Iraq is one of the countries that is suffering from water shortage problems and, for this reason, wastewater treatment plantsbecome a necessity to minimize this problem. In this study, the impact of Al-Hilla WWTP (wastewater treatment plant) on theenvironment has been studied. This was achieved using SimaPro software package. This software is a powerful tool for analyzing theenvironmental impact on products during their whole life cycle. A huge amount of knowledge about the environment is built into theprogram and database, enabling to analyze a product with a minimum of specialized knowledge. The results of LCA (life cycleassessment) showed that the impact and damage on the environment by Al-Hilla WWTP was 41 bad points for each 1 m3 of treatedwastewater. The most environmental impacts potentially were global warming, respiratory inorganics and non-renewable energy. Thestudy also showed that most of the effects were the result of the use of cement, steel and electricity consumption
The present study used environmental criteria to appraise the sustainability of the urban water system(UWS) of Al-Hilla city, Iraq. The study focused on the assessment of the environmental impact anddamage to the urban water system. Environmental criteria of sustainability included a number ofindicators. These indicators were selected using tools of sustainability analysis, where life cycleassessment (LCA) was used to select and analyze the environmental indicators by applyingSimaPro7.1.8. LCA. The results for urban water system in Al-Hilla city showed that water treatmentplants (WTPs) and distribution network were most sustainable compared with sewerage network andwaste water treatment plants (WWTP). WTPs impact and damage on the environment and distributionnetwork was 4 and 11.5 points respectively, while Al-Hilla WWTP and sewerage network was 41 and291 points respectively, for delivery of one cubic meter of potable water at the point of consumption ortreatment of one cubic meter of wastewater. In addition, the study showed that most of the effects weredue to electricity consumption, pumping raw water and clean water, chemical use (such as chlorine),pipes used in water distribution and sewage collection networks, and diesel used for plant operation.
Solid waste management is becoming more serious problem with time especially in developing countries like Iraq. It is not regulated sufficiently in Iraq. At present, there are various techniques used for solid waste management such as landfill, thermal treatment, biological treatment, recycling etc. The landfill is the most common mode for the disposal of solid waste. There are no regulations for landfill site selection which is quite complex process. In this study, landfill site selection was performed by using Multicriteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) and Geographic Information System (GIS) for the Al-Mseiab qadaa. Even in the case of existing landfills in this qadaa, it's temporary or non-conforming to the environmental condition. In order to determine landfill site that is good for the inhabitants and the environment several criteria (e.g. as Urban centers, Land use, Airports, Pipes, Power lines, Railways, Roads, Slope, Streams, Surface water, Industrial areas, Oil pipes, Liquid gas pipes, Soil types) were used to select the proper site. The MCDA was used to measure the relative importance weighting for each criterion used. Each map layer was formed with the aid of GIS and final suitability map was created by overlay analyses of each criterion map. According to obtained results, high and low suitable areas were determined in the study area. Field checks were also performed to determine the accuracy and suitability of candidate site.
Waste management system is not regulated in Iraq. At present, there are various techniques used for solid waste management such as landfill, thermal treatment, biological treatment, recycling etc. Landfill is the most common mode for the disposal of solid waste. However, landfill site selection is quite complex process and it depends on several criteria and regulations. In this study landfill site selection is performed for Al-Mahaweel qadaa using Multicriteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) And Geographic Information System (GIS). It should be mentioned however, that the existing landfill in this area, is temporary and does not fulfill the environmental conditions. To select suitable landfill site, several criteria were considered such as Urban centers, Land use, Airports, Pipes, Power lines, Railways, Roads, slope, streams, Surface water, Industrial areas, Oil pipes, Liquid gas pipes, Soil types are prepared. (MCDA) was used to evaluate the relative importance of each criterion. Each map layers were formed with the aid of GIS and final suitability map was created by overlay analyses of each criterion map. According to obtained results, high and low suitable areas were determined in the study area. Field and office checks were performed out to determine the accuracy and suitability of the candidate sites.
Solid waste management is one of the most important challenges facing the local administration in the governorate of Najaf. This paper investigates the domestic amount generated in Najaf gover- norate for period 2015-2035 and the required landfill volume for the disposal of the waste. The daily per capita waste generation in Al-Najaf is 0.42 kg, the humidity content about 43% and the ound 473 kg/m3. The total amount was about 5,914,415 ton and the required landfill volume is 11,828,829 m3.
Solid waste management aspect is one of the most important challenges facing the local administration in the Governorate of Najaf. Therefore, this study aims to provide for solid waste management problem by choosing the best locations for the establishment of sanitary landfills in the governorate. In this study, GIS (geographic information system) and MCDA (multi-criteria decision analysis) were used based on 17 environmental, economic and geological criteria converted to input digital map layers. These were urban centres, cemetery, airports, electrical power lines, oil pipes, railways, roads, slope, historical sites, main rivers,industrial areas, religion sites, wells, military area, electrical power plants, nature reserves and national borders to select most importance sites in the governorate. AHP (analytic hierarchy process) method was used in weighting the criteria used. All layers’ maps were graded from 0 (not suitable) to 5 (most suitable) using spatial information scale then SAW (simple additive weighting)method was integrated in GIS used to calculate the suitability index for the studied area. The results indicated that 4.4% of the study region is suitable for land¿ll siting with grading values greater than 4.0. This included five sites distributed in three qadhaas of governorate.
