After the Aral Sea

Once the fourth-largest lake in the world, the Aral Sea has become one of the most devastating environmental disasters caused by humankind. Since the 1960s, the Aral Sea has lost 90% of its volume due to Soviet-era irrigation projects that diverted its tributaries, the Syr Darya and Amu Darya rivers, to support agricultural activities, mainly cotton production, in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The consequences have been profound: ecosystems have vanished, livelihoods have been disrupted, and vast stretches of the former seabed have turned into a new desert: the Aralkum.
Yet in recent years, a new narrative has emerged – one of transformation, resilience, and hope. Governments in both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have launched afforestation campaigns, planting salt-resistant trees across the Aralkum Desert.

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Camels stand beside a stretch of saltwater outside the town of Aral. Once a seaport, Aral now lies 50 kilometers from the nearest shoreline of the Aral Sea. Kazakhstan, May 5, 2025.

The rusting remains of a boat near the Northern Aral Sea, its broken frame standing as a reminder of when the water stretched beyond the horizon. Kazakhstan, August 27, 2019.

Heavy silt in the Amu Darya river often turns the water a dark red—an ominous sign amid its declining levels. Uzbekistan, October 28, 2019.

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Camels stand beside a stretch of saltwater outside the town of Aral. Once a seaport, Aral now lies 50 kilometers from the nearest shoreline of the Aral Sea. Kazakhstan, May 5, 2025.

The rusting remains of a boat near the Northern Aral Sea, its broken frame standing as a reminder of when the water stretched beyond the horizon. Kazakhstan, August 27, 2019.

Heavy silt in the Amu Darya river often turns the water a dark red—an ominous sign amid its declining levels. Uzbekistan, October 28, 2019.

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In Kazakhstan, the construction of the Kokaral Dam has brought water back to the Northern Aral Sea, helping to restore fish populations and revive local livelihoods since 2005. Projects like the Aral Oasis engage residents in planting and caring for black saxaul seedlings, reintroducing native vegetation, and preventing further desertification. Villages like Karateren are at the center of these efforts to reclaim the land.
In Uzbekistan, where a narrow ribbon of the sea remains, tourism has slowly grown as visitors travel from Tashkent and beyond to experience the salty waters that may no longer be there in a few years. Where fishing has stopped due to the high salinity of the water, Artemia salina farming and brine shrimp harvesting have taken its place. This has become the main source of income for many in Moynaq, a former port town, now 105 kilometers from the shore. In the same town, a local family’s beekeeping venture provides a sustainable livelihood, producing honey from wild plants in the Aral Sea region and its desert. In Nukus, a regional hub for environmental research has opened, where scientists experiment with hydroponics and salt-tolerant crops, working to cultivate life in challenging soil conditions.
This project offers a visual journey through an evolving landscape. It shifts the focus from catastrophe to recovery, from loss to resilience. In a landscape long defined by tragedy, After the Aral Sea sheds light on the quiet adaptation of communities determined to build a new future.