The Collapse of the Aral Sea

The Aral Sea used to be one of the world's largest and most productive inland bodies of water until a Soviet plan to turn Central Asia into the greatest cotton-producer on Earth destroyed it. Now mostly a sterile lake amidst a desert poisoned by decades of fertilizer and pesticide runoff, the Aral Sea, itself ruined, is ruining the lives of all who still live near it. This program details the irreversible damage to the ecosystem and the resulting health problems being faced by the remaining inhabitants of the region. "The Aral Sea and the tragic plight of its people is not a freak, isolated event, but a crisis that is just slightly ahead of its time," says host David Suzuki. (54 minutes, color