In Najaf Governorate, Iraq, there are five landfill sites. This study aims to rank these sites based on their criteria which are site capacity, land elevation and land price. AHP (analytic hierarchy process) method was used to weight the criteria and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution. Fuzzy TOPSIS (technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution) method was used to rank these sites from best to worst. Based on AHP method, the site capacity criterion was the most important than land price and land elevation.
Industrial, agricultural and rural activities may result in pollution of watercourses with elevated trace metal concentrations and implications for water supply and ecosystem functioning. The concentration of the trace metals Fe, Mn, Zn, Co, Pb, Cu, and Cd in the water and clay fractions (<2μm) of the bank sediments of River Tigris in Baghdad city were determined. Dissolved trace metals concentrations were far below the upper permissible limits during 2012-2013. There was no consistent pattern between element concentrations and river discharge. Seasonal interrelations between water and sediments were most obvious for Fe that decreased in both environments with rising flows during autumn. Although independent of discharge, Mn in water and sediments often followed each other at all stations. Zinc, however, increased in the sediments and decreased in the water with discharge. The clay fractions were slightly to strongly enriched in trace metals with the gradient Co > Fe > Zn > Mn > Cu suggesting absorption of the metals on sediment substrate.
Iraq relies in its water resources on the Rivers Tigris and Euphrates and their tributaries. It used to be considered rich in its water resources until 1970. Then, the water quantity started to decrease due to the construction of hydrological projects within the riparian countries as well as the effect of climate change. In addition, water management planning in Iraq requires number of strategies that can help to overcome the water shortage problem. In this work, the negative problems are discussed and solutions are given to solve the water shortage problem.
Middle East, like North Africa, is considered as arid to semi-arid region. Water shortages in this region, represents an extremely important factor in stability of the region and an integral element in its economic development and prosperity. Iraq was an exception due to presence of Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. After the 1970s the situation began to deteriorate due to continuous decrease in discharges of these rivers, are expected to dry by 2040 with the current climate change. In the present paper, long rainfall trends up to the year 2099 were studied in Sinjar area, northwest of Iraq, to give an idea about its future prospects. Two emission scenarios, used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (A2 and B2), were employed to study the long term rainfall trends in northwestern Iraq. All seasons consistently project a drop in daily rainfall for all future periods with the summer season is expected to have more reduction compared to other seasons. Generally the average rainfall trend shows a continuous decrease. The overall average annual rainfall is slightly above 210 mm. In view of these results, prudent water management strategies have to be adopted to overcome or mitigate consequences of future severe water crisis.
Iraq is facing water shortage problem despite the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. In this research, long rainfall trends up to the year 2099 were studied in Sulaimani city northeast Iraq to give an idea about future prospects. Two emission scenarios used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (A2 & B2) were employed. The results indicates that the average annual rainfall show a significant downward trend for both A2 and B2 scenarios. In addition, winter projects some increase/decrease in the daily rainfall statistics of wet days, the spring season show very slight drop and no change for both scenarios. However both summer and autumn show a significant reduction in maximum rainfall value especially in 2080s while the other statistics remain nearly the same. The extremes events are to decrease slightly in 2080s with highest decrease associated with A2 scenario. This because the rainfall under scenario A2 is more significant than under scenario B2 and temperature can be very hot and worse with increase in emission scenario which causes the moist air to be evaporated before going up and cause the rainfall. The return period of a certain rainfall will increase in the future when a present storm of 20 year could occur once every 43 year in the 2080s. An increase in the frequency of extreme rainfall depends on the return period, season of the year, the future period considered and the emission scenario under which it will occur
Countries in Middle East and North Africa (MENA region) are considered arid and semi-arid areas that are suffering from water scarcity. They are expected to have more water shortages problem due to climatic change. Iraq is located in the Middle East covering an area of 433,970 square kilometers populated by 31 million inhabitants.One of the solutions suggested to overcome water scarcity is Rain Water Harvesting (RWH).In this study Macro rainwater harvesting technique had been tested for future rainfall data that were predicted by two emission scenarios of climatic change (A2 and B2) for the period 2020-2099 at Sulaimaniyah Governorate north east of Iraq. Future volumes of total runoff that might be harvested for different conditions of maximum, average, and minimum future rainfall seasons under both scenarios (A2 and B2) were calculated. The results indicate that the volumes of average harvested runoff will be reduced when average rainfall seasons are considered due to the effect of climatic change on future rainfall. The reduction reached 53.73 % and 43.0% when scenario A2 is for scenario B2 are considered respectively.
Countries in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are considered arid and semi-arid areas that are suffering from water scarcity. They are expected to have more water shortages problem due to climatic change. Iraq is located in the Middle East covering an area of 433,970 square kilometers populated by 31 million inhabitants.One of the solutions suggested to overcome water scarcity is Rain Water Harvesting (RWH).In this study Macro rainwater harvesting technique had been tested for future rainfall data that were predicted by two emission scenarios of climatic change (A2 and B2) for the period 2020-2099 at Sulaimaniyah Governorate north east of Iraq. Future volumes of total runoff that might be harvested for different conditions of maximum, average, and minimum future rainfall seasons under both scenarios (A2 and B2) were calculated. The results indicate that the volumes of average harvested runoff will be reduced when average rainfall seasons are considered due to the effect of climatic change on future rainfall. The reduction reached 53.73 % and 43.0% when scenario A2 is for scenario B2 are considered respectively.
