The Aral Sea and Colorado River: Lunar Scenery, Striking Parallels, and Unexpected Lessons for Afghanistan
G
oing places helps to see bigger things, more so, it
needs in Central Asia further offset the precarious des-
helps seeing common denominators for diverse
ert equilibrium. On top of this, the situation was possibly
human activities. An ecological imbalance, we,
exacerbated by a natural fluctuation of water resources in
humans, bring about in many geographical areas is one
the region, decreasing at the period while the neighboring
of them. In search of such an unfortunate denominator a
Caspian Sea level rose.
group of environmental experts, comprising two Afghans from Balkh University (Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan), and the
Three Soviet republics were a closed club of large-scale
project leader from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
users of Amu Darya water. Nowadays, after decades of ab-
visited one of the world’s major environmental disaster
sence, Afghanistan gradually, but inevitably, comes back to
areas – the drying Aral Sea in Central Asia. The group
the club. Complex multilateral negotiations still lie ahead.
assists British Council’s DelPHE program to build capacity for
But the historic Aral Sea trip by Afghan scholars paves the
water protection in Northern Afghanistan through Strategic
way towards a dialogue between people of the upstream
Environmental Assessment, also known as Strategic
and downstream. Strategic water security is one of the keys
Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA). The trip was
to emerging long-term stability in Afghanistan. Strategic
inspired by work of the Amu Darya Basin Network
Environmental Assessment (SEA) would serve the purpose
established by the East West Institute in Brussels. Logis-
of ensuring that water resources for regional and Afghan
tics were facilitated by Berdakh and Marat Utemuratovs
agriculture uses are sustainable in the long run. Afghan
from Karakalpakstan, the area of western Uzbekistan most
water environments (rivers, underground kareze, irrigation
affected by water shortage.
canals, and natural wetlands) are stressed due to a long period of conflict. To avoid environmental collapse the
Authors:
In the second half of twentieth century, the Aral Sea
post-conflict country is in need of strategic environmen-
“unexpectedly” fell prey to a voracious appetite of human
tal planning. SEA offers an effective procedure for evalu-
development machine requiring ever-increasing volumes
ating likely adverse or positive environmental impacts of
of cotton. The monoculture was notorious for excessive
proposed development projects, plans, and policies. By
water consumption imposing an unsustainable water
identifying ways of improving project selection, planning,
burden on Amu Darya, the river, which feeds the sea.
design, and implementation, it enhances the quality and
Post-Soviet imbalances between energy and irrigation
sustainability of human activities.
Oleg Shipin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Environmental Engineering and Management, School of Environment, Resources, and Development, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
Habibullah Habib, Ph.D.
Chancellor, Kabul University Afghanistan
Measuring 300 km across, the Aral Sea was this size in 20th century until the 1960s
Now, the fragmented remainder of what was once the 4th world’s largest inland water body
Technology | February 2015
53
