The Aral Sea isn’t just an ecological nightmare – it’s a carbon bomb

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day, reviewed by our editorial team. Read the full piece on Grist or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: The drying of the Aral Sea, once the world’s fourth-largest inland water body, is emerging as a major climate concern
• New research shows that the exposed lakebed has already released 748 million metric tons of CO₂ since 1960, transforming a former carbon sink into a significant emissions source

🔭 The context: Located between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the Aral Sea collapsed after Soviet-era irrigation projects diverted its inflowing rivers to support cotton production
• Today, most of the former sea is a salt desert roughly the size of Ireland, creating ecological damage, health problems and economic disruption for surrounding communities

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Lakes and inland waters store carbon in their sediments
• When it dries, the stored carbon can be released into the atmosphere through soil exposure and wind erosion
• The Aral Sea highlights a broader climate risk as shrinking water bodies around the world, including Lake Chad, the Caspian Sea and the Great Salt Lake, may become overlooked sources of emissions

⏭️ What’s next: Scientists estimate that around 605 million metric tons of CO₂ remain at risk of being released from the Aral Sea’s exposed sediments
• Researchers argue that restoring water flows, improving irrigation efficiency and creating financial incentives such as carbon credits could help preserve this remaining carbon

💬 One quote: “We want to spotlight the fact that we have all this carbon that can be protected.” – Rafael Marcé, Centre for Advanced Studies in Blanes

📈 One stat: The Aral Sea’s released emissions since 1960 equal roughly three times Spain’s annual CO₂ emissions

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