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Aral Sea; Irretrievable Loss or Irtysh Imports?

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  • Viorel Badescu
  • Roelof Schuiling

Abstract

The Aral Sea has shrunk and become a large salt pan, because the water from the two rivers that used to feed the lake (Amu Darya and Syr Darya) is almost entirely used for irrigation. In this paper some possibilities to return to the original (1960) situation are studied. After discussing some of the alternatives, it is proposed to construct a canal along a more southerly route than the original Sibaral canal, starting from the Zaisan Lake along the Irtysh river. This solution requires the construction of a major tunnel through the Khrebet Tarbagataj mountain range. Thereafter, it will flow through the Balkash Lake, saving several hundred kilometers of canal construction, and discharge its water in the lower reaches of the Syr Darya. From here it will flow into Aral Sea, slowly restoring it towards its original (1960) level. Several flanking water saving measures are considered. Most of the drive to restore the Aral Sea is for ecological reasons. There may also be a serious climatic threat to avoid, although this is a matter of debate. It is found that the discharge of the major Siberian rivers into the Arctic Ocean is on the increase, and this may affect the great world ocean conveyor belt. This would have dire consequences for the climate in Western and Northern Europe. This could be avoided by diverting part of the water towards the Aral Sea. A restoration of the Aral Sea will have beneficial effects on climate, human health, fishery and ecology in general. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010

Suggested Citation

  • Viorel Badescu & Roelof Schuiling, 2010. "Aral Sea; Irretrievable Loss or Irtysh Imports?," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 24(3), pages 597-616, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:waterr:v:24:y:2010:i:3:p:597-616
    DOI: 10.1007/s11269-009-9461-y
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. René Létolle & Nicholas Aladin & Igor Filipov & N. Boroffka, 2005. "The Future Chemical Evolution of the Aral Sea from 2000 to the Years 2050," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 51-70, January.
    2. Roelof Dirk Schuiling & Viorel Badescu & Richard B. Cathcart & Jihan Seoud & Jaap C. Hanekamp, 2007. "Power from closing the Red Sea: economic and ecological costs and benefits following the isolation of the Red Sea," International Journal of Global Environmental Issues, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(4), pages 341-361.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Christopher White & Trevor Tanton & David Rycroft, 2014. "The Impact of Climate Change on the Water Resources of the Amu Darya Basin in Central Asia," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(15), pages 5267-5281, December.
    2. K. Meijer & W. Krogt & E. Beek, 2012. "A New Approach to Incorporating Environmental Flow Requirements in Water Allocation Modeling," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 26(5), pages 1271-1286, March.
    3. Fazlullah Akhtar & Bernhard Tischbein & Usman Awan, 2013. "Optimizing Deficit Irrigation Scheduling Under Shallow Groundwater Conditions in Lower Reaches of Amu Darya River Basin," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 27(8), pages 3165-3178, June.
    4. Changwen Li & Ling Kang, 2014. "A New Modified Tennant Method with Spatial-Temporal Variability," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(14), pages 4911-4926, November.
    5. Daniyal Hassan & Steven J. Burian & Ryan C. Johnson & Sangmin Shin & Michael E. Barber, 2023. "The Great Salt Lake Water Level is Becoming Less Resilient to Climate Change," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 37(6), pages 2697-2720, May.

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