The Dried up Aral Sea Eco-Disaster

www.furiousearth.com
Explorer/adventurer George Kourounis visits the Aral Sea in western Uzbekistan where wasteful irrigation practices by the former Soviet Union have drained most of the water, creating a vast ecological disaster. Rusting fishing boats lie in the desert sands that used to be rich fishing grounds.
Instagram: / gkourounis
Twitter: / georgekourounis
Facebook: / explorergeorgekourounis
Filmed as part of the Angry Planet TV series.
Produced by: www.peterrowe.tv

[@byronarachnicus6596]

We don't destroy the Earth. We just simply make it uninhabitable for us to live on. The Earth will go on far longer then us.

[@bored.in.california2111]

THAN

[@TheMrZombieCat]

Bored.In.California grammar nazi

[@shaggybreeks]

Duh, nobody' worried about the planet falling apart and disappearing.

[@ahlee2537]

exactly

[@aaronvenia6193]

Splitting hairs. Pubic hairs.

[@potnudles]

I have no idea how I got to watching this

[@Matttchew5]

I got lost too. Maybe there is still hope.

[@JeffTygart]

Yep me to this is sad they were a product of greed or maybe desperation is a better word from the soviet union.

[@Matttchew5]

***** I'd say both. It seems like there were people in charge who did not think throughly when the made decisions. I think the US currency system is the same way and greedy people are influencing desperate people to make poor decisions.

[@JeffTygart]

I agree I have thought about that today watching a video of oil pipe lines that run through the great lakes and their potential danger. Though it is a Canadian it still holds the same idea.

[@NoCumBacksiFunny]

Jeff Tygart pipelines pose almost no danger

[@jaridkeen123]

Why not just reconnect the rivers?

[@abcdef-gu6ut]

If only nations selfishness can be replaced

[@nokiot9]

Same thing happened to the Santa Rita river here in Tucson. They diverted it for crops and the entire thing dried up. Water table receded more than 150 feet in the years since. Cotton is a beast of a crop that needs tons of water to prosper.

[@willymunksby7518]

Same thing is currently happening with the Murray Darling river here in Australia, cotton farmers are sucking it dry. In some remote settlements along the river people are literally dying from dehydration because there is no more water from the river.

[@jhunifiedwithlove9750]

This is one of the most heartbreaking thing I have seen in my entire life... I hope the government and the people who did all these get their karma from Mother Nature...

[@abcdef-gu6ut]

So true

[@craigieplaysstuff]

@xIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIx but now there rebuilding it 😭😢😭

[@python357magnum100]

Very typical...unintended consequences of government policies.

[@leighfoulkes7297]

I would have thought that it would have been an obvious outcome. You divert multiple rivers away from a lake and expect it to stay?

[@Nura4N]

Leigh Foulke water are taken for watering cotton and other thinks.

[@700gsteak]

Nah they knew. They just didnt GAF.

[@drawingboard82]

This was warned about by many soviet scientists but it was done anyway. What adds insult to injury is that the irrigation canals they diverted the rivers into were not lined properly so half the water seeps into the ground before reaching the cotton fields. Also they could have used less water intensive cotton breeds.

[@kopronko]

It's because of mohamedanians, so it's not the Russia that is damned, but the mohamedanians .

[@Bit01]

Same thing that's been done to the central valley in California.

[@Bit01]

***** I like to post this to people that roll out the "it's a desert" trope in defense of that area having all water cut off from it. en.wikipedia.org/?title=Tulare_Lake

[@TrevorLawrence666]

***** actually the colorado river was drained mainly because of large cities in the basin and imperial valley farming. the central valley fets its water from the rivers that drain the sierra navada and northern mountain ranges

[@LastbutNotFirst]

nestle pumps the water for profit.

[@styolites616]

@trevor Actually, the city of Los Angeles owns most of that.

[@Jkstolz]

Bit 01 Arizona as well.... all for mining & making money. Selfish bastards

[@Hamassucks193]

Very similar to the Salton Sea in Southern California.

[@ComputerLearning0]

Good ol' Soviet Union . . .

[@RogerKeulen]

Mike Hawk The rest of the world doesn't look better.

[@karlbrundage7472]

Roger Keulen Please point out a comparable eco-disaster anywhere else.

