The Aral Sea disaster
Abstract
The Aral Sea is a huge terminal lake located among the deserts of Central Asia. Over the past 10 millennia, it has repeatedly filled and dried, owing both to natural and human forces. The most recent desiccation started in the early 1960s and owes overwhelmingly to the expansion of irrigation that has drained its two tributary rivers. Lake level has fallen 23 m, area shrunk 74%, volume decreased 90%, and salinity grew from 10 to more than 100g/l, causing negative ecological changes, including decimation of native fish species, initiation of dust/salt storms, degradation of deltaic biotic communities, and climate change around the former shoreline. The population residing around the lake has also been negatively impacted. There is little hope in the foreseeable future to fully restore the Aral Sea, but measures to preserve/rehabilitate parts of the water body and the deltas are feasible.
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The remaining 37% of textile fibres is dominated by cotton, at 24%.
“The remaining 37% is dominated by cotton (24%), a thirsty plant associated with water depletion e the desiccation of the Aral Sea being the most infamous example (Micklin, 2007) e and toxic pollution, due to intensive use of pesticides (FAO-ICAC, 2015).”
From Environmental impact of textile reuse and recycling – A review (2018) · cites this paper as Micklin, 2007
Cotton is associated with water depletion and toxic pollution due to intensive use of pesticides.
“The remaining 37% is dominated by cotton (24%), a thirsty plant associated with water depletion e the desiccation of the Aral Sea being the most infamous example (Micklin, 2007) e and toxic pollution, due to intensive use of pesticides (FAO-ICAC, 2015).”
From Environmental impact of textile reuse and recycling – A review (2018) · cites this paper as Micklin, 2007
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- Authors
- Micklin, P.
- Affiliations
- Western Michigan University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Micklin, Philip
- Venue
- Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences
- Publisher
- Annual Reviews
- Published
- 2007-05-01
- Volume
- 35
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 47-72
- ISSN
- 0084-6597 (ISSN-L)
- 1545-4495
- OpenAlex
- W2128397404
- Cited by
- 755
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 60 · 2025: 53 · 2024: 55 · 2023: 58 · 2022: 65 · 2021: 44 · 2020: 71 · 2019: 44 · 2018: 49 · 2017: 42 · 2016: 34 · 2015: 33 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 30 · 2012: 24
- FWCI
- 2.17
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Transboundary Water Resource Management
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Aquatic Ecosystems and Biodiversity
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Water Resources and Management
- Keywords
- Aral Sea, lake desiccation, irrigation, water diversion, lake level decline, salinity, dust storms, climate change, human impact on lakes, lake restoration, Central Asia
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