A slow catastrophe.
A patient response.
Once the fourth-largest lake on the planet, the Aral has been dying for sixty years. The exposed seabed — Aralkum — is Earth’s youngest desert, scattering toxic salts and pesticide residues across Central Asia. Aralforest plants saxaul, black saxaul and resilient local species right into the Aralkum. Roots stitch the soil back together. The air breathes again.