[@RogerKeulen]

Mike Barlow We have Wiki for that. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_drying_lakes

[@roythomas1108]

Mike Barlow We are depleting the Ogallala Aquifer to grow gas (ethanol) ya we are just as foolish when it comes to central planning.

[@karlbrundage7472]

Roger Keulen Yeah, that really makes your point. /sarc.

[@Hiperforteca]

Thanks, USSR! The famous soviet technical thought again shows its results!

[@paulallen8109]

+Hyper What the hell does the USSR have to do with this? It collapsed over a quarter of century ago. What did these people living around the Aral lake do during all those time to counter this? They had the chance.

[@Hiperforteca]

Paul Allen It was the USSR that started it all. It's all their fault.

[@paulallen8109]

No different then to the British Raj in India, the Irish land "reform" and a shit ton of "projects" and "business ventures" in the third world. Or do those not count?? I think you'll find that people in South America found it increasingly difficult to survive once mighty companies (supported by who?) had their way with them. Sweatshops in China and India (AND the USA when you compare their salaries to the rest of the developed world) make the USSR look like rank amateurs.

[@Hiperforteca]

Paul Allen They didn't influence the Aral Sea case. You are changing the topic. And yes, they are different. USRR caused a gigantic lake to evaporate.

[@bojidarmartinov5949]

+Paul Allen You are very dumb.

[@MatteoOneself]

I love randomly coming across super interesting videos to squander time

[@philipbrodermann6867]

3:21 'last DITCH effort' ... good one.

[@StyleByKristina]

Watching this now for my geography class. Its really helpful and easy to follow.

[@wakaka2waka]

Btw, guys. The Aral Sea is completely gone from the time this was uploaded. There is no longer any real water there.

[@endifighterminecraft8616]

It is small lake

[@BlGGESTBROTHER]

It's definitely still there. It's just been greatly reduced in size and has split into several different bodies of water.

[@user-ng4tf2oq7s]

False

[@Science-ev1he]

It’s coming back now

[@ManteIIo]

Back to 50% of what it used to be, the dam they built is working and water slowly coming back. A lot of ppl moving back to abandoned villages and learn how to fish once again.

[@That1towncar]

I always am fascinated by these types of things! Its hard to imagine that those ships stranded in the middle of the desert were once floating in water there.

[@richardperkins8453]

Now check out the salton sea in California.

[@HelicopterDown]

Dang, those ships in the desert sand remind of me of Mad Max, where the ocean dried up leaving vast uninhabitable canyons with old wind turbines and lighthouses and tankers.

[@tomjeffersonwasright2288]

You don't have to travel so far to see this disaster. Just drive to the Salton Sea , less than 100 miles from Los Angeles, California, and all the same processes are going on.

[@peter-zi9ds]

the CIA only want anti soviet propaganda

[@xygomorphic44]

The Salton sea is completely different from the Aral Sea. Before 1905 it didn't even exist. The sea was accidentally created when a flood control project on the Colorado river went badly and caused the river to flow into the sea area for about 2 years. It's been slowly evaporating ever since but the rains have stopped it from disappearing completely. Almost nothing lives in that lake because it's so salty and that water can't be used for irrigation. It's quite useless.

[@tomjeffersonwasright2288]

xygomorphic44 Educate yourself before you speak again. Both the Aral and the Salton have in common that their bottom contains some bad chemicals, that harm people who breathe the dust when the bottom dries up. If nothing else, the Salton Sea water keeps that dust wet, so it does not blow into San Diego. It has done so in the past, and that is why California is spending millions to restore the Salton Sea, to prevent major health problems in San Diego. There is also a lot of fish in the Salton. Tilapia are thriving there, as are other species. There is an annual die off that accounts for the dead fish on the shores. The Salton Sea is used for recreational boating and fishing, and the Sonny Bono National Wildlife Refuge is located on its shores, and the Sea is used by many migratory and local birds. Recreational fishermen also use the lake.

[@ronalddavis]

Sonny bono wildlife refuge? hahahahaha

[@mohamadhafidal-ahyar2253]

Aral sea is closer to me than US actually hehe

[@SKIKR]

I am currently doing research on intercatchment transfer and the pros and cons your video has given great visual insight and has heightened any concerns considerably , great job.

