Aral Sea: Environmental disaster and its consequences

Abstract

The article examines the history of the Aral Sea and the environmental disaster of the twentieth century associated with the disappearance of the world's fourth sea body of water. A comprehensive author’s research at the interdisciplinary level showed the role and place of the Aral Sea from the moment of its formation in the surrounding space, its influence on the socio-economic development of coastal areas. The purpose of the undertaken research was to determine the cause-and-effect relationships that determined the large-scale man-made environmental disaster that occurred on the border line of the two states of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The authors tried to show how the disappearance of the sea affected the ecological state of the environment, namely the Kyzyl-Orda region, where the remains of the Aral Sea are located. The article provides statistical indicators on the topic of the research, their comparative analysis and the dynamics of the state of the environmental situation in the Aral Sea region. The authors introduce a visual representation of the changes in the Aral Sea throughout modern and recent times. In conclusion, the authors demonstrate the existence of measures taken by the state in an attempt to restore the Small Aral Sea by constructing a hydraulic structure.