The water crisis is expanding and water resources are reassuring: the water storage is enough to cov

[size=52]The water crisis is expanding and water resources are reassuring: the water storage is enough to cover the summer season[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad / Hussein Hatem[/size]
[size=45]The governorates of Iraq in general and Diyala in particular are witnessing a water crisis that has begun to expand since the beginning of the summer season, coinciding with the rise in temperatures and the decline in river levels.[/size]
[size=45]The Ministry of Water Resources points out that the stored water quotas will contribute to overcoming the current summer season without severe crises.[/size]
[size=45]While it indicated that it did not hold any negotiations with the Turkish and Iranian sides, except for discussions and talks that were not subject to any official document.[/size]
[size=45]In a related context, water specialists and government advisors believe that the problem of the water file lies in limiting it to the Minister of Water Resources, unlike Turkey, whose file is in the hands of the President of the Republic, as the minister does not have the power to negotiate.[/size]
[size=45]In addition, they pointed out that internal and external crises and conflicts and the mistakes of successive governments led to the neighboring countries' exploitation of Iraqi waters, building dams and controlling the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.[/size]
[size=45]A spokesman for the Ministry of Water Resources, Aoun Diab, said in an interview with Al-Mada that “the governorates most affected by the water crisis are Diyala,” noting that “the water reserves in the Darbandikhan and Hamrin dams are relatively limited, as we were unable to secure summer cultivation in the governorate.”[/size]
[size=45]Diab added, "The ministry was forced to provide only drinking water and municipal uses for watering orchards in Diyala Governorate."[/size]
[size=45]The Water Resources Spokesperson indicates, “The Ministry is working on using the water storage it currently has available in reservoirs and dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Mosul Dam, Tharthar Lake and Haditha Dam (…),” stressing that it is “sufficient to cover the current summer season.”[/size]
[size=45]With regard to the negotiations with Turkey and Iran, Diab asserts that they are “discussions and technical visits, not official negotiations,” noting that “the talks were transparent in knowing the plans for the construction of Turkish dams and the quantities of available storage.”[/size]
[size=45]And the spokesperson for the water resources added: "As for Iran, they did not get an opportunity for discussions and discussions because of the elections and the formation of a government that their country went through."[/size]
[size=45]In turn, the consultant and water and agricultural expert, Adel Al-Mukhtar, said in an interview with Al-Mada that "the expansion of the water crisis came as a result of the drop in water levels, the scarcity of rain and the lack of snow cover."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Mukhtar added, "The water storage available at the Ministry of Water Resources will contribute to filling the water shortage and bypassing the summer season."[/size]
[size=45]The government advisor indicates that "so far, there are no negotiations with neighboring countries," noting that "consultations have not reaped their fruits so far."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Mukhtar pointed out, “The problem lies in limiting the water file to the Minister of Water Resources, unlike Turkey, whose file is in the hands of the President of the Republic,” noting that “the Iraqi delegation that will negotiate does not have the authority to negotiate.”[/size]
[size=45]He called for "the establishment of a National Water Council in Iraq headed by the Prime Minister to have the authority to negotiate."[/size]
[size=45]For his part, Tahseen al-Moussawi, a water specialist, said in an interview with Al-Mada that "Iraq's water problem is that neighboring countries do not allow it to build a dam or a gate to block the salt tongue."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi added, “Iraq has become a weak country as a result of crises, internal and external wars, and the major mistakes on which the political process was built after 2003,” noting that “neighboring countries took advantage of these crises to build dams that largely controlled the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.”[/size]
[size=45]The water expert points out that “Iraq has lost more than 65% of its water capabilities, in addition to the use of old and classic methods and the lack of closed projects and water treatment units.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Moussawi believes that "the water file needs a strong international mediator and negotiator, not a ministerial-level negotiator."[/size]
[size=45]The water expert fears that “the Ministry of Water Resources will risk releasing large quantities of water that will lead to complete drought.”[/size]
[size=45]The President of the Republic, Barham Salih, had warned earlier of the repercussions of the aggravation of the water crisis on Iraq, stressing that climate change and its economic effects and significant environmental damage represent the most serious future threat to all parts of Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]According to the United Nations Environment Program, Iraq is the fifth most fragile country in terms of its ability to adapt to climate change.[/size]
[size=45]The Minister of Water Resources, Mahdi Al-Hamdani, said last May that the scarcity of rainfall led to a decrease in the flow of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to 50 percent compared to last year.[/size]
[size=45]And when the government of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi was formed, it put the Tigris water file at the top of its priorities, pledging to find radical solutions for it.[/size]
[size=45]And the Ministry of Water Resources in Al-Kazemi’s government prepared a protocol for cooperation with Ankara in the water file based on “the principle of fairness and justice in distributing quotas and ensuring Iraq’s water rights,” while Turkey expressed its willingness to sign it without actually doing so.[/size]
[size=45]Baghdad is aware that Ankara wants to keep the Tigris water file suspended to be used circumstantially in bargaining over other files.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Kazemi said when he visited Turkey last December that "water should not be evaluated as a factor of contention, but rather as an area for cooperation."[/size]
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