Uzbekistan plants trees to combat Aral Sea desertification
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Uzbekistan is working to stabilize the landscape of the former Aral Sea by planting saxaul and other salt-resistant plants across 1.7 million hectares.
The Aral Sea, once the fourth-largest lake in the world, has lost over 90% of its surface area since the 1960s when Soviet engineers diverted the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers to irrigate cotton fields. This diversion caused evaporation to exceed replenishment, creating the Aralkum desert, a salty, windswept area containing pesticide residue.
Uzbekistan’s efforts focus on preventing the spread of dust and salt storms rather than restoring the sea itself. Saxaul, a shrub with deep roots, thrives in harsh conditions and helps hold the soil in place. While direct seeding has a 20-30% survival rate, using container-grown seedlings increases survival to as high as 78%, aided by water from wells up to 500 meters deep.
This work is part of the broader RESILAND CA+ program, funded by the World Bank, which is investing $153 million in Uzbekistan to stabilize degraded lands. Data indicates that Uzbekistan has already reduced the proportion of degraded land from 30% to 25% of its territory. Though a small portion of the Aral Sea has been recovered by a dam in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan is concentrating on managing the desertification in its territory and protecting surrounding regions from dust storms.