Worries concerning the possibility of the dam failure due to the seepages under the foundation of Mosul Dam during its construction and operation phases enhanced the application of several dam failure models on Mosul Dam case. All the applied models gave similar results. It was noticed through the models that the wave in case of the dam failure will have a height of 54m and the discharge will be of the order of 551000 m3/sec. This wave will reach the capital city of Iraq “Baghdad” after about 38 hours. The discharge of the River Tigris at Baghdad will be 46000m3/sec and the height of the wave will reach 4m. The propagation of the wave along this distance will cause a catastrophe. About 500000 civilians will die in addition to the unbelievable damage that will be caused to the infrastructure of the country.
The Fatha (ex-Lower Fars) Formation (Middle Miocene) is the predominant stratigraphic unit in the Mosul Dam area. It is about 250 meters thick near Mosul. Marls, chalky limestone, gypsum, anhydrite, and limestone form a layered sequence of rocks under the foundation of the dam. The foundation of the dam is mainly resting on the Fatha Formation (Middle Miocene) which is highly karstified. Karstic limestone and the development of solution cavities within the gypsum and anhydrite layers are the main geological features under the foundation of the dam. The right (west) abutment is located in the steeply dipping Fatha Formation within Butmah East anticline with SE plunge being in the reservoir north of the dam, whereas the left (east) abutment is located on gently dipping beds of the Fatha Formation, which is overlain by fine clastics of the Injana Formation. These differences in lithology as well the dip amount and direction along both abutments as well upstream and downstream of the dam have certainly affected on the hydraulic pressure and increased the dissolution ability of the gypsum and limestone beds, along the abutments and the foundations, which are already karstified in nearby areas. Consequently, more gypsum, anhydrite and limestone beds are dissolved and karst openings are continuously increasing, as the exerted hydraulic pressure is continuous.First appearance of sinkholes on the right bank down-stream was not until approximately six years after the filling of the reservoir began. The surface expression of the sinkholes suggests that they are caused by an under-ground collapse. Concentric tension cracks appear to have developed around the central void as the sinkholes have developed progressively. Karstification and formation of sinkholes are the most dangerous features threatening the safety of Mosul dam.
Euphrates and Tigris Rivers are the longest Rivers in southwest Asia. The main utilizers of the water of these rivers and tributaries are Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq. The two rivers rise in Turkey, which makes it the riparian hegemon. Some of the tributaries of the Tigris and Shat Al-Arab Rivers rise in Iran, which makes it the riparian hegemon for these rivers. Iraq and Syria are the lower countries in the basin and for this reason, they always to ensure the quantity of water required to satisfy their requirements. All these countries are in the Middle East, which characterized by its shortage of water resources. Since the 1970s conflict between riparian counties were noticed due to population growth rates, food security, energy needs, economic and technological development, political fragmentation, international water laws, water and management availability and public awareness. These caused tensions, which sometimes escalated to the verge of war. To solve this conflict a mediator is required that has the capability to bring all countries concerned to the negotiation table. Syria and Iraq are to give Turkey and Iran some incentives to cooperate. Furthermore, all counties are to adopt prudent strategic plan based on comprehensive resources development to ensure good water management and minimum water loses and waste. This due to the fact that modeling studies of the future suggest that water shortage problem will intensify.
Mosul Dam is an earth fill dam, with a storage capacity of 11.11 km3 constructed on highly karstified gypsum beds alternating with marl and limestone. After impounding in 1986, seepage locations were recognized. The dam situation now indicates that it is in a state of extreme relative risk. If it fails, then 6 million people will be affected and 7202 km2 area will be flooded. Grouting operations will elongate the life of the dam but will not solve the problem. Building a protection dam downstream will be the best measures to secure the safety of the downstream area and its’ population.
Mosul Dam is located on River Tigris north of Iraq with a storage capacity of 11.11 billion cubic meters. Since its operation in 1986 plenty of problems were noticed that might lead to the failure of the dam. The book highlights the geological and engineering problems experienced within Mosul Dam. It also reviews the expert’s opinion on these problems. Recent investigations were described and the consequences of the dam failure were given. It is believed that 500,000 people will die in case of the dam failure and for this reason it is considered as the most dangerous dam in the world. Finally, possible solutions were explained to avoid the dam failure
Mosul Dam is an earth fill dam located on the Tigris River in North Western part of Iraq. It is 113 m in height, 3.4 km in length, 10 m wide in its crest and has a storage capacity of 11.11 billion cubic meters. It is, constructed on be- drocks which consist of gypsum beds alternated with marl and limestone, in cyclic nature. The thickness of the gypsum beds attains 18 m; they are in- tensely karstified even in foundation rocks. This has created number of prob- lems during construction, impounding and operation of the dam. Construc- tion work in Mosul Dam started on January 25th, 1981 and started operating on 24th July, 1986. After impounding in 1986, seepage locations were recog- nized. The cause of seepage is mainly due to: 1) The karsts prevailing in the dam site and in the reservoir area. 2) The existence of gypsum/anhydrite rock formations in the dam foundation alternating with soft marl layers and wea- thered and cavernous limestone beddings. 3) The presence of an extensive ground water aquifer called Wadi Malleh aquifer, which affects considerably the ground water regime in the right bank. The dissolution intensity of the gypsum/anhydrite ranged from 42 to 80 t/day which was followed by a noti- ceable increase in the permeability and leakages through the foundation. In- spection of the dam situation in 2014 and 2015 indicates that the dam is in a state of extreme unprecedentedly high relative risk. In this work, possible so- lutions to the problem are to be discussed. It is believed that grouting opera- tions will elongate the span life of the dam but do not solve the problem. Building another dam downstream Mosul Dam will be the best protective measures due to the possible failure of Mosul Dam, to secure the safety of thedownstream area and its’ population.
