Drought takes toll on Iraq revival efforts
By Missy Ryan YUSUFIYA, Iraq (Reuters) – What was known as history’s fertile crescent, where lush farmland and abundant water gave rise to civilization, is today a dusty desert where the Tigris and Euphrates rivers crawl sluggishly toward the sea. Vast tracts of Iraqi farmland are cracked and barren, precious marshes have dried up and sandstorms blot out the sun. Even “Saddam River,” the flagship drainage system Saddam Hussein launched in the 1980s to restore Iraq to its ancient agriculture glory, has turned into a sickly green stream flowing far below its high-water mark. Such are the symptoms of a worsening water shortage that threatens to undermine Iraq’s efforts to rebuild its economy after six years of war unleashed by the 2003 invasion. … “This is not a new crisis for Iraq, but this time it’s more serious than ever before,” said Amro Hashim, an economic expert at Baghdad’s Mustansiriya University. … “It’s everything going on at once. It’s the urbanization, it’s the climate change, short-term variability in climate, increased demand for food,” said David Molden, deputy head of the International Water Management Institute in Sri Lanka. … Iraq is now in the second year of a major drought, and last year’s use of reserves has made for the worst water shortage in a decade, U.S. officials in Baghdad say. …
