in success.
49The government has not undertaken large projects like the Kokaral.
50Instead, the country planted trees and other plants to help prevent erosion and slow dust storms.
51The discovery of oil and natural gas in the Aral's former seabed led to the building of gas production sites.
52Experts say that shows that Uzbekistan has little interest in restoration..
53Kate Shields is a professor of environmental studies at Rhodes College in the American state of Tennessee.
54"While there has been some restoration," she said, "there was a sort of acceptance that ... the sea was not coming back."
55Government officials from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan did not answer questions from the Associated Press about restoration efforts, the lack of water, and the effects of climate change.
56I'm Gregory Stachel. And I'm Gena Bennett.
1Climate change is quickening the disappearance of the Aral Sea. Once a single body of water, the lake now exists in pieces in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Many years ago, it was one of the world's largest inland bodies of water. But, that changed substantially over the last century. The Aral has shrunk to less than 25 percent of its former size. 2Engineering projects and agricultural programs are to blame for much of the lake's early losses. Now, climate change is adding to the destruction. Summers in the area are longer and hotter. Winters are shorter and colder. The area lacks water supplies. And experts say much of the water that does exist is too salty to support plant life. 3History and loss 4The Aral is fed by rivers that heavily depend on glacial melt. For many years, it held many fish, supporting a fishing industry. 5The area brought in thousands of migrants for jobs in the past, also. Today, a few remaining towns sit quiet along the Aral's dry seabed. Dust storms often pass through. 6In the 1920s, the Soviet government began to empty the sea to provide water to crops like cotton. By the 1960s, it was half its former size. By 1987, the Aral's level was so low it divided into two bodies of water: the northern and southern seas. 7The United Nations Development Program calls the destruction of the Aral Sea "the most staggering disaster of the 20th century." It points to the Aral's loss as the cause of desertification, drinking water shortages, and worsening health conditions, among others. 8National governments, international aid organizations, and local efforts have made attempts to save the sea, including dams and plant growth projects. But experts say climate change has only quickened the dying of the Aral, and will continue to worsen local peoples' suffering. 9Loss of life 10The loss of much of the Aral Sea caused dust storms to blow through towns. They spread toxic chemicals from a former weapons testing center and farms into the lungs and eyes of local peoples. The U.N. says this has increased rates of diseases related to breathing and cancer. 11A U.N. report says dust storms, rising world temperatures, and wind are destroying the glaciers on which the feeder rivers depend. The remaining water is getting saltier and evaporating faster. 12The report warns that melting ice and changing river flows may further cause problems for water supply and food supply. Hydropower plants could suffer. 13Differences along the Aral 14In Uzbekistan, Adilbay and his friends fish in the Aral's remaining waters. The fish are small and few. 15The 62-year-old holds his arms wide to demonstrate how big the Aral fish used to be. "Now there is nothing," he said. 16As the water disappeared, a nearby fish processing plant closed. Adilbay's friends and relatives moved to Kazakhstan looking for new jobs. 17There, fisherman Serzhan Seitbenbetov and others find success. In an hour, he caught a hundred fish, some 2 meters long. 18"Now all the villagers make good money being fishermen," he said. 19That is the result of an $86 million dam project led by Kazakhstan, with assistance from the World Bank. It was completed in 2005. 20Known as the Kokaral Dam, it saves and gathers water from the Syr Darya River. The dam performed better than expected, leading to an increase of over 3 meters in water levels after seven months. 21That helped restore local fisheries and caused an increase in clouds and rainstorms in the local area, the World Bank says. Population grew. 22But it could not replicate life before the water started drying up, said Sarah Cameron. She is a professor at the University of Maryland who is writing a book about the Aral. 23"It does not support the same amount of people and the fishing industry in the same way," Cameron said. 24Uzbekistan's restoration efforts have been mixed in success. The government has not undertaken large projects like the Kokaral. Instead, the country planted trees and other plants to help prevent erosion and slow dust storms. 25The discovery of oil and natural gas in the Aral's former seabed led to the building of gas production sites. Experts say that shows that Uzbekistan has little interest in restoration.. 26Kate Shields is a professor of environmental studies at Rhodes College in the American state of Tennessee. 27"While there has been some restoration," she said, "there was a sort of acceptance that ... the sea was not coming back." 28Government officials from Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan did not answer questions from the Associated Press about restoration efforts, the lack of water, and the effects of climate change. 29I'm Gregory Stachel. And I'm Gena Bennett. 30Victoria Milko reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. 31_______________________________________________ 32Words in This Story 33glacier - n. a very large area of ice that moves slowly down a slope or valley or over a wide area of land 34evaporate 35staggering - adj. very large, shocking, or surprising 36replicate - v. to repeat or copy (something) exactly 37restoration - adj. the act or process of returning something to its original condition by repairing it or cleaning it 38erosion - n. the gradual destruction of something by natural forces (such as water, wind, or ice)