The Former Sea

The Aral Sea is an ulcer on the Earth’s body. 50 years ago, its inflows Amu Darya and Syr Darya were turned in order to irrigate Uzbekistan’s cotton fields and rice plantations. That’s when the slow countdown to death of the Aral Sea began. The overall sea’s reservoir has shrunk and declined to 10% of its original size. In 2005, a dam was built, which made it possible for one third of the sea get restored. It allowed to raise the sea’s water level by 30 m. However, it hasn’t saved the situation - the large sea is drying out. Abandoned ships stay there as memorials to the former sea borders of the Aral Sea. They are located in the former sea gulf Sarishiganak (Kazakhstan) nearby a former harbor Mo’ynoq (Karakalpakia, Uzbekistan). The Aral Sea was a sea in the past. It will never get back to life again. This project is in the first stage of its development. Its goal is to attract the international attention to preserving a unique water reservoir that is essential for the life of people from this region.

Ongarbaev Sanat

Documentary photographer. His works have been published at the online platform Bird in flight.