Baghdad and Basra are the most affected.. Air and environmental pollution raises concerns in the Ira

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[size=52]Baghdad and Basra are the most affected.. Air and environmental pollution raises concerns in the Iraqi governorates[/size]

[size=45]Air pollution rates are increasing in Iraq despite repeated talk about government measures to reduce pollution. The capital, Baghdad, Basra Governorate in the south, and Nineveh Governorate in the north are the most affected.[/size]
[size=45]International environmental reports ranked Iraq fifth among the countries most affected by climate change in the world.[/size]
[size=45]Experts link the high rates of air pollution to a number of reasons, including war waste and oil industries, in addition to population overcrowding. In a survey conducted by the Swiss company “IQR”, which manufactures air purification devices, last March, Iraq ranked second among the most polluted countries in the world, and the capital, Baghdad, came second. Ranked 13th among the world's cities.[/size]
[size=45]The survey explained that “Iraq, which is inhabited by 43.5 million people, has deteriorated in air quality to 80.1 micrograms of PM2.5 particles per cubic meter, after it was 49.7 micrograms per cubic meter in 2021.”[/size]
[size=45]Last September, Iraq launched the national initiative to support energy and reduce emissions, and the “ISO” energy team was formed, which includes quality departments in all government institutions, relevant civil society organizations, and tribes that manage energy programs, green spaces, and programs to confront climate change.[/size]
[size=45]The Ministry of Environment had previously warned of the danger of high rates of environmental pollution, but it did not provide a treatment for the issue. The Ministry confirmed that pollution includes air, water, and soil. It also indicated that air pollution results from oil extraction operations in several governorates, large numbers of cars, and non-compliance by laboratories and factories. Close to cities with environmental conservation measures.[/size]
[size=45]Undersecretary of the Ministry of Environment, Jassem, says, “Air and environment pollution raises real concerns in several governorates, including Baghdad and Basra, and the government pays great attention to the crises of climate change and pollution, and has allocated 90 billion dinars to contain the effects of climate change and address pollution, and exploit associated gas to reduce carbon emissions, and move toward... Reducing dependence on fossil fuels and replacing them with clean energy.”[/size]
[size=45]In turn, environmental activist Hamid Al-Iraqi says, “Iraq is going through the most severe stages of water degradation, which threatens the environmental situation and raises air pollution rates. This means the need to move towards reducing emissions resulting from fossil fuels, encouraging and developing the agricultural sector, and relying on crops that require small amounts of water to be watered.” Water, noting that the governments and parliaments that were formed over the past two decades did not provide what was necessary to reduce the effects of climate change.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “There is a need to develop a comprehensive plan for confrontation and adaptation, starting with an understanding with neighboring countries to participate in containing the damage, and making real reforms at home, including reducing oil extraction, enhancing mass transportation, importing electric cars, activating the broken environmental law, and including new legislation that is compatible with... Objectives and decisions of international climate conferences.[/size]
[size=45]In mid-March, the Ministry of Agriculture announced that about half of the agricultural lands in all the country’s cities were out of production as a result of the drought that has been hitting the country for years due to the decline in the levels of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and the scarcity of rain. This came after the Ministries of Agriculture and Water Resources developed an agricultural plan that relies on about 60 percent On groundwater, the Ministry of Agriculture said, “Over the past four years, drought has disrupted the exploitation of 27 million dunums.”[/size]
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