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REVIVING EDEN - The Iraqi Marshes

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Bianca
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« Reply #30 on: December 09, 2008, 10:03:48 am »





               
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« Reply #31 on: December 09, 2008, 10:08:54 am »







                                     Garden of Eden can be restored, say scientists






Mike Shanahan
25 February 2005
| EN





Local Marsh Arabs helped Richardson collect water samples

Duke University



The first scientific study of Iraq's Mesopotamian marshes to have been carried out in several decades has revealed widespread ecological damage, but also that great potential exists to restore the environmentally, economically and culturally significant wetlands.

The marshes — considered by some scholars to be the site of the biblical 'Garden of Eden' — have sustained considerable damage, particularly during Saddam Hussein's leadership of Iraq. As a result, functioning ecosystems remain in just ten per cent of the original 15,000 square kilometres.

According to the research published today in Science, the problems include high levels of salt in both soil and water, and abnormal levels of selenium, a toxic metal that can accumulate up the food chain.

Despite this, the researchers, led by Curtis Richardson, of the Duke University Wetland Center in the United States, say that there is much potential for restoring a significant portion of the marshes.

The marshes were damaged as a result of widespread drainage and agricultural irrigation programmes carried out on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers between 1985 and 2000.

Among the most significant was Saddam Hussein's policy of actively draining the marshes in an effort to force out local people, known as Marsh Arabs, who have lived in and derived a livelihood from the wetlands for 5,000 years.

Formerly, the marshes had provided a large share of Iraq's supply of fish, and had also acted as natural filters, removing pollution from the Euphrates and Tigris rivers before they reached the sea. Since being drained, however, the fisheries rapidly declined, and salty, polluted water is now affecting marine life.

After Saddam Hussein was deposed in 2003, local people re-flooded part of the marshes by breaking open some of the dikes that had been constructed to divert water, and by March 2004, nearly 20 per cent of the original area had been re-flooded.

Richardson's team showed that native plant species are becoming established in some of these areas. However, they add that the number of species and of individuals are still below historical levels, and that many animals — including birds, fish and amphibians — are either absent, or present only in low numbers.

Millions of birds used to use the marshes as a permanent habitat while millions more visited them on their annual migration between African and Siberia.

"Unknown is the fate of the many highly threatened species of the marshlands and the future of these restored marshes as a flyway for Asia's wintering wildfowl," write Richardson and colleagues in Science.

Efforts to restore Iraq's degraded wetlands and the benefits they bring to local people are clearly important, says Nick Davidson, deputy secretary-general of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance.

Davidson told SciDev.Net that the key challenge — which is as much societal as it is ecological — is to determine whether to restore what existed before, or respond to what is needed now in the light of socio-economic changes in the region.

He says that the support of local communities was crucial to the success of wetland restoration initiatives. But he adds that many wetland systems "have the potential to restore themselves" provided there is an adequate supply of water.



http://www.scidev.net/en/news/garden-of-eden-can-be-restored-say-scientists.html
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« Reply #32 on: December 09, 2008, 10:14:42 am »








                      Eden Again: Azzam Alwash Seeks To Restore the Mesopotamian Marshes






31 January 2007

This is the first of five video segments from the documentary,


http://www.america.gov/st/pubs-english/2007/January/20070202130856dpnosmoht0.5146906.html

In their Own Words: Lives of Iraqi-Americans.

[Video of Azzam Alwash walking over a bridge and up a hill in a wooded glen.  Voice-over begins.] My name is Azzam Alwash, and today I would like to talk to you about the Marshes of Iraq, Al-Ahwar, the site of the cradle of human civilization. I am working to revive the Marshes so that they might be preserved for my children and grandchildren.

[Alwash sitting in a park, talking to an interviewer off-camera.] Some of my fondest memories are my trips to the marshes with my father, who at the time was the director of irrigation in Al-Nasiryah.

[Video clips of marshes, people fishing from canoes, birds flying overhead.] We traveled from one marsh city to another using a small motorboat. We navigated streams surrounded by tall bamboo, while flocks of birds flew over head. Finally, we would reach a lake where a nice breeze would cool you off. These are unforgettable memories.