The River Euphrates is the longest River in southwest Asia. Its length reaches 2786 km and drains an area of about 440000 km2, which is occupied by 23 million inhabitants. The Euphrates basin is shared by 5 countries (Iraq 47%, Turkey 28%, Syria 22%, Saudi Arabia 2.97%, Jordan 0.03%) where the first three countries are the main riparian. Climate change and construction of dams in the upper parts of the basin has reduced the flow downstream with time. The flow was about 30.6 BCM in Hit (Iraq) before 1974, and now it is about 4 BCM. Syria and Iraq are facing water shortage and quality deterioration problems, which require national, regional and international cooperation to overcome these problems.
The Tigris River is one of the longest rivers in western Asia. Its length is about 1800 km. It drains a catchment area of 473103 km2 divided in 4 countries (Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq). About 23 million people live within this catchment. The flow of the River Tigris is decreasing with time due to the construction of dams and climate change. The discharge of the Tigris River at Baghdad was 1,207 m3/s for the period 1931-1960 and since 2000 onward it is 522m3/s. Riparian countries (mainly Iraq and Iran) are facing water shortage problems. This requires prudent regional and national cooperation and management to overcome this problem.
Treated waste water is normally used for irrigation purposes in countries suffering from water shortages to narrow the gap between supply and demand. The concept behind this is to save water consumed for agricultural activities, which consumes most of the water, for municipal and industrial uses. The Alsukhna area in Jordan is used to grow vegetables which are irrigated by treated wastewater. Surface and groundwater samples from the Zarqa region were analyzed for their major cations, anions and heavy metals. The impact of the treated waste water on the chemical components of vegetables was studied using Zn, Mn, Fe, Pb and Ni in sweet and hot pepper, tomato, cauliflower, cabbage, squash, cucumber and eggplant which were compared with similar vegetables irrigated by natural unpolluted water from the Mafraq region. The four metals, namely Zn, Fe, Pb, and Ni, had concentrations higher than in the reference vegetables by 3423%, 155%, 397%, 2949% and 289%, 187%, 211%, 214% fortomato and cauliflower, respectively. Sweet pepper was mainly influenced by an increased content of Fe, which was almost 180% higher than that in sweet pepper from the Mafraq region. Hot pepper had highly elevated concentrations of Ni (6980%) and Zn (419%), while squash demonstrated high Zn (207%) and Pb (666%). When all the heavy metals are considered, the most affected vegetable is the hot pepper with an average percent of heavy metals accumulation of 1559% while the least effected is cabbage at 116%.
Protection of the environment from solid waste hazards is becoming a serious problem. Different laws and legislations had been put into practice for this purpose. The effect of solid waste in countries like Jordan with limited financial and natural resources and high population growth rate is more severe. To overcome these difficulties, prudent management system for solid waste is required. Furthermore, solid waste disposal site should be selected using scientific criteria to prevent any harmful effect on local communities and the environment. Criteria for solid waste disposal dump site for Mafraq city were selected in accordance with well known international requirements that suit the local conditions. These criteria were used to select the best suitable solid waste dump site using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques. The selected sites are harmless to human life, natural resources and the environment.
The Middle East area and in particular Jordan suffer from water shortages. It is believed that water harvesting techniques can solve part of the problem. Jawa and Umm El-Jimal water harvesting schemes were established 6000 and 2000 years ago respectively. They are considered as the most ancient water harvesting scheme. The engineering design and techniques used in those schemes are very unique.The adaptation of the engineering techniques used in the ancient schemes in the newly established schemes will help to save energy and minimize the evaporation losses. In addition, harvested water can be used for ground water recharge.
River Tigris is a major river in Iraq. Sediment at the bed of the river within a reach of about 18 km starting at the center of Baghdad upstream was investigated. Sixty five cross sections were surveyed and 46 sediment samples were collected and analyzed. It was noticed that fine sand was dominating the bed (90.74%). The average median size within the reach was 2.49 phi (0.177mm) while the mean size was 2.58 phi (0.16mm). In addition the sediments were moderately sorted, fine skewed and leptokurtic. The size of the bed sediment relatively decreased compared to older investigations due to the construction of Adhaim dam on tributary which used to be the main sediment supplier to the Tigris River before entering Baghdad. Furthermore, the discharge of the Tigris River for the period 1983-2013 (715m3/s) had decreased by about 40% and 30% since 1983 compared with the period 1931-1956 (1208 m3/s) and 1956-1980 (1015 m3/s ) respectively. This had decreased the capacity and competence of the river. The bed elevation had increased compared to previous surveys. It was noticed that dredging operations and obstacles (e.g. fallen bridges and islands) disturbed the flow of the river and sediment characteristics in several sites.
