Human and Environmental Health Effects

Due to the irrigation practices of the Soviet Union the Aral Sea lost over 90% of its water. Obvious health and environmental impacts were the loss of much of the aquatic life within its waters. Once teeming with fish and renowned for its fishing industry, the Aral Sea must now import fish from other places to fill its dwindling volume with wildlife. The reason fish have disappeared in the Aral Sea is not just due to less space for aquatic species to exist, but also because of increased salinity and pollution. Before losing most of its water, the salinity of the Aral Sea was 10 g/l, in 1998 the salinity was 45 g/l. At present day there some parts of the south Aral that have a salinity of over 100 g/l. Different aquatic organisms can live at only certain levels of salinity, more thrive in higher salinity and some at less, by changing the salinity of a water body one also changes what organisms can exist in that environment. In addition, the decrease in volume has created a pollution problem within the Aral Sea. When the area of the sea was 26,300 sq. miles any pollution that entered the water could be diluted. Now at present day the area of the Aral Sea is somewhere between 2,000-3,000 sq. miles. Pollution is more highly concentrated in a smaller area making the waters far more toxic. The dried up water beds also contribute to increased pollution. Toxic metals and pesticides deposited on the sea floor emerge once again when the water recedes. Dust storms scatter the pollutants through the air to be inhaled by humans and animals alike. When it rains these metals and pesticides drain into the Aral Sea once more to pollute it a second time, and when the water recedes further the cycle continues anew.

The salinity and pollution of the Aral Sea has almost destroyed the ecosystem in the area. With less fish there are also less birds and other species that rely on the well being of the waters they live near. Seabirds, muskrats, and marshland species have all suffered from loss of habitat. Often when one member of the ecosystem is removed others soon follow, resulting in the "desert of death" that was once the Aral Sea.

Humans are not immune to the Aral Sea Disaster either. The land surrounding the Aral Sea is heavily polluted due to industry, farming, and chemical weapons testing. Toxic metals from the industries, pesticides from farming, and bacterial agents from the weapons all reside in the soil of the Aral Sea bed. When the sea dries, these particles enter the sky with the help of strong steppe gusts. These pollutants are then inhaled by the people living nearby causing a variety of health problems. Tuberculosis, cancer, anemia, digestive disorders, and infectious diseases all occur at higher rates in areas around the Aral Sea. Liver kidney, and eye problems are prevalent as well. Vulnerable members of the population such as children and the elderly have unusually high mortality rates. Additionally, the high pollution has contributed to a scarcity of clean drinking water for much of the population. Water itself, clean or not, is also becoming more difficult to access thanks to the decline of the Aral Sea.