[Photographs of Alwash and his family fade in and out, followed by clips of boats on marshes.  Voice-over continues.] I was born in Al-Koot in 1958. My father was an irrigation engineer, one of the first engineers in the irrigation field. In the 1970’s, I went to Basra University. Once a month we would get off early on Thursday afternoons, to go and spend the weekend at the "Gebayesh" and enjoy the marshes. I had a continuous relationship with the marshes from the age of 6 until I left Iraq at the age of 20.

[Photographs of Alwash as a college student and at graduation. Voice-over continues.] In our sophomore year, there was tremendous pressure to join the National Student Union, as a prelude to joining the Ba’ath Party. But this was not a choice for me. At the end of that year, I left Iraq and came to America, and starting college from scratch. I earned my bachelor’s degree at [California State University at] Fullerton and my master and PhD [doctorate degree] at the University of Southern California.

[Video of Alwash at Jefferson Memorial in Washington Voice-over continues.] One comes from Iraq with a set of traditions and a life style that is totally different from those in America. There was a wide gap. As I reached the age of 40, I began working to turn the attention of the world’s media to what was going on in the marshes.

[Satellite photographs of marshes, followed by video of marshes being destroyed. Voice-over continues.]  In 1992, the marshes were partially dried and by 1997, they had dried up completely. So in 1998, I started a world media campaign to bring attention to what was not only an environmental crime but also a crime against a community in southern Iraq; the drying up of the marshes.

With the winds of change in Iraq, I found an opportunity to return to my native land. So I left my work in the U.S., sold my share in the company and went back to an area I fell in love with as a child. I returned to the marshes.

[Photographs of marsh reconstruction, meetings with scientists and Alwash with marsh dwellers fade in and out.  Voice-over continues.] Eden Again or the New Eden started as a media project. I wanted to increase the pressure on Saddam Hussein’s regime to restore water back to the marshes. In 2002, I was asked at a conference, "What is needed to restore the marshes? Was it possible?" At that time, it was a propaganda war. Saddam was coming out of a siege, and we were trying to increase the pressure to force him to allow the water to reflow into the marshes.

We planned a workshop with over 20 internationally known environmental scientists. When I met with them in February 2002, I gave them all the data and information from 1997 to 2002, including satellite photos. The photos showed that the marshes had dried out and led us to the discovery what water resources would be required to revive them. We concluded that reviving the marshes is not only possible but also desirable. It is essential to reviving the environment in Iraq.

[Video of life on the marshes, showing people fishing, building and traveling. Voice-over continues.] Most of the restored areas in the marshes were done by local inhabitants who opened the dams’ gates and restored water flow. They wanted to fish again, to farm again, to reestablish the water buffalo and to restore their life. This was hard, because there were no schools, no drinking water, no electricity, and no services.

[Photographs showing archeological history of the marsh region fade in and out.  Voice over continues.] I believe there will be a huge economic output from southern Iraq in the areas of religious and environmental tourism. This region dates back to ancient times. The city of Ur is the cradle of civilization. Prophet Abraham, peace be on him, was born in Ur. Historic cities like Babylon, Najaf, and Karbala are nearby. I believe the future of the marshes is bright, but we must work with the Iraqi government and the donor countries to secure construction of infrastructure for the cities and villages of the marshes. And God is benevolent.

[Video of Alwash in park, talking to interviewer off camera.] As I reached the age of 40 and began working on the marshes and focusing international media attention on reviving them, I felt that my Iraqi roots were growing again. As my love for Iraq matured, I yearned to return to Iraq. After the regime changed, I was presented with the opportunity to revive the marshes.






http://www.america.gov/st/pubs-english/2007/January/20070202130856dpnosmoht0.5146906.html

Click here to view the video segment on Alwash.

To view additional video segments, see In their Own Words: Lives of Iraqi-Americans.