Iraq is located in the Middle East. It covers an areaof 433,970 square kilometres populated by about 32 millioninhabitants. Iraq greatly relies in its water resources on the Tigrisand Euphrates Rivers. Recently, Iraq is suffering from watershortage problems. This is due to external and internal factors. Theformer includes global warming and water resources policies ofneighbouring countries while the latter includes mismanagement ofits water resources.The supply and demand are predicted to be 43 and 66.8 BillionCubic Meters (BCM) respectively in 2015, while in 2025 it will be17.61 and 77 BCM respectively. In addition, future predictionsuggests that Tigris and Euphrates Rivers will be completely dry in2040.To overcome this problem, prudent water management policiesare to be adopted. This includes Strategic Water ManagementVision, development of irrigation techniques, reduction of waterlosses, use of non-conventional water resources and research anddevelopment planning.
Iraq is part of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA region). It greatly relies in its water re-sources on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Iraq was considered rich in its water resources till 1970s. After that problems due to water scarcity aroused. Recently, it is expected that water shortage problems will be more serious. The supply and demand are predicted to be 43 and 66.8 Billion Cubic Meters (BCM) respectively in 2015, while in 2025 it will be 17.61 and 77BCM respec-tively. In addition, future prediction suggests that Tigris and Euphrates Rivers will be completely dry in 2040.To overcome this problem, prudent water management plan is to be adopted. It should include Strategic Water Management Vision, development of irrigation techniques, reduction of water losses, use of non-conventional water resources and research and development planning.
Jordan is located in the Middle East in the eastern Mediterranean. It has a surface area of approximately 90,000 km2 and its population reaches 6.3 million. Jordan is one of the fourth driest countries in the World and water demand exceeds Jordan's available water resources.Annual per capita water availability has declined from 3600m3/year in 1946 to 145 m3/year today. It is estimated that the population will continue to grow from about 5.87 million in 2008 to over 7.80 million by 2022. Total projected water demand will be 1673 million cubic meters by 2022.Fifteen years of complete records for water consumption was studied to see the supply and demand variation with time. It had been noticed that water demand management will address the actual needs for water. This management program will ensure further reduction in water use, reduce water loses through the distribution supply net, prevent pollution and waste water disposal in nature, efficient use of available water resources, prudent future planning for new water re-sources and finally imposing real cost for water supply that would be acceptable. In addition to the above, public awareness program is to be put in action. Such a program should be used in schools as well as the media. The public are to be aware of the problem and how they can assist to overcome the water shortage crisis.
Water supply network losses are an international problem especially in countries suffering from water scarcitylike Jordan. Jordan is one of the poorest countries in its water resources and it is estimated to be below the waterpoverty line. Jordan is located in the Middle East and has a surface area of approximately 90,000 km2. Its populationis around 6.3 million and it is estimated that the population will be 7.8 million in 2022. The gap betweenwater supply and demand is widening due to development and a relatively high population growth rate. In addition,global climate change is expected to intensify the water shortage problem in Jordan. Thirteen years of completerecords obtained from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation were analyzed. According to these records,water losses in Jordan reach about 50%. In view of the evaluation of the data and the case study conducted inthis research, it is believed that Jordan can overcome the water shortage problem by adopting a water demandmanagement strategy. In this context, efforts should be focused on reducing water losses. If this is achieved, itwill save huge quantities of water and revenue.
Euphrates and Tigris Rivers are the longest two rivers in southwest Asia. The Basins of these rivers cover an area of 917 103 km2 which is occupied by about 46 million inhabitants. Four countries (Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria) share the basin area of the Tigris River and the other four (Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia) share the catchment area of the Euphrates River. The flow of the two rivers is decreasing with time due to construction of dams in the upstream part of the basins and climate change. This has impacted the water quality of the two rivers. Iraq is highly affected followed by Syria. The salinity of Tigris Rivers has become alarming downstream Baghdad while the Euphrates water quality deteriorates before entering the Iraqi border. To overcome water quality deterioration, international, regional and national cooperation is required to reach prudent planning for water resources management of the two basins.
Jordan is located in the Middle East and covers an area of 89,342 km2. The total population of Jordan is 6,508,271. Jordan is rapidly facing a severe water supply crisis due to greater demands on a finite quantity of available water. If current trends continue, it has been estimated that the country will experience a chronic water shortage by 2020. Despite these shortages, water loss in the distribution network is relatively high where it reaches 46%. Mafraq Governorate has the maximum water loss. Continuous records and data for the period 1999-2004 for Mafraq water authority were investigated for the water supply and lose. Water losses were evaluated, and suggestions were given to minimize the loss.
Jordan is among the least countries in its water resources and about 85% of its area is desertic. Due to this reason the inhabitants of the Badia region used centuries ago water harvesting techniques to augment water for human and animal use. Two ancient water harvesting schemes (Burqu and Dier Al-Kahf) were investigated. Bathymetric survey was conducted and both bottom and water samples were collected to study the nature of sediments in these schemes. The calculated volume of Burqu and Deir Al-Kahf reservoirs were 629505 and 12071m³ respectively. Sediments entering these reservoirs are mainly fine sand derived from the main and side valleys entering the reservoirs during rain events. The sediments at Burqu reservoir have a mean grain size of 0.1 mm, very poorly sorted and negatively skewed. The sand: silt: clay ratios were 70:17:13 respectively. At Deir Al-Kahf reservoir, the sediment mean grain size was 0.11mm and they were very poorly sorted and they were finely skewed. The sand: silt: clay ratios were 69: 23: 8 respectively. Annual rates of sediments deposited in these reservoirs were 29016 m3 for Burqu and 29016 m3 for Deir Al-Kahaf.