[@williamkelley7654]

This looks like Kalifornia!

[@volkerjanssen7905]

+nuni121 No, I think he is talking about that little tourist spot on the coast of the Baltic Sea in Germany. ;-)

[@clarencebrowniii4750]

Not yet but soon, because they are planning to divert water from the Sacramento River delta.

[@guerguistoyanov137]

Indrid Cold One of THE very best descriptions for PRC,aka People's Republic of California!😂👍 Well said!🍻

[@EnriqueJay1998]

Indrid Cold what are you talking about none of that is true? Are you sure you lived in Southern California?

[@Charles_Anthony]

@@EnriqueJay1998 : He's not wrong. I live in Santa Ana.

[@TweenkPL]

0:00 "Once the fourth largest body of freshwater in the world (...)" It was never a frashwater lake, it had 10 g/L of salt (around a third of the concentration in seawater) before any water diversion started. 0:17 "But during the early years of Soviet rule (...)" The irrigation projects started in the 1960s, which was closer to the fall of Soviet Union in 1991 than to its establishment in 1922.

[@wcemichael]

Great job Russia! We need cheap jeans a lot more than we need to eat!

[@MOHCTPOXOD]

Does this mean that you DO admit that Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are parts of Russia or is it just pure ignorance? ;)

[@wcemichael]

they did say Russia had a hand in diverting the river. Has nothing to do with what piece of land is owned by who.

[@MOHCTPOXOD]

wcemichael There was no such thing as Russia at the time.

[@wcemichael]

***** "During the early years of soviet rule..." That's what they said. Wikipedia: "...the Aral Sea has been steadily shrinking since the 1960s after the rivers that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects" There was a Russia back in the 1940s when they helps us win WWII, and there is a Russia now, but somehow their wasn't a Russia in the 1960's?

[@MOHCTPOXOD]

There was no Russia, there waw "Soviet Union" between 1917 and 1991.

[@asylkz]

I really appreciate your work sir. Very professional and with passion. Excellent research and delivery. I can tell that you really care about this disaster.

[@rasulbekman]

Thank you sir from Uzbekistan to bringing up this problem and sharing with world.

[@samwilko9927]

He seems very happy to laugh about other people's misfortunes.

[@claycollins8973]

I told some family friends about this and they literally told me, "take your tree hugging dogma brainwashing away from my children" and they were legitimately angry at me for talking about this and making up an absurd story in front of their kids... 2017 what a time to be alive

[@misterree1443]

Stupidity is the sign of the Times!

[@yummyyum4626]

Awesome. Some cool landscapes!

[@havok4738]

That last part at the end where we see how much has changed in a short time span like two months really saddens me. sad to see that its almost entirely destroyed now 9 years later :( 4/19/21

[@daddygaming9191]

Anyone 2019🤗🤗

[@cyb3r.v0mit]

No, I'm 2020. Sorry, I'm a year late. ;w;

[@fhangorn]

I wonder how high the salinity of the water is and will get after it get smaller and smaller in volume.

[@EnlightenTogether]

Amazing. Water disasters are fascinating. I am covering this video in the Enlighten Together broadcast tonight.

[@jlh8830]

Great video thank for all your hard work

[@StarlightDaydream]

I think that it is very sad this happened.

[@esquad5406]

Just a little Dynamite here and there can fix it.

[@tvoommen4688]

A situation , most may have thought of as hypothetical, decades ago.....turns to be stark reality ! Amazing.

[@Matttchew5]

I enjoyed the shots of this place.

[@ivangg4203]

Was the Aral Sea and is the Aral Desert

[@ripmax333]

Very bizarre view to sea fishing boats in the middle of the desert, looks like a post apocalyptic scene from a Movie.

[@leo9747]

ripmax333 I’m sure that they probably filled a lot of those type of movies there

[@paulgrimm7842]

We’ve done the same thing to the Colorado River! It no longer flows to the ocean

[@simonpender8331]

Interesting little doco. Thank you

[@agmjfcom]

The Murray/Darling is next.

[@ChildePC]

This would be a great movie spot for madd max

[@spikeyboy101]

Cool done a good job there lets crack on to the next debacle

[@zuly5400]

Interesting report!

[@Bill23799]

wow What was the benefit to diverting the rivers? Just to irrigate cotton fields? Was it worth gaining cotton to the USSR balanced against the loss of fish for its people. I am sure the local ecology and economy was not even a factor in the equation at the time. I wonder if redirecting the flow of one river would help and maybe strike a balance. Do you know if they discovered any interesting ancient artifacts in what was once the sea floor of the Aral sea in that location?

[@metalface8515]

If uh, good ol Greg could stop laughing about eco disasters, that'd be pretty great

[@allmightyjamestown]

this is amazing!

[@nathansscientificstuff5507]

Dang, it looks like something out of mad max!

[@martystevens8357]

OMG!! Noah's Arc!! There it is!! I knew we'd find it one day!!

[@ELCHINESEGUY]

This was uploaded in 2012 so it's totally gone at this point right?

[@erwinrommel2746]

Nope

[@Wabaanimkii]

No, Last time I read up on the Aral Sea there was a re-divergence program with several canals to put water back in the sea. Water levels have risen since this was uploaded. Edit: North Aral sea under restoration efforts in Kazakhstan have risen the levels of the northern part of the Aral sea. Uzbekistan on the other hand is okay with losing the sea for hopes of finding oil and natural gas. The western part of the Aral sea is also being slowly restored but the southern and eastern portions are gone.

[@Sargebri]

Sounds just like what's going on down by the Salton Sea area. It is drying up and the dust and sulfur in the air are causing all sorts of health problems.

[@McLovin1776]

4:45 "50,000 people used to live here, now its a ghost town."

[@zakathzakath6184]

Start planting industrial hemp over there. Hemp can used 💯 thousand differend way.

[@nozimhonsadirhonov3190]

Yes you right

[@incog99skd11]

Mulholland and Los Angeles did the same thing to the beautiful Owens Lake region on the edge of the Eastern Sierras in California. This isn't just a Russian problem. Check out the disaster there.

[@liberalbias4462]

very nice false equivalence.

[@doyledunlap5749]

Liberal bias

[@liberalbias4462]

Liberal bias im back baby.

[@markefreet1522]

It's a government problem.

[@lettymares1]

Not to mention the south end of the Colorado River. It's also a dusty and arid path now; but up north, the river is converted into resorts, dams and irrigation systems. Hopefully some day we can see this river full of life for the ecosystem all the way to the sea of Cortez again..

[@snakes6248]

There's something about rusting ships in a desert that I find really disturbing. I can't explain it. I imagine standing next to one and then all of a sudden all of that water comes rushing back.

[@deusexaethera]

6:20 - "All these ships used to work the fishing fleet. They would go out every day loaded-up with fishermen, and come back loaded-up with fish..." *Did the fishermen come home too, or did they use the fishermen as bait??* O_O

[@RolandBizjets]

Thank you very much. You just let me know what happened there.

[@de4th1snt3nough]

VERY COOL, so symbolic and I'm no greener or anything. But that is some really amazing perspective views and such like in that airport, and looking out of that port hole and only seeing desert. Very cool

[@mal_3157]

Though it is sad, it’s pretty fascinating to see what bodies of water look like without the water

[@paulspydar]

Is it not possible to reverse the damage ?

[@jonathanpressman1986]

Yes, if they routed the rivers again.

[@Wolfstanus]

That would require money and a brain.

[@reecemartin453]

it is in theory, but the damaged caused by the lack of water, would take 100s of years to be fixed,

[@jonpatkin]

They have made attempts to re-establish the natural order, but due to the extreme shrinkage in size of the Aral Sea, the rivers can no longer reach it to replenish it. As it stands now, it is irreversible.

[@SrpskoNightmare]

The aral sea can be saved but it is up to the governments of the 5 central asian stan countries to come together for once and all work together. This has not happened. The source of the rivers come from both afghanistan and tajikistan and flow through uzbekistan kyrgystan and into kazakhstan uzbek border. They have saved the norh aral sea and damned it off but the south the biggest part is doomed.

[@Pilbsu]

You didn't even show us where the water was diverted to; various imbeciles will end up drawing spurious conclusions if you only show one side of the coin.

[@MerlynAran]

+Pilbsu Becuase there is no other way of getting water for irrigation, such as from the lakes outlet rather then its Inlet? If you plan ahead you can Irrigate land without making a desert. That's kind of the point. The 'other side of the coin is short shortsightedness, given the loss to the environment and health problems they have now.

[@JeffSilvermanSeattle]

The lake didn't have an outlet. It sat at the bottom of an enormous grabben, a depression in the Earth's crust, much like the Great Salt Lake in Utah is now. Also, the clip *did* explain where the water went: it was diverted to irrigation for farms. There was a short segment in the video that showed workers processing cotton. So the farmers made out like gangbusters. The decision makers knew, or should have known, that an effect of diverting the water would be that the Arial sea would dry up. It would be interesting to know why they decided to favor the farmers over the fishermen? Furthermore, once it became obvious that the result of diverting the water was the destruction of the ecosystem, why didn't they decide to stop diverting the water? Finally, a lot of people on this thread are using this story as a political football between the left and the right in our American political discourse. Advocates on both sides are missing the point. The point is that in order to rule wisely, regardless of whether you have a centralized or decentralized political system, you must have an awareness of "best science". In the current election cycle, the only candidate with any understanding of "best science" was Dr. Ben Carson, and 1) he didn't display much understanding of science, despite being a physician and 2) in never get much of a constituency.

[@richardoverton6521]

Ben Carson is a fundamentalist Christian that believes in Creationism. Hardly "best science". He must have passed his science classes by the "Grace of God".

[@cianakril]

Ain't you mixing something? Azerbaijan? It is related to Aral sea as much as Greece is related to the sea of Japan.

[@empiregeof]

marksandparks1 You're negative thinking is wrong btw They built a dam and are redirecting the water into the Aral sea kzbin.info/www/bejne/ppyXp2Orqpqlobs Its already filling up again, and the water that remained still had enough fish and bio diversity to make the whole sea a basket of life again. It doesnt take decades, it takes a handfull of commited people and a bit of wealth

[@Minimeister317]

Would love some geology core samples from that place

[@knoxvillehermitfreemoviesm3625]

I wish they ha more documentaries on dried lakes.

[@rondill8429]

Isn't that the ( SS Minnow ) Gilligan's Island ??

[@Tanneritefilledfido]

why not reverse it and atleast feed it again with one of the two rivers that were diverted

[@PugilistCactus]

Yeah you'd think considering the potential for transportation they'd reflood it and turn it into a canal.' I wouldn't be shocked if Russia came in again and said "we don't need this anymore." in the next decade or so honestly.

[@Gains_Monsoon]

Very sad thing to see happen to that area. Hopefully that doesn't happen to the Great Lakes someday.

[@caloss2]

I would be interesting if you were to return to see the water from the same vantage point now some 4 years later.

[@billjenkins687]

Somebody should tell Putin NOT to redirect inflow to Aral Sea. That just might make him do the opposite.

[@johnnolan8704]

Bill Jenkins thats what i was thinking

[@Adrian-pk1uh]

Bill Jenkins Differnt time lines

[@thesayxx]

Kazakhstan is already diverting rivers to its part of Aral Sea and the water level is somewhat ok now, and there is enough fish in it that they started fishing again. Same thing with the western par i think. But i think nothing is being done about the biggest (southern) part of the sea that is located in Uzbekistan. I've read somewhere that they hope to drill for oil and natural gas in the now called Aralkum desert.

[@MrJohannson]

+Dogman That was the Jews.

[@algrayson8965]

@@thesayxx- Once they have their oil platforms in place they just might let the sea bed flood again.

[@kineticdeath]

hmm cotton or fish, do we need more brand name tshirts or food? oh well /sigh

[@archmage2k6]

awesome video buddy

[@megaswenson]

That Guide is kinda beautiful.

[@wparo]

If this is a documentary, you didnt explain anything. You failed to mention what the government plan was, how it happened, what was the people's reaction, what they did to correct it, what will happen in the future. Just a 10 minutes long video of you speaking loudly and showing us a dessert

[@user-ng4tf2oq7s]

Imagine complaining about a free KZbin documentary

[@NurSunUSAKZ]

Dear Americans, please help us to get back our Aral Sea, our water, our life. Soviet Union killed all around here. We supplicate anyone who can help.

[@kardkingz3380]

I'm an American, but I can't make the minds if our government. If I could I would help as much as I could. I am so sorry for you guys.

[@tramsramsey]

Никита Валетов I don't know what America could really do...

[@orenoishadoukuurass]

Why don't you petition your government to tell Russia to unblock the rivers

[@NurSunUSAKZ]

Anyway the agressor country will not do anythg

[@jimbobeire]

+orenoishadoukuurass These rivers are not in Russia. This area _was_ part of the USSR, but since the break up of the USSR, it's a problem that crosses a few borders. The rivers come from the mountainous independent states in Central Asia, and flow into Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan where they are diverted through mainly unlined canals (which leak most of their water).

[@PREZYDENTSport]

Really good!

[@kb17_17]

So sad :( This must never happen again anywhere in the world.

[@TomLaios]

Why don't they undivert the fucking rivers?

[@TomLaios]

Once again in English mate?

[@abruzz0]

B-b-b-but in school all the teachers and smart, trendy liberal students tell me government is perfect and has never done anything wrong, ever, and we should trust them with allocation of all resources on the planet because they were born from special wombs that gave them super powers to dictate and decide what's best for everyone. The cognitive dissonance is killing me.

[@fuzzlenuff]

+No Refunds Indeed!

[@DiegoSantosU]

+No Refunds they are not "liberal" they are socialists.

[@Tinfoilhelmets]

+No Refunds Liberal? Only one suffering cognitive dissonance is you. lol

[@jimbobeire]

+No Refunds sounds legit, I'm sure they were so absolutist in their argument that you have no need to misrepresent them just to reinforce your own bias.

[@MrSyntaxman]

+No Refunds Are you attempting to imply that private industry wouldn't pull the same shit given the chance? Fuck off with the partisan politics.

[@averagemanful]

You should have made a time laps video, I think the message would have been a real eye opener

[@nolen1960]

it's also a bio testing ground on vozrozhodeniya island the place was called aralsk-7

[@slygi4]

So this is what happens when all the power is with a central government. Yea! Socialism, Yea Communism.

[@kosiak10851]

Really? Sounds like you've never heard any stories about capitalists who are ready to break any law (especially enviromental law) in pursuit for profits. Capitalism and overproduction caused by it is the root of most enviromental disasters!

[@lima33ful]

kosiak10851 Really? Where is the Capitalist version of the Aral sea?

[@kosiak10851]

lima33ful gulf of mexico

[@andronom557]

rodeo o barely.

[@BMcbugger]

Andro Nom LMAO! Did you just say the Gulf of Mexico is barely still there? Please, oh please, qualify that statement. I'd love to hear this one.

[@padmcd]

Coming to Lake Michigan if the Democrats get their way!

[@breaking963]

Patrick McDermott Funny you say that when most Republicans don't give two shits about the environment.

[@ellarpc]

I wish in some of those scenes you would have found pictures of how it used to look.

[@thegreatmechanizedape8262]

I love how quirky and fun this guy is and thinks this situation is. all smiles about this tragedy. these peoples misery is a fascinating novelty to him. jerk.

[@tman33]

That truly is a sad sight

[@TheRedMenaceR]

wow incredible video! what a tragedy

[@larsenmats]

The world should come together and make a channel from somewhere to fill the whole Aral Sea again, and not only the Northern part. I would happily donate money for something like this.

[@JihadKiller1s1k]

would of been cool to see where allllll that water is going now

[@beccaberri]

October is an excellent name!

[@erikschiller7210]

It’s kind of cool to see a shipwreck they way you see in the video

[@SouravMondal-mc2hd]

Nice video 😊

[@C-M-E]

A surreal beauty at a steep cost. Coexisting duality

[@LeviForWaifu]

A boat in the middle of the desert. That is surreal.

[@whitetiger2048]

the desert with all of those rusted ships and scrap in the sand is very steampunk and cool but kinda sad for what used to be a massive lake :P

[@leljdam3189]

the combine are really sucking up a lot of water

[@kenadie6498]

This video was made on my birthday

[@honeysingh7927]

No words... Unbelievable 🙄

[@exsonmichael9868]

Donno how I ended up here but i'm watching

[@Engineer10211]

1 minute of information spread self-indulgently over 9 and a half minutes.

[@mrmagorium4749]

Cool video