 

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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« Reply #33 on: December 09, 2008, 10:20:52 am »

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« Reply #34 on: July 04, 2009, 04:38:45 pm »


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« Reply #35 on: July 04, 2009, 04:45:17 pm »











New Directions in 2009,
Dr. Azzam Alwash
 
 


They say time passes quickly when we are having fun.  Well, judging by how fast time seems to be running, we must be having a blast. I do not want to look back at 2008. There is plenty on this web site that testifies to how much we have done…. I want us to look forward.

 
Nature Iraq is going to be in a state of flux in 2009 and 2010.  As a consequence of being recognized by BirdLife International as a Partner Designate, we have begun the process of evolving our NGO to fit the guidelines of BirdLife International to become a Full Partner.  Amongst the many rules that we have to follow is the issue of becoming a membership-based organization with elected boards and membership paying grassroots.  This one is the tough one in a country like Iraq, but not impossible.  We have plans to begin the transformational process this year with activities to advertise our existence and our history.  But while we are doing this, we can not possibly forget that there is work that needs to be done on the ground to capitalize on our previous projects and to continue the process of protecting the environment.

You will read in this issue a lot about scientific projects that we are undertaking (and transferring to the newly created Twin Rivers Institute for Scientific Research).  But, we are leaving a lot unsaid (for a latter issue of this newsletter).  Besides continuing the all-important KBA surveys both in the south and Kurdistan and now expanding into the west of Iraq, we are re-doing and expanding the floating fish farms.  We are building a hatchery in Chibaish that will generate some 2.5 million fingerlings in a year.  We are building a mobile feed factory.  We are working with like-minded organizations on the refurbishment of two vet clinics.  We are building an experimental buffalo station to test feed, water and other variables on their effects on milk production.  We are building a Mudhief to act as a welcome house for the national park in the central marshes.  We are going to build an experimental house of adobe.  We are discussing with developers the idea of putting up bird hides and floating hotels.  Our team is full of ideas that we want to see accomplished, while we do the mundane tasks of fund-raising and administering an NGO.  There are a number of other activities that we are undertaking that I have no space to talk about. But the following I must share with you:

I visited the marshes, with my wife, in January of 09 and we were dismayed at the low water levels in the Euphrates, which are causing the water to drain out of the marshes.  People in the marshes were pleading that they need nothing from the government except to give them water.  My wife and I went to Baghdad to speak for them and I must say that I was heartily encouraged by the officials and their readiness to work on this issue.  Aowni Dhiab of the design department of MOWR wants a design he can implement.  Dr. Hussien Jaber at the Prime Minister’s office is ready to act in support.  Ms. Ikram Qassim Nasser, the newly appointed head of Ramsar committee has much to add, and last, but not least, is the new head of CRIM, Mr. Abed Kadhum Lahmod Yasser who is a man of action that you do not encounter often in Iraq.  They all promised to help and I am looking forward to seeing water restored to the marshes and to await the completion of the regulator structures being built by CRIM that will assure the regulation of the waters going into and out of the marshes.  This is the stuff of advocacy that I love and that keeps me coming back for the hard work.

Judging by the above, I suspect that 2009 will pass even faster than 2008 did.  All I will say in the end is to ask you to check our website on a periodic basis to check on our progress.  May the year 2009 be a year of successful transitions and please accept my best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous year.

 

Azzam Alwash
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« Reply #36 on: July 04, 2009, 04:52:33 pm »











Iraqi Marshlands desperate for water   



Nearly completely destroyed by the Saddam regime, the marshlands had staged an amazing comeback after 2003 when local people and ministry employees opened gates and embankments to let the water return to what were once the third largest wetlands in the world. Thick reed vegetation sprang up almost instantly, thousands of bird and other fauna flocked back and the people of the marshes began to return to the area.

The world celebrated the return of the marshes, and marsh Arabs returned to resume their traditional life styles.  Due to drought conditions and management choices upstream in Turkey, Syria, and Iran, they are now at risk of drying out completely in many places.

The Majnoon area, part of the Hawizeh Marsh along the Iran/Iraq border that has been designated by Iraq as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Wetland Convention, is suffering a true disaster.  Waters in the Tigris River have declined drastically and Iran has nearly cut