Jordan is among the least countries in its water resources and about 85% of its area is desertic which is referred to as the Badia region. Only 5% of the population of Jordan occupies this area. The growing power of urban communities during the twentieth century has affected the local inhabitants (Bedouin) social life and the physical environment of arid lands in which they live in Jordan. The 15% of the total area of the country (urban areas) are not able anymore to absorb the expanding population. Therefore, people have started to move to the Badia. This area is very poor in its surface water resources. Due to this reason the Jordanian government started a development program for the region. Part of the program is providing water resources by establishing water harvesting schemes. It is of prime importance to maintain these schemes to support the growing development in the area.In this research, two of these schemes had been investigated for their sediment characteristics and rate of deposition. They are Beqawiya (constructed 1994) and Suweied (constructed 1995). The sediments in both schemes were generally fine sand which is poorly sorted and negatively skewed. The rate of sedimentation was found to be 1679 and 1583 m3/ year in Beqawiya and Suweied respectively.
Mosul dam is the biggest dam in Iraq on Tigris River. It is a multipurpose dam with a designed storage capacity of 11.11*109 m3. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) working with Geographical Information System (GIS) was applied to simulate the daily runoff and sediment yield from the seven valleys entering the reservoir from the left side. The model was applied for the period 1988-2008 based on daily climatic data of Mosul city and Mosul Dam Stations. The results indicated that the average yearly water flow was 13.8 *106 m3. It varies with time and among the valleys depending on the soil type, land watershed topography, watershed area in addition the other effective factors, and rainfall depth of that year. The resultant average annual sediment yield was 702*106 ton from these valleys. The sediment yield from each valley depends on runoff coefficient of the valley, soil type and plant cover. These factors affect soil detachment and rainfall properties (depth and intensity) that in turn affect rainfall detachment force. The total sediment yield for the considered period was 14753*103 ton. This represent about 0.42% of the dead storage of the reservoir (2.9*109m3) which is about 0.11% of the total reservoir storage capacity.
Iraq is experiencing water resource shortages which are expected to become more severe in the future. It is believed that rain water harvesting will be one of the solutions to overcome this problem. In this paper rain water harvest modeling techniques were applied to the Sinjar area of Northwest Iraq for agricultural purposes. A watershed modeling system (WMS) and linear programming (LP) optimization techniques were applied to maximize the irrigated area which could be supplied by each selected reservoir for the period 1990-2009. This technique proved to be efficient for solving large scale water supply problems with multiple parameters and constraints, including the required input data for the model. Two scenarios of operation were considered for each main basin. In the first, each reservoir was operated as a separate unit while, in the second, all reservoirs within the basin were operated as one system. Both scenarios gave encouraging results but scenario two provided better results.
Mosul Dam is one of the biggest hydraulic structures in Iraq. It was constructed in 1986 on the Tigris River in the north of Iraq. The initial storage capacity and water surface area of its reservoir reaches 11.11 km3 and 380 km2 respectively at the maximum operation level 330 m a.s.l. The dam was operated in 1986. A total of 56 samples were collected from the bottom of Mosul reservoir covering most of the reservoir area. The results of the analysis of these samples revealed that they were composed of gravel (3.8%), sand (15%), silt (55.5%) and clay (25.7%). The distribution of these sediments indicates that the silt portion represents the highest followed by clay and then sand. However, sand percentages are the highest in the northern zone of the reservoir where the River Tigris enters the reservoir and decreases gradually toward the dam site. In the meantime, silt percentage decreases toward the dam site while the finer fraction (i.e. clay) increases.
Mosul Dam is one of the biggest hydraulic structures in Iraq. It was constructed in 1986 on the Tigris River in the north of Iraq for multiple purposes: irrigation, flood control and power generation. The initial storage capacity and water surface area of its reservoir reaches 11.11 km3 and 380 km2 respectively at the maximum operation level 330 m a.s.l. The dam was operated in 1986. Blockage of the intakes of the pump station for North Al-Jazira Irrigation Project in Mosul Dam reservoir has highlighted the importance of sedimentation problems within the reservoir. A total of 56 samples were collected from the bottom of Mosul reservoir covering most of the reservoir area. The results of the analysis of these samples revealed that they were composed of gravel (3.8%), sand (15%), silt (55.5%) and clay (25.7%). The distribution of these sediments indicates that the silt portion represents the highest 77% of the bottom sediments of this reservoir followed by clay (13.5%) and then sand (9.5%). However, sand percentages are the highest in the northern zone of the reservoir where the River Tigris enters the reservoir and decreases gradually toward the dam site. In the meantime, silt percentage decreases toward the dam site while the finer fraction (i.e. clay) increases. Statistically, the average median and mean sizes of the sediments are 2.81 phi (0.142 mm) and 6.1 phi (0.0146 mm) respectively. In addition, the sediments are poorly sorted, nearly symmetrical in skewness and leptokurtic, very leptokurtic, to mesocratic. Finally, it is believed that the geometry and hydrodynamics of the Mosul reservoir, the location of the River Tigris entrance together with the side tributary valleys have played the most important role in the sediments distribution and their characteristics.
