French report: Primitive irrigation and climate change threaten the Tigris with complete drought

POSTED ON[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] BY [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[size=52]French report: Primitive irrigation and climate change threaten the Tigris with complete drought[/size]

[size=45]A French report confirmed that the Tigris River is threatened with complete drought, pointing to many reasons, most notably the use of primitive methods for irrigating crops and climate change, pointing out that some parts of the river have become like rain ponds. A report by the French news agency, followed by Al-Mada, stated that "the Tigris River is fighting death, as unjust human activity and climate change threaten to wipe out a lifeline that is thousands of years old."[/size]
[size=45]The report continued, "Iraq, which has a population of 42 million, and is considered a source of civilization and agriculture, is currently experiencing countless natural disasters."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that, "beginning in April, the temperature exceeds 35 degrees Celsius, and sandstorms take over, covering humans, animals and machines with an orange film."[/size]
[size=45]The report explained, "Summer comes after that, the season of hell for the Iraqis, when the temperature reaches 50 degrees Celsius and the electricity is cut off due to the increased pressure on the network."[/size]
[size=45]And he indicated, "Iraq has become today one of the five countries in the world most vulnerable to the consequences of climate change, according to the United Nations, with drought, low rainfall, high temperatures and accelerated desertification."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The Tigris River was affected by this, with the decline in rain, as well as because of the dams built in Turkey, where the river originates."[/size]
[size=45]The report noted, “The journey to the Tigris River begins in the mountains of Kurdistan at the intersection of Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Here, the people earn their living by planting potatoes and raising sheep.”[/size]
[size=45]The report emphasized that "the Iraqi authorities accuse Turkey of cutting off the water by holding it in the dams it established on the stream before it reaches Iraq."[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "The statistics showed that the level of the Tigris River upon its arrival from Turkey this year did not exceed 35% of the average amount that flowed into Iraq during the past 100 years."[/size]
[size=45]The report went on to say that “the more water retention increases, the less the flow of the river, which extends over 1,500 km, crossed by the Tigris River before it merges with its twin Euphrates River and meet in the Shatt al-Arab, which flows into the Gulf.”[/size]
[size=45]He continues, "Baghdad regularly asks Ankara to release larger quantities of water. In response, the Turkish ambassador to Iraq, Ali Reza Güney, called in July for Iraqis to use available water more effectively, and said that water was wasted on a large scale in Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]And the report added, “Experts talk about reckless irrigation methods: as in the time of the Sumerians, Iraqi farmers continue to flood their fields to irrigate them, which leads to a huge waste of water.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, "The river looks like pools resulting from rainwater. The small gatherings of water in the course of the Diyala River are all that remain of the tributary of the Tigris River in central Iraq, without which nothing can be cultivated in the province."[/size]
[size=45]The report stated, "Due to the drought, this year the authorities reduced the cultivated areas throughout the country by half. Since there is not enough water in Diyala, there will be no harvest.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, "An increase in temperature by one degree Celsius and a decrease in precipitation by 10% will lead to a 20% decrease in the fresh water available in Iraq by the year 2050."[/size]
[size=45]The report continues, that "the United Nations and many non-governmental organizations have previously warned that water scarcity and the challenges facing sustainable agriculture and food security are among the main drivers of migration from rural to urban areas in Iraq."[/size]
[size=45]He spoke about the displacement of more than 3,300 families due to climatic factors in ten provinces from the center and south of the country, until last March.[/size]
[size=45]The report stated, "This summer, the river level was so low in Baghdad that young men played volleyball in the middle of the river, and the water was barely up to their waist."[/size]
[size=45]He continued, "The Ministry of Water Resources attributes this to the sandy sediments. As these sediments no longer drain south due to a lack of water flow, they accumulated at the bottom of the Tigris and mixed with waste water, which made the river water difficult to flow.”[/size]
[size=45]The report pointed out that “the government was, until recently, sending machines to suck the stagnant sand at the bottom of the river, but due to lack of resources, most of the pumps stopped working.”[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The last stop of the river is at Ras Al-Bishah, there on the borders of Iraq, Iran and Kuwait. The Shatt Al-Arab flows into the Gulf."[/size]
[size=45]The report noted, “The level of salinity in the Shatt al-Arab, north of Basra, reached 6800 parts per million, according to what the local authorities said in early August.”[/size]
[size=45]He cautioned, “The salinity rate in fresh water should not exceed one thousand parts per million, according to the standards of the American Institute of Geophysics, which determines the level of medium-salinity water between three and 10 thousand parts per million.”[/size]
[size=45]The report went on, "This led to the migration of certain types of freshwater fish that are very popular with fishermen from the Shatt al-Arab, causing the emergence of other species that usually live in the high seas."[/size]
[size=45][You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]