THE DRYING OUT OF THE ARAL SEA AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

The author examines the problem of the present state of the environment in the desert irrigation districts of southern Kazakhstan and Central Asia. A drop of the level of the Aral Sea and the formation of new land on the exposed seabed, the desiccation and desertification of the Amudarya and Syrdarya deltas caused by an intensification of agriculture have been proceeding against the background of a series of dry years. Irreversible environmental changes are having a negative impact on the socioeconomic conditions of the Aral region. The author, basing himself on the results of scientific investigations related to the Aral Sea problem, proposes a number of measures designed to moderate this negative impact.