Mosul Dam is an earthfill multipurpose dam. It is located on the River Tigris in northwestern Iraq. The dam is 3.65 km long and its crest elevation is at 341 m above sea level. The storage capacity at normal operation level (330 m above sea level) is 11.11km3. The work to build the dam started on 25thJanuary, 1981 and finished on 24thJuly, 1986. The total cost of the development was estimated at 2.6 billion US$.The foundation of the dam lies on the Fatha Formation. This formation is composed of alternating beds of marls, limestone, gypsum and claystone. It is highly karstified, which has which created a lot of problems during the construction, impounding and operation phases.
Scarcity of water resources in the Middle East represents a prime factor in the stability of the region and its economic development and prosperity. Accordingly, augmenting water is considered very important. Therefore, building of dams is an important mean to achieve such a goal. Despite the fact that number of dams had been built but maintenance operations and reduction of siltation rates are still not up the standards. Two small reservoirs north west Jordan were investigated. Sad Wadi Alarab reservoir constructed in 1986 (storage capacity of 20x106 m3). The second, Alghadeer Alabyadh, was constructed 1966(storage capacity 7 x105 m3). The actual storage capacities of these reservoirs were calculated using echo-sounding traverses. Data obtained were used in special computer software to construct the bathymetric maps and calculate the existing storage volume. The results showed that the reservoir storage capacities were reduced at an average annual rate of 0.3 x106 and 1.7 x104 m3 respectively. This implies that Sad Wadi Alarab reservoir will be filled with sediment within 38 years, while Alghadeer Alabyadh reservoir is already filled with sediment now. Bottom sediments of the reservoirs were collected and analyzed. In all the cases, sand, silt and clay were the dominant sediment components.
In 1977 the Turkish Government started to utilize the water of Tigris and Euphrates Rivers through South-eastern Anatolia Project (GAP). The project includes 22 dams and 19 hydraulic power plants which are to irrigate 17 103 km2 of land with a total storage capacity of 100 km3 which is three times more than the overall capacity of Iraq and Syrian reservoirs Prior to 1990, Syria used to receive 21 km3/year of the Euphrates water which dropped to 12km3 in 2000 onward and for Iraq it dropped from 29 km3 before 1990 to 4,4km3 (90% reduction) now. This reduced agricultural land in both countries from 650 103 to 240 103 hectares. Iraq used to receive 20.9 km3/year of water from the Tigris River and once Ilisu dam is constructed, this is likely to drop to 9.7 km3 which means that 47% of the river flow will be depleted. This means that 696 103 hectares of agricultural land will be abandoned due to water scarcity. The reduction of flow in the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq is considered to be national crises and will have severe negative consequences on health and on environmental, industrial and economic development. It is believed that the Iraqi Government should take solid and fast measures to ensure prudent management of its water resources and to secure the life of huge sector of its society and protect the environment.
The Iraqi marsh lands, which are known as the Garden of Eden, cover an area about 15-20 103. km2 in the lower part of the Mesopotamian basin where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flow. The area had played a prominent part in the history of man kind and was inhabited since the dawn of civilization. The area was considered among the largest wetlands in the world and the greatest in west Asia. Saddam regime began to drain the marsh lands for military and political reasons. Accordingly, at 2000 less than 10% of the marshes remained. The consequences were that most of the marsh dwellers left their places and some animals and plants are eradicated now. After the fall of Saddam regime in 2003, the process of restoration and rehabilitation of Iraqi marshes started. There are number of difficulties encountered in the process. Some of them are land use changes, climatic variations and changes, soil and water salinity as well as ecological fragmentation where many species were affected as well as the marsh dwellers.In this research we would like to explore the possibilities of restoring the Iraqi marshes. It is believed that 70- 75% of the original areas of the marshes can be restored. This implies that 13 km3 water should be available to achieve this goal keeping the water quality as it is. To evaluate the water quality in the marshes, 154 samples were collected at 48 stations during summer, spring and winter. All the results indicate that the water quality was bad. To improve the water quality, then 18.86 km3 of water is required. This requires plenty of efforts and international cooperation to overcome the existing obstacles.
Depleted uranium (DU) is a by-product of the enrichment of natural uranium for nuclear reactor-grade or nuclear weapons-grade uranium. DU is chemically identical to natural uranium. Depleted uranium is chemically identical to natural uranium. DU is depleted with isotope of U235 and its radioactivity is 60% of the natural uranium and increases to 80% after few months and is usually considered as low level radioactive waste (LLW).Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massive amounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weapons were used -called Depleted Uranium (DU).During the second Gulf war in 2003 U.S. and British troops have reportedly used more than five times as many DU bombs and shells as the total number used during the 1991 war for the invasion and occupation of Iraq. It was estimated that more than 1100 to 2200 tons of DU was used. As a consequence the ruminants of wars are affecting the people (30 million) and environment. There are hundreds of sites contaminated with nuclear radiation.There is no Iraqi strategy and/or national program, not even well thought out plans and scientific personnel and technical equipment required to clean Iraq of these wastes. The aim of this work is to high light the environmental implications of the two Gulf wars on Iraq and suggest possible solutions to the problem.
Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massiveamounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weaponscalled depleted uranium (DU) were used. DU is a by-product of the enrichmentof natural uranium for nuclear reactor-grade or nuclear weapons-grade uranium. Depleted uranium is chemically identical to natural uranium. During the second Gulf war in 2003 U.S. and British troops used more than 1100 to 2200 tons of DU. As a consequence the ruminants of wars are reported to have seriously affected people and the environment, causing cancer and abnormal birth defects. The water and soil all over most of Iraq is contaminated. There is no strategy, national or international program for cleaning Iraq of DU wastes. Site selection criteria have been suggested for the disposal of radioactive waste but no principle of designing and constructing disposals. The present paper describes a large geological feature, a deep natural depression, which would be useful for isolating DU by isolating it in smectitic Iraqi clay.
Iraq is experiencing water-resource shortages which are expected to become more severe in the future. Water harvesting techniques (WH) will definitely help to overcome or minimize the effect of this problem. Two areas (northwestern and northeastern part of Iraq) were tested for the feasibility of WH using small dams not more than 6m height. The locations of the dams and reservoirs were selected depending on the drainage area, the cross section of the valley (to ensure minimum construction material to be used for building the dams) and to minimize evaporation losses and insure the required storage was obtained; the ratio of surface area to storage volume was kept to a minimum. Watershed modeling system (WMS) and linear programming (LP) optimization techniques were applied to maximize the irrigated area, which could be supplied by each selected reservoir for the period 1990–2009.In northeastern part of Iraq, the technique was applied in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah. In the former, 22 dams (catchment areas ranged between 3.34 to 111.63 km2) were tested. While in the latter, five separated dams were used with total catchment area of 176.79 km2. Their area ranged between 7.35 to 98.08 km2. In northwestern part of Iraq, the technique was applied in Sinjar Mountain. At northern Sinjar Mountain, ten dams were selected, their catchment area ranged between 43.48 to197.7 km2.The results obtained from all areas were encouraging.
Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massive amounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weapons were used called Depleted Uranium (DU). As a consequence of the radioactive contamination; the humans are suffering from various disease like cancer and the environment is polluted.In practice, there is no strategy and/or national program, not even well thought out plans and scientific personnel and technical equipment required to clean Iraq of these wastes. Reviewing the geological, topographical and hydrological data, it had been noticed that Umm Chaimin depression is a good candidate site to dump all contaminated radioactive scrap and soil. The suggested design of the landfill will ensure safe containment of the waste for hundreds of thousands of years even if significant climatic changes will take place.
Iraq has been subject to a series of wars for more than fifty years, the latest one leaving large amounts of wrecked tanks, vehicles, weapons and ammunition. A considerable part of the waste has the form of, or contains, depleted uranium (DU), that is concluded to have cancerogenic effects through its radioactivity and toxicity. The DU exists in significant concentrations in areas where combat took place, mostly in and around the cities of Bagdad and Basra, the total number of particularly encountered areas being about 15. The way of long-term isolation of DU that is proposed in this paper is to construct relatively simple landfills of sandwiched contaminated soil and clay or clayey soil, covered by sand/gravel and erosion-resistant coarser material on top. The very low annual precipitation and long draught in the deserts, implying significant evaporation, means that the system of tight soil interlayered with contaminated soil, embedding wrecked military objects, minimizes percolation and release of DU, keeping it adsorbed on the finest soil particles. The clay-based material must be composed in a way that, i/ desiccation fractures are not formed in periods of long draught and ii/ not swell uncontrolled and loose strength in wet periods. The DU-contaminated soil is proposed to be scraped off and transported in closed trucks to four desert sites where landfills of the sandwich-type are proposed to be constructed.
Depleted uranium (DU) was used twice by the Americans and allied forces against Iraqi troops and personnel in 1991 and 2003. The largest single radionuclide contamination occurred in the Gulf during Gulf War II, 1991, where depleted uranium was used as an amour-penetrating ordnance. Due to this use the countryside of Iraq was contaminated to a significant extent and thus chronically exposed the civilian population and military personnel to different environmental loads i.e. DU dust, vapors, and aerosols etc. In addition to the radioactive contamination due to military activities in Gulf wars, other dangerous source of contamination has been reported from the material and equipment at the Iraqi Energy Authority. After the fall of the Baath regime in 2003, the Iraqi Energy Authority, like all other Ministries and governmental organizations, sustained immense losses due to the turmoil and looting. As an example the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMI) reported in 2003 that uranium (as yellow cakes) as well as byproducts from processing activities in addition to tons of radioactive waste was stored in barrels. Simple citizens stole these barrels and used them for storing water. The radioactive materials in these barrels were in this way either spread in large quantities on the ground or taken to their homes. Other examples of how DU material is spread are given in the report as well. This report is highlighting the effect of radioactive waste on the people and the environment of Iraq and trying to find possible solutions to the problem. Special concerns are directed to the question of finding sustainable, environmentally acceptable and safe landfills for the final deposition of DU contaminated material.
Iraq is facing water shortage problem, which is becoming more severe with time. Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) can help to minimize the water shortage problem. Seven years of rainfall records was used to find out the quantity of water that can be harvested using a Watershed modeling system (WMS).Koya city is located in the northern part of Iraq. The population of the city is about 39484.The application of the WMS model for rainfall records of seven years (2002-3 to 2010-11) showed that 275.51 million cubic meters of water can be harvested. This implies that annual average of rain harvested water is 39.4 million cubic meters and the allocation per capita to be 997 cubic meters per year. This amount of water can greatly help to the development of industry and agriculture in the city.