Iraq's water reserves hit 80-year low
MISHKHAB, Iraq: Iraqi children walk in an almost dried up stream in Najaf province on May 24, 2025, where years of drought have negatively affected the fauna and flora of the region. - AFP
BAGHDAD: Iraq's water reserves are at their lowest in 80 years after a dry rainy season, a government official said Sunday, as its share from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers shrinks. Water is a major issue in the country of 46 million people undergoing a serious environmental crisis because of climate change, drought, rising temperatures and declining rainfall.
Authorities also blame upstream dams built in neighboring Iran and Turkey for dramatically lowering the flow of the once-mighty Tigris and Euphrates, which have irrigated Iraq for millennia. 'The summer season should begin with at least 18 billion cubic meters... yet we only have about 10 billion cubic meters,' water resources ministry spokesperson Khaled Shamal told AFP.
'Last year our strategic reserves were better. It was double what we have now,' Shamal said. 'We haven't seen such a low reserve in 80 years,' he added, saying this was mostly due to the reduced flow from the two rivers. Iraq currently receives less than 40 percent of its share from the Tigris and Euphrates, according to Shamal.
He said sparse rainfall this winter and low water levels from melting snow has worsened the situation in Iraq, considered by the United Nations to be one of the five countries most vulnerable to some impacts of climate change. Water shortages have forced many farmers in Iraq to abandon the land, and authorities have drastically reduced farming activity to ensure sufficient supplies of drinking water.
Agricultural planning in Iraq always depends on water, and this year it aims to preserve 'green spaces and productive areas' amounting to more than 1.5 million Iraqi dunams (375,000 hectares), said Shamal. Last year, authorities allowed farmers to cultivate 2.5 million dunams of corn, rice, and orchards, according to the water ministry.
Water has been a source of tension between Iraq and Turkey, which has urged Baghdad to adopt efficient water management plans. In 2024, Iraq and Turkey signed a 10-year 'framework agreement', mostly to invest in projects to ensure better water resources management. – AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Kuwait Times
18 hours ago
- Kuwait Times
Nigeria flood death toll jumps past 200
MOKWA: A woman stands next to debris from damaged buildings in Mokwa after the town was hit by torrential rains overnight Wednesday into Thursday, with the flooding displacing more than 3,000 people. – AFP ABUJA: Flash flooding in north-central Nigeria last week killed more than 200 people, the Niger state humanitarian commissioner said Tuesday, while hundreds more remain missing and are feared dead. The town of Mokwa was hit with the worst flash flood in living memory Thursday from overnight rains, with more than 250 homes destroyed and swathes of the town wiped out in a single morning. The announcement comes after several days of the official toll standing at around 150, even as residents were sometimes missing more than a dozen members in a single family. 'We have more than 200... corpses,' Ahmad Suleiman told Nigerian broadcaster Channels Television, adding: 'Nobody can tell you the number of casualties in Niger state right now because up till now, we are still looking for some corpses.' 'We're still looking for more,' he added. But, he said, 'sincerely speaking, we cannot ascertain.' Given the number of people still missing nearly a week later, the toll from a single morning of flooding in Mokwa could be worse than all of 2024 combined, which saw 321 deaths from flooding across the country. Climate change has made weather swings in Nigeria more extreme, but residents in Mokwa said human factors were also at play. Water had been building up for days behind an abandoned railway track that runs along the edge of the town, residents told AFP. Floodwaters would usually pass through a couple of culverts in the mounds and run into a narrow channel. But debris had blocked the culverts, forcing water to build up behind the clay walls that eventually gave way. Floods in Nigeria are often exacerbated by inadequate drainage, the construction of homes on waterways and the dumping of waste in drains and water channels. Volunteers and disaster response teams have recovered bodies nearly 10 kilometers away after they were swept into the Niger River. Days before the disaster struck Mokwa, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency had warned of possible flash floods in 15 of Nigeria's 36 states, including Niger state, between Wednesday and Friday. When AFP reporters visited the town earlier this week, a powerful stench filled the air, which residents said came from decaying corpses trapped under the rubble. The government said it has delivered aid, but locals have criticized what they say is a lacklustre response, with multiple families telling AFP they hadn't received anything. — AFP
Kuwait Times
4 days ago
- Kuwait Times
Sudden hailstorm lashes Alexandria
ALEXANDRIA: A member of municipal emergency services shows a block of hail during works to clear an obstructed underpass on May 31, 2025. - AFP ALEXANDRIA: An unseasonal rainstorm battered the Egyptian city of Alexandria on Saturday, flooding roads and damaging seafront businesses in the latest bout of erratic weather to hit the region. Hailstones pelted the city overnight, forcing people to flee cafes as gusts of wind blew the ice pellets through windows, according to footage posted on social media. Lightning lit up the skies and underpasses were submerged. Alexandria Governor Ahmed Khaled Hassan raised the alert level and emergency crews worked through the morning to tow cars and clear debris. No casualties were reported. Egypt's health ministry said. Storms are common along Egypt's Mediterranean coast in winter, but media outlets described this spring event as 'unprecedented'. Scientists warn extreme weather is becoming more frequent due to climate change, which drives both droughts and intense, unpredictable rainstorms. Alexandria is highly vulnerable to climate impacts, suffering from coastal erosion, rising sea levels and flooding from annual storms. The Mediterranean could rise by up to a metre within three decades, according to the UN-mandated Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Even under more optimistic forecasts, a 50-cm rise by 2050 would flood 30 percent of Alexandria, displace a quarter of its six million residents and cost 195,000 jobs. Authorities have begun mitigation efforts, including constructing a massive breakwater along the coast. – AFP
Kuwait Times
26-05-2025
- Kuwait Times
Iraq's water reserves hit 80-year low
MISHKHAB, Iraq: Iraqi children walk in an almost dried up stream in Najaf province on May 24, 2025, where years of drought have negatively affected the fauna and flora of the region. - AFP BAGHDAD: Iraq's water reserves are at their lowest in 80 years after a dry rainy season, a government official said Sunday, as its share from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers shrinks. Water is a major issue in the country of 46 million people undergoing a serious environmental crisis because of climate change, drought, rising temperatures and declining rainfall. Authorities also blame upstream dams built in neighboring Iran and Turkey for dramatically lowering the flow of the once-mighty Tigris and Euphrates, which have irrigated Iraq for millennia. 'The summer season should begin with at least 18 billion cubic meters... yet we only have about 10 billion cubic meters,' water resources ministry spokesperson Khaled Shamal told AFP. 'Last year our strategic reserves were better. It was double what we have now,' Shamal said. 'We haven't seen such a low reserve in 80 years,' he added, saying this was mostly due to the reduced flow from the two rivers. Iraq currently receives less than 40 percent of its share from the Tigris and Euphrates, according to Shamal. He said sparse rainfall this winter and low water levels from melting snow has worsened the situation in Iraq, considered by the United Nations to be one of the five countries most vulnerable to some impacts of climate change. Water shortages have forced many farmers in Iraq to abandon the land, and authorities have drastically reduced farming activity to ensure sufficient supplies of drinking water. Agricultural planning in Iraq always depends on water, and this year it aims to preserve 'green spaces and productive areas' amounting to more than 1.5 million Iraqi dunams (375,000 hectares), said Shamal. Last year, authorities allowed farmers to cultivate 2.5 million dunams of corn, rice, and orchards, according to the water ministry. Water has been a source of tension between Iraq and Turkey, which has urged Baghdad to adopt efficient water management plans. In 2024, Iraq and Turkey signed a 10-year 'framework agreement', mostly to invest in projects to ensure better water resources management. – AFP
