Experts put limited options in front of Iraq for its water salvation

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[size=52]Experts put limited options in front of Iraq for its water salvation[/size]

[size=45]"Voice of America" ​​radio warned of the narrow window available to Iraq to get out of its water crisis, after it became one of the most countries in the world suffering from drought, desertification and the shrinking of its water resources, while until the sixties of the last century, it was experiencing an abundance of water that turns into floods.[/size]
[size=45]“Voice of America” quoted environmental expert Azzam Allwash, who studies at the American University in Iraq (in Sulaymaniyah), as saying that the Iraqi farmer “was used to having an abundance of water, not a lack of water. The entire water management structure in Iraq was designed at a time when flooding was the norm. But by agreeing with Turkey on the operational bases of some dams, it is possible to actually stop using the artificial lakes that were established with the aim of controlling floods, and thus provide more water for Iraqi farmers and cities to use.”[/size]
[size=45]Allwash, the founder of the environmental organization Nature Iraq, which helped revitalize the marshes in southern Iraq, explained that "the Tigris and Euphrates rivers flooded Iraq for centuries, which led to the renewal of its agricultural lands that were green, but the floods stopped in 1968 after the construction of dams. Its sources in Turkey are for the purposes of producing electricity,” noting that Iran has redirected the courses of the Tigris River because of its need for water as well.[/size]
[size=45]Allwash warned that Iraq's population is constantly increasing, and therefore its water consumption is also increasing, in light of the challenges of climate change as well.[/size]
[size=45]And the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources concluded in a shocking report last December that the continuation of the phenomenon of water loss from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which are the backbone of fresh water resources in Iraq, could cause the country to turn into a “land without rivers by the year 2040.” .[/size]
[size=45]The report pointed out that the Iraqi Minister of Water, Mahdi al-Hamdani, indicated that he is still awaiting negotiations on water resources with his Turkish and Iranian counterparts, while the United Nations urges the three neighboring countries to reach understandings to share water in a fair manner.[/size]
[size=45]The report stated that the United Nations agencies recently launched an appeal to work to protect Iraq from desertification and drought, but pointed out that analysts consider that there are obstacles related to the water concerns of Turkey and Iran in addition to the challenges of climate change.[/size]
[size=45]The report quoted Tobias von Losau, a researcher at the Dutch Clingendael Institute for International Relations, as saying that the Shatt al-Arab waterway, where the Tigris and Euphrates meet, may “dry up sooner or later,” warning that there is only a “small window to prevent this from happening.”[/size]
[size=45]Von Losau pointed out that the water projects in southeastern Turkey have had a particularly significant impact, as “the flow of water to Iraq has decreased by 30-40% since the end of the 1970s, and this trend continues until now, and that climate change and environmental degradation contribute to Accelerate the pace of this, explaining that Iraq will witness more droughts, water shortages, sandstorms and dust storms.[/size]
[size=45]Von Losau said there are "limited options for Iraq," as it can act on local water management and push more aggressively for agrarian reform, crop selection and irrigation technology development.[/size]
[size=45]The report concluded by noting that the United Nations lists Iraq among the top five countries most affected by climate change around the world, with increased salinity and loss of arable lands, lack of rain, long heat waves and dust storms[/size]
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