From Water to Desert: Evolution of Transportation Systems in The Aral Sea Area

Abstract

The Aral Sea evaporation is among the most relevant ecological disasters of the XX century. The Aral Sea was the fourth largest inland water basin (Meini 1994; Micklin 2008) at the early 1900s, while today stands as one of the most toxic desertic areas globally due to the uncontrolled increase in salinity, as well as pollution from civilian and military waste discharge. Based on the contributions on the society-environment linkages (as seen in White, 2013), this paper will discuss the evolution and development of transportation systems in the transformed environment of the two basins – North and South – of the Aral Sea. The first section will focus on the needs for water transportation over the Aral Sea from the early 1900 and their development linked to the socio-economic development of the area. The second part will cover the contemporary (2010-onwards) needs for transportation of the current developmental needs of populations living around the former basin’s area.