Shatha Khalil *
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called on the Minister of Water Resources Hassan al-Janabi to discuss the water crisis in Iraq in general and the southern governorates in particular in order to prevent the danger and take the necessary precautions and prepare for official talks with the Turkish side regarding the next water crisis.
Al-Janabi said that Iraqi water has deteriorated causing concern in recent times, and unusually, as it negatively affected agricultural land, rivers, lakes, livestock and environment, led to desertification and many problems.
Al-Janabi warned of the development of that crisis to sedition, especially as it affects the lives of people; as some provinces began to overrun the quotas of other provinces, especially in Dhi Qar.
Iraq has been suffering for years from a steady decline in water revenues, and this was exacerbated by the water shortage crisis and low rainfall in the country over the past years, because of changing policies of countries that are sources of water resources.
As a result, Iraq suffered heavy economic losses, as agricultural lands and the environment have been deteriorated and the emergence of serious problems such as desertification and sand dunes, demographic and societal problems and the environment that damaged the interests of Iraq.
The Ministry of Water Resources, for its part, stressed the seriousness of this file because it does not threaten the province alone, but the whole of Iraq, and that the concern of Abadi and the ministry is legitimate, indicating the possibility of discussing and consulting with the Turkish side on the Alesso Dam.
In the same context, the ministry periodically organizes scientific seminars and conferences to find solutions to mitigate the damage caused by water scarcity.
“Iraq is an important country in the Middle East and has economic, political and water ties with most of the neighboring countries,” said Abdul Latif Rashid, a former adviser and water minister.
Rashid pointed out that the political ties cast a negative shadow on the reality of water in Iraq and then on the life cycle in agriculture, industry and life related to people’s lives.
Rashid pointed out the factors affecting the scarcity of water as follows:
the steady population growth, the growth of industry, the increase in agricultural areas and the waste of water in personal uses, the policies of the upstream countries such as the construction of dams, storage facilities, irrigation projects, construction of electric stations and climate change.
Al-Rasheed called for thinking and action by the state, governmental and civil organizations, intellectuals and even ordinary citizens, to participate in a broad national action that would drive any potential danger from the expected water shortage.
The former Minister of Water Resources pointed to three main factors that have had a major role in water scarcity problem or exacerbated its negative effects: climate and nature where the past years have witnessed a radical change in the temperature rise above natural levels, the increase in desertification due to continuous drought, and the large shortage in rain and snow levels.
He called on Iraq to engage with neighboring countries in serious and peaceful dialogues to achieve long-term water sharing agreements on the basis of mutual interest of all parties, exchange information on operational procedures for dams and increase the discharge of water rates to the downstream countries, and inform Iraq about the operational plan for water resources from neighboring countries in order to ensure a fair water quota for Iraq.
The Department of Water Resources in Iraq called on the State (in all its aspects) to promote the vital water sector and to support it seriously to achieve water and food security.
And it pointed out a set of important political, organizational, technical and social fundamentals in overcoming the current problem. From the political and organizational point of view, it calls for the formation of a supreme body or higher council for water headed by the prime ministry or the Ministry of Water Resources working to take strategic decisions to be negotiated with the countries that are participated with Iraq in the rivers in accordance with a well-planned plan to serve its interests. Technically, the engineering and scientific studies will be fertile ground for the development of qualified professional leaders working in the field of water resources and socially in educating farmers not to rely on conventional irrigation methods in the first place which are causing significant waste to water imports. Naturally, the decline in water resources is directly affecting food security, especially locally produced food which is dependent on external imports.
Rashid agreed with what was said by the minister of water resources Hassan al-Janabi saying “The Iraqis have historically had a culture of conserving water and inventing water conservation methods,” but today, the social culture is completely reversed , it is the waste of water by individuals and groups as well as waste in all other areas.”
The water file is one of the most important problems in the future and the strategic files facing the world in general, and the Middle East in particular, and most important Arab water sources, whose sources are outside its territory in countries such as Iran, Turkey, Ethiopia and other areas, making Arab water policy hostage to water and food dependency of those countries which is reflected in the political, economic and social relations of Arab countries that are striving to resolve these crises.
It seems that the conflict is not limited to the political or military aspects, but includes water and food, and a new concept of comprehensive security is developed, taking into consideration the security dimension of the sea and ocean waters, and the Turkish and Iranian uniqueness of Iraq and Syria’s water resources where the Tigris and Euphrates rivers cross from Turkey through Syria to Iraq, and through modern history did not have cooperative partnership projects serving the three countries for the exploitation of water and development of projects to meet the water needs of other Arab countries, but each country contributed – especially Turkey – to build its own projects individually and without regional cooperation, leading to the outbreak of political and diplomatic conflicts and wars between all parties.
Water Disputes:
The Iraqi water disputes with neighboring countries are due to the Turkish initiative in 1990, when the Euphrates River was closed for 90 days to fill the Ataturk Dam reservoir,
The construction of dams by Turkey under the title of the Kaz project, which includes the construction of giant dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which are the main arteries of the West Asia region, has caused a major disruption in the flow of water to neighboring countries. These include the construction of 22 dams, the most important being the Ataturk Dam on the Euphrates and the Elissu dam on the Tigris River.
Low water levels in the lower Tigris and Euphrates have led to the abandonment of large tracts of agricultural land in Syria and Iraq, and this has greatly affected the formation of the “Great Hor” in the latter parts of the river
The Ktund dam was built on the Iranian Karon River and close to a salt mine, leading to the salinity of fresh water, the transfer of salt to fertile soil and the drying of palm groves.
Although Turkey has no shortage of water due to the abundance of traditional and non-traditional water resources, such as rainwater, snow, rivers and inland seas, which makes it self-sufficient, water and food sufficient, and it continues to build water projects on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers seeking to reach Strategic power in the Middle East, and its rise as a middle power between Islam and the West, or between East and West.
As a result of these projects, Arab water security is at stake because of Arab neglect, and the unjustified waste of water and its sources, which highlights the possibility of a new war in the future, in light of the sharp decline in water per capita and below the extent of
Water sufficiency.
Water resources in Iraq:
Iraq is located in the subtropical and semi-arid regions of most parts of the country. It is dominated by the Mediterranean climate, especially in the mountainous northern regions of the country. The average annual rainfall is about 216 millimeters, ranging from 1200 millimeters in the north eastern regions of the country to less than 100 millimeters of more than 60% of the rest of the country (south).
This means that water sources based on rainfall in Iraq are scarce, and groundwater resources are weak, although “geological studies have shown the spread of aquifers (layers of groundwater) of sandy and calcareous rocks, especially in sedimentary plain areas where the was agriculture in old Ages, and the amount of groundwater available for use in Iraq estimated by about two billion cubic meters.
The surface water and rivers are the most important resource for Iraq. The Iraqi Tigris and Euphrates, which originate from Turkey, are located on Iraqi territory. The Euphrates River crosses about 1,000 kilometers inside Iraqi territory, while the Tigris River passes about 1,300 kilometers inside Iraqi territory constituting a strategic importance for Iraqi water and food security.
Iraqi’s water reserves exceed 80 billion cubic meters annually under Normal River conditions, the water resources of the Tigris and its tributaries are about 50 billion cubic meters, compared with 30 billion cubic meters represented by the annual imports of the Euphrates from Turkey. There are also seasonal and permanent rivers in Iraq, they are shared with other countries such as Syria, Turkey and Iran, such as the Karkh River on the Iranian border, which casts in the Hawr al-Hawiza, as well as the Karun River, which cast in the Shatt al-Arab, the rivers of Taib and the streams of Diyali, Zab and others , this is about surface waters while the underground waters are concentrated mostly in the northern and northeastern regions of Iraq and in the western desert region of the Euphrates, these resources are estimated at about 2 billion cubic meters, and the amount of water desalination in Iraq for industrial purposes is approximately 100 million cubic meters.
Tigris River
The area of the Tigris River Basin in Iraq is 253,000 km2, or 54% of the total area of the river basin. The average annual surface runoff is estimated at 21.33 km3 when entering Iraqi territory.
all its tributaries are located on its left side, and from these vital tributaries:
– The ( Great Zab) , al zab al-kabir , which originates from Turkey, provides the river with 13.18 km2 of water when it meets the Tigris River, it occupies 62% of the total area of this river basin which is amounted 25,810 km 2 in Iraq.
The (little Zab) al- Zabal-Asfal which originates from Iran supplied with Dakan dam (6.8 km2), area of its basin 21,475 km2 (74% of which is in Iraqi territory), is about 7.17 km3 of which 5.07 km3 is the annual safe return of water after the construction of the Dokan dam.
– Adhaim River, which occupies a distance of 13,000 km2 all inside Iraqi territory, generates about 0.79 km3 when it meets the Tigris River, a sporadic river exposed to torrential torrents.
– The Diyala River, which flows from Iran and extends over 31,896 km2, is 75% of it in Iraqi territory. It is supplied with a Darbandikhan Dam and generates about 5.74 km3 when it meets the Tigris River.
(Al-Taib, Duwarij and Al-shahabi), which together cover more than 8,000 square kilometers. These rivers originate from Iranian territory and come together with one cubic kilometer of saline water to the Tigris River.
– The Karkh River, which has its main course in Iran, comes from a drainage area of 46,000 km2, about 6.3 km2 per year to Iraq, especially to Hawr al-Hawiza during the flood season and to the Tigris River.
Euphrates River:
The Euphrates River is one of the greatest rivers in Turkey. It flows from the mountainous highlands of the Erzurum Plateau, which lies between Lake Wan and the Black Sea, southeast of Turkey. The length of the river in the three countries (Turkey, Syria and Iraq) is about 2940 km , A Turkish share of this water (1176) km, the share of Syria (604) km, while it passes in Iraq in a distance of about (1160) km
The area of the Euphrates River basin is about 444,000 square kilometers.
The Euphrates River derives its water resources from two main sources: Murat Soo, which is about 60 km long, and Furat Soo, about 40 km long. These two tributaries run to the south- west.
Turkey is supplied with about 90% of the total annual flow of the Euphrates River, while the rest is in Syria, and no water is added at the bottom of the river in Iraq. Turkey contributes 38% directly to the main stream of the Tigris River and 11% to its tributaries, which join the main stream of the river in the lower part of Iraq.
The Iraqi highlands that depend on the Euphrates are: Anbar, Babil, Karbala, Najaf, Qadisiyah, Dhi Qar, Muthanna, as well as parts of Baghdad and Basra Governorate. Before the river reaches Iraq, it enters the Syrian territory at the city of Jrablos.
The real problem in Iraq:
The low level of water in the two rivers “Tigris and Euphrates”, although it is a common problem suffered by most of the provinces of the South, especially in the file of agriculture, the Dhi Qar suffer mainly in the file of drinking water, and threatens to stop all projects of potable water, whose production of energy has been affected by the decline in water levels. Dhi Qar Governorate is the most affected by the low levels of water, as it is located before the last station that benefits from the water of the two rivers before reaching the Gulf.
The water policy crisis was caused by drought and irregular ecosystems in the lower reaches of the two rivers. This has had a negative impact on the nature of the climate and living in the surrounding areas. One of the important causes of the water crisis is the increase in population and the high demand for water, mismanagement and other important causes contributed to the occurrence of these water crises.
Turkey and Iran have managed properly the water file in their favor, in violation of bilateral agreements, international treaties, customs and good neighborliness, while the mechanism of drawing up the external positions (or water policy) of the State of Iraq is still unclear to guarantee Iraq’s rights to shared water resources .formerly, the negotiating position of Iraq with Syria and Turkey was weak.
The most important factor that determines the nature of water disputes between riparian states is the distribution of water rations and the way of management of water basins. Poor management results in the waste of river water on the stream, causing the least amount of water to reach down river areas.
Economic unity
Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies