Sudochye lake

Sudochye Lake – a lake in the Moʻynoq district of the Republic of Karakalpakstan. In the southwest of the Aral Sea. Its western shore is attached to the Eastern fringe of Ustyurt, the other sides border the Amu Darya delta. The lake’s area and the amount of salt in its composition change frequently. Because water from the Amu Darya and canals flows into the lake. In 1972 the lake’s area was 96 km². The lake’s average depth 11.5 m.

There is information that the naming of the lake comes from the local Karakalpak people’s term “suw dushshi”.

Geographic description

In the past Sudochye Lake was the largest lake in the delta. The lake occupied the Aybugir lowland. Sudochye was marked on the sea map by A. I. Butakov (1848 – 1849). On the map it is indicated as the marshy Aibugir or Laudan Lake. The lake extends 24 km southeast of the Aral Sea coast (southwest of the Urgʻa cape). The eastern edge of the Ustyurt plateau runs along the lake’s western shore.

Earlier Sudochye was filled through the Raushan and Priemuzyak canals of the Amu Darya and was connected to the Aral Sea by a canal. The lake’s water surface area reached 350 km², its length 250 km, average width 15 km and average depth 2 m. The water mineralization varied in the range 0.6‑1.7‰. Sudochye served as a spawning place for semi‑anadromous fish species. Up to 2000 tons of fish were caught in the lake.

In the 1950‑1970s, due to irrigation, the inflow of water to the lake decreased significantly and it completely lost its importance. In the 1960s, because of the drop in the Aral Sea level and the closure of the Raushan canal, almost all river water inflow stopped and Sudochye began to dry up. In 1968 the saline lake was divided into separate water reservoirs. In 1972 its area was 96 km².

However, at the same time, mainly at the expense of collector and drainage waters, the lake was partially restored. Amu Darya water began to be poured into Sudochye through the Qongirot collector and the Main collector. The condition of the lake was proven to be completely dependent on the water regime of these channels. The “Uzbekistan National Encyclopedia” notes that the size of the lake and its mineralization change rapidly.

According to the “Geographic Encyclopedia” (2006), the lake’s area is 333 km², the water level is 53 m above sea level, and the water mineralization amounts to 3-4 g/l. According to the “Uzbekistan National Encyclopedia” (2000–2005), the average depth is 1.5 m.

According to the Island Encyclopedia (2008), there are now 4 water reservoirs in place of the former large lake: Akushpa, Bolshoye Sudochye, Qorateren and Begdulla-Aydin. The years 2000–2001 were a disastrous low‑water period during which Bolshoye Sudochye was built.