Yes this would be Khrushchev's idea of using the Aral Sea to irrigate the surrounding regions of the Soviet Union so that they could produce corn. If you take a look at modern pictures of the Aral Sea, 1, 2, 3, you can tell exactly how that turned out.
It is kind of interesting that this topic turned up on here, I received a book for Christmas which deals with this subject. Collapse by Jared Diamond (His previous book, Guns, Germs, and Steel, is far more well known.) basically points out examples of how the misuse of many different societies' environments eventually lead to their own demise. From what I have read so far, I do not believe there will be any examples from the EB world but many of you may still find it an interesting read.
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