The Iraqi Water Deficit

The Iraqi Water Deficit 

The Iraqi Minister Of Environment: The Water Deficit Will Reach About 11 Billion Cubic Meters In 2035

Posted On2022-08-12 By Sotaliraq   The Iraqi Minister of Environment, Jassem Hammadi, announced that Iraq is “close to 100 days of dust storms of varying intensity during the year” and is likely to increase, noting that “the government’s economic losses in one dusty day exceed 10 billion dinars.”

The Iraqi Minister of Environment said that "Iraq loses 100,000 dunams of agricultural land annually due to drought," stressing that "Iraq has not reached this level of great shortage in its water storage for more than 70 years."

Jassem Hammadi revealed that Iraq has now crossed the stage of water deficit to the so-called water forestry, during which the average citizen does not get his minimum daily needs of 250 liters.

He revealed that "the water deficit will reach about 11 billion cubic meters in 2035," expressing his support for "the regions of the Kurdistan Region to be water storage areas to achieve water security for all of Iraq."

The following is the text of the interview with Iraqi Minister of Environment Jassem Hammadi:

* During this summer, Iraq witnessed more intense and intense dust storms compared to previous years. Are there any figures in the Ministry of Environment about the increase in the number of dust storms this year compared to previous years?

Jassim Hammadi: Dust storms are not recent, and even in the Sumerian figures there is a mention of the occurrence of dust storms, because Iraq is really surrounded by deserts, and this is one of the most important reasons that make it hot spots,

but we must know that the frequency of dust storms has increased a lot in recent years, and the reason Its increase is the impact of urgent climatic changes on Iraq, which was classified as one of the five countries most affected by climate changes, accompanied by a decrease in rainfall rates, and a decrease in our water revenues from upstream countries, with a steady increase in temperatures, and these factors led to an increase in drought rates.

When drought rates increase, desertification and land degradation rates increase, and as a result, dust storm rates increase. This year, yes, dust storms have increased.

* What are the ways to deal with dust storms?

Jassim Hammadi: The issue of dust storms is part of an integrated system of Iraq being affected by a region of major climate extremism. We are classified, as I mentioned, as one of the most affected countries in the world. We have a real problem with an imminent threat, perhaps one of the greatest national security threats in this country, which is the threat of drought.

And you know, that we have great fear of the repercussions of diminishing our water revenues, whether it is in the Kurdistan Region or in the rest of the federal regions of Iraq, and we may not have reached this level for a very long time from the poor amount of water stored in our dams.

For more than seventy years, Iraq has not reached this diminishing rate of our water revenues and our water reserves. You know that four out of the ten regions in which the highest temperatures were recorded in the world are located in Iraq, and they are in Nasiriyah and Basra this summer, temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius.

Facing the impact of dust storms means, there must be a strategic plan to confront drought, and when I say to confront drought, because we have a problem, more than 95% of dust storms that came to us, rather 99% of dust storms that affected all of Iraq, including the region, Coming from the Syrian Badia desert, which is the desert of Deir ez-Zor, and the real reason is that these areas previously contained agricultural irrigation, reclamation and afforestation projects, but their departure for more than 15 years from the control of the Syrian state, with the intensification of the movement of the military sectors of armed groups, led to the deterioration of the soil And now it has become a dust storm area, not only for Iraq, but for other countries such as Kuwait and Iran. Yes, Iran is also suffering.

* Do we have such plans?

Jassim Hammadi: You should know that we have cadres of which I am proud, whether in my ministry, or in the Ministry of Water Resources or in other ministries.

Our real problem in Iraq is that we need an advanced strategy for rational management of our water revenues, as well as an integrated national vision to deal with the policies of the neighboring countries, which are the upstream countries, and you know that Iraq today gets less than 30% of its previous water revenues, taking into account Consider that we have an increase in the population of up to 3% annually,

 that is, the Iraqis are increasing at a rate of one million and 300 thousand annually, and accordingly it is assumed that there will be an increase in our water share from the upstream countries, but in fact we are suffering from large projects, especially dam projects. On the Turkish side, we have a decrease in our water revenues to less than 30%, while the Iranian side cut completely 42 tributaries and rivers.

Therefore, the drought treatment policy, you must bear in mind, that we lose 100,000 dunums annually of arable land that becomes desertified, and outside the agricultural plan as a result of drought. The southern regions, especially Basra, Dhi Qar, Maysan and Muthanna, suffer from a significant change in the quality of water, meaning that it is unfit for human use, and sometimes not even suitable for other uses.

As you know, we have agricultural and industrial uses, electric power plants, and the oil industry, of course the water quality is very poor.

* Experts expect that the number of days we witness dust storms will reach 300 days by 2050. Is this realistic?

Jassim Hammadi: We have 100-year climate scenarios. The Iraqi government has recently taken serious steps to follow up on developments in the world. The world is talking about the environment. In the past, environmental issues were luxury topics that people and scientific elites talk about in salons.

Today, they have become a part of foreign policy and the economy, and part of the national security of countries. We are a highly threatened country.

 It includes 18 intelligence agencies, and indicated that there are 12 countries in the world, whose national security is exposed to serious risks due to climate changes, including Iraq, which was mentioned three times, for reasons first related to the health aspect, for the direct impact of climate changes on the health sector, which is represented in an increase Rates of communicable diseases due to drought, land degradation and desertification, and the direct impact of dust storms on increasing rates of respiratory diseases such as asthma and allergies, and the economic losses associated with them, in addition to losses and diseases related to water quality change.

Second, economic activity was affected. Our losses in one dusty day amounted to more than 10 billion dinars in the economic aspect. In just one day. This is certainly a result of the impact of land and air transportation, and the export of oil, in addition to the great pressure on emergency wards in hospitals.

* These are the losses of the government side only?

Jassim Hammadi: Yes, this is the minimum cost of environmental damage. Every environmental damage has a cost. The World Bank mission in Iraq issued a very important report in 2012, and we are continuing its work excellently, because the Ministry of Environment is considered a mini-Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as a result of its continuous relations with relevant international organizations, the United Nations Environment Organization, international financing funds, and the Climate Secretariat.

The World Bank mission proved that the general budget of Iraq loses about 8 to 10 billion dollars annually, due to environmental damage, and this is a general cost, when there is an increase in air, water and soil pollution rates, in addition to the impact of climate changes, drought and desertification, and therefore if we invest in improving the quality of Air, or in improving water quality, means that we invest strategically in public health, and we will save ourselves the cost that we pay every day with services in hospitals, or in agriculture.

I return to an important topic that you touched on, which is climate scenarios. As you know, we signed the Paris Agreement, the House of Representatives approved and the President of the Republic ratified our accession to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and even Iraq submitted its voluntary plan to respond to its international obligations, which are voluntary commitments, including the Kurdistan Regional Government.

We wrote this important document, which represents the country’s supreme policy, to confront the effects of climate change from 2020 to 2030, and all government sectors at a high level, the level of deputy ministers, participated in the committee that we have the honor to chair, which developed this policy, in cooperation with the UNDP and the regional government Kurdistan, civil society organizations, and the private sector, with a focus on youth and gender, have written a very important document that took into account our special circumstances and needs, called the National Determined Contributions document.

In this document, we took into account that the commitments of all sectors should be integrated into the national and strategic plans and programs from 2020 to 2025, and we took into account an important topic, which is how we can work to reduce emissions, especially in the oil and gas sector, which is an important and fundamental topic.

From 2025 to 2030, we focused on a basic and important issue, which is technology transfer, as we suffer greatly from the outdated technological infrastructure used, especially in the irrigation and agriculture sector.

In fact, we use 90% of our water revenue in agriculture, but this 90% does not bring us food security.

When I give this precious amount of water, which amounts to more than 92%, to the agricultural sector, it is assumed that I achieve the minimum level of food security, but we have not achieved food security, and we import large sums from neighboring countries. So the real reason is that we don't use modern technologies, such as sprinklers, drip irrigation and technology.

* Methods used by the Sumerians.

Jassim Hammadi: 6 thousand years ago. We also need rational techniques in water management. We need an advanced view of water management.

* Is Iraq currently in a water deficit stage?

Jassim Hammadi: We have now passed the stage of water shortage to what is called aquatic forestry, during which the average citizen does not get his minimum daily needs of 250 liters. For more than 70 years, we have not reached this level of great shortage in our water reserves, and the deficit in Iraq will reach 10.8 billion cubic meters in 2035, meaning we will have a water deficit of about 11 billion cubic meters, and this comes as a result of the policies of upstream countries, and in At the same time, we need a rational management of our water revenues at the internal level, and the protection of water resources.

* There is the file of Iran, and the file of Turkey. Iran in previous years cut off many rivers and tributaries that flow into Iraq, but in your meetings with Iranian delegations, what are Iran's responses to what Iraq demands? I remember the government said last year that the State Department would intervene, but it hasn't explicitly done so yet. What do the Iranians say?

Jassim Hammadi: Frankly, the issue of water is a very sensitive issue, and the Iraqi government considers it one of the threats to national security, and when I say threats to national security, it is related to the lives and health of people. This country called Iraq, or what is called Mesopotamia, Mesopotamia, derives its name from the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and this great civilization, of which we are all proud, was established only because it was established on the edge of fresh water.

In Iraq, the first human settlement was at the edge of fresh water in the city of Ur in southern Iraq. The water file is so important that the Iraqi government called for the formation of a supreme committee for water, chaired by the Prime Minister, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, and comprising the ministers of environment, agriculture, water resources, security services, the armed forces and the interior, that is, the concerned ministers, because we consider the water file a file related to the national security of the country, because In the absence of sufficient water revenues, rates of land degradation and desertification will increase.

* As happened in Syria?

Jassim Hammadi: Absolutely. It is also possible, that it is one of the causes of external migration. So, dealing with this file has internal repercussions, and it can have external repercussions. In fact, the water file may be one of the most important reasons for the transmission of cross-border conflicts, conflicts between states.

Today, as you know, we have signs of a crisis regarding the Renaissance Dam between Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt, as well as we are suffering from the water problem, and we have a high-level negotiating delegation headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, of which we are members, and we held rounds of talks with the Turkish side.

* The same words we heard when we were in Baghdad, and the Minister of Water Resources talked to us when he said, “Turkey is responsive to us at least, but the Iranians are not responsive.” How many rivers has Iran cut off?

Jassem Hammadi: About two months ago, there was an important visit by Iranian Vice President Ali Seljuk, who is the head of the Environmental Protection Organization in Iran. The main reason for his visit was to increase the number of dust storms, and he asked Iraq to prevent dust storms from occurring.

I spoke frankly with him as his counterpart in meetings held with the participation of the Prime Minister and the Ministers of Water Resources and Agriculture. In these meetings, Iran pledged that there will be a visit soon by the Iranian Minister of Energy, which has not taken place until this moment.

* The Kurdistan Region has strategic projects to build dams. How do you see these dams? Do the so-called “Upstream” dams, and I think scientifically the dams should be “Upstream”, pose a threat to Iraq? We often hear this, and the issue of the existence or construction of dams in the Kurdistan Region may be used politically.

Jassim Hammadi: Some people can't look at things beyond their nose. I ask you and the viewers to know that the irrigation system in Iraq is one of the best systems that were built in the time of the British, the time of the British occupation of Iraq, in addition to the successive Iraqi governments that established projects, but the spirit of these dams or the main idea of ​​establishing these dams, and the irrigation system In Iraq, it is based on the principle or concept of staving off floods.

So this system deals with an abundance of water, and it is not prepared for storage with water scarcity.

 So I believe with certainty, and I always refer to the topographical nature of the land, and at the same time the effect of climatic changes on the higher regions, the regions of the Kurdistan Region, and I mean the temperatures in them, compared to the central and southern regions, or the sedimentary plain regions that are not suitable for building dams, but rather Small dams and regulators can be installed in it, but I believe that Iraq must transform and change the concept of the national irrigation system, from a system that was designed to ward off a flood, to a storage system based on what is called water harvesting.

 I am for the Kurdistan Region to be water storage areas to achieve water security for all of Iraq. As you know, we have a problem with the Dukan Dam because of the earthquake that hit his body, and we are no longer able to store large amounts of water in it. I am frankly one of the advocates and fans, and this is the opinion of the Iraqi government, that we support all efforts to establish a water security system that achieves the minimum level of water security for Iraq.

* I studied in Iraqi schools, and I am sure that is the same for you, and we learned that Iraq is a rich country that is very cold and rains in winter, and the temperatures are high and dry in summer. This was the general geographical definition, but I think it is time to change this definition. We are not a rich country.

Jassim Hammadi: You may have heard this principle from me. I always say, that we must extract from the mind of the Iraqi citizen, the concept that we are a rich country, or I call it the theory of gossip. The government should get out of providing the service.

Today, the global economic trend is based on the need for the state to contribute to creating a capable and capable private sector, for the government to take charge of policy formulation only, and the private sector to undertake implementation, and I believe that the private sector is better able to implement.

Why did you say that Iraq is hot and dry in summer and cold and rainy in winter? Climate change has hit us a big problem, and it has changed many of these concepts. Iraq is no longer in this form at all. Rather, winter days have become very few, and rainfall rates are very few.

I am, frankly, very pleased to be in the Kurdistan Region, and to be with Rudaw, whom I love and appreciate for her sobriety. And I hope, God willing, that we will have a future vision for dealing with the issue of climate change. Climate change means the future and future generations, and I, frankly, and my team are making great efforts with the support of the Prime Minister, the President of the Kurdistan Region and the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, and we have close cooperation with the Environment Agency.

I am the official in charge of the mine affairs program in Iraq, and today we had meetings with the Mine Foundation, an unprecedented coordination with the KRG. I hope that we will develop a national plan and strategy to counter the impact of climate change.

We will move towards diversifying the sources of our economy, encouraging the use of renewable energies, and emphasizing importantly that water security, meaning food security, means the national security of the country.

 Interview: Rudaw Media Network    LINK