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ARAL SEA CRISIS (INDIRECT CAUSES (The Kokaral Dam is helping the small…

- - - - Thanks to a multilateral water agreement signed in the 1980’s, some of the Syr Darya still flows into the sea
        
        This is half the reason why the water in the northern part of the sea is slowly increasing (connected to the Kokaral Dam)
      - Over a span of 5 years, the water from the Amu Darya ceased to reach the Aral Sea.
        
        Half of the Aral Sea's water supply is completely gone. This then lead on to the decrease in water.
      - Water that did reach the sea contained a large amount of pesticides and fertilizers used on the crops
        
        As the sea dried up, the seabed was exposed Link To Photo
        
        When the wind blows across the dried-up seabed, it carries dust containing these toxic chemicals resulting in poor drinking water and pollution of the earth.
        
        Most of the population that lived around the Aral Sea left to find a less dangerous and toxic place to live. Leaving towns abandoned and empty. This photo is of a abandoned town called Kantubek. Link To Photo #
        
        The pesticides and fertilisers were a health problem to any of the ecosystems within the water. The hazardous chemicals were also a problem because of the windy conditions. When the seabed dried up, the wind picked up the hazardous chemicals and dust and carried it through the towns. This endangered the people and residents of these towns as they could get sick. Link To Photo
        
        Because all the fish were dying and the sea life was disappearing, the communities and families were forced to leave the area and travel 2,000km to Lake Balkhash in eastern Kazakhstan, near the Chinese border. They spent half the year there in terrible conditions, without showers or toilets, infested with lice, and the rest of the year at home.
      - Water levels decrease in the Aral Sea. The water level has dropped by 16 meters (40 feet) and the volume has been reduced by 75 percent
        
        High temperatures in this region mean that evaporation rates are high which added to the problem #
        
        The exposure of the lake bed. Today, strong winds blow the exposed land picking up and depositing tens of thousands of tons soil every year. This process has contributed to significant reduction in breathable air quality for nearby residents. It has also affected crop yields due to those heavily salt-laden particles falling on arable land.
        
        Lakes and seas tend to have an effect on the climate, for example, land right next to a body of water tends to be warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer compared to land that's not near the water. The decrease in the water levels of the Aral Sea means that winters have become harsher and longer and summer hotter and shorter.
      - The freshwater from the Syr Darya and the Amu Darya balanced the sea’s water and salt levels perfectly. When the flow stopped from the two rivers the salinity increased. The salinity in the water now has 3 times the amount of salt than the ocean. #
        
        The 20 species of fish that used to reside in the sea are now extinct and as the marine life died, the fishing industry suffered. The fishing industry that used to have around 60,000 employees in the early 1960’s has been destroyed.
        
        Muynak was once a fishing port, boasting a proud fishing fleet during the Soviet era. Today, it is a desert town more than a hundred kilometers (62 miles) from the sea. The only reminders of the once thriving fishing activity are the rusting hulks of ships and an ancient fish plant. The ecological effect has been disastrous and the economic, social, and medical problems for people in the region catastrophic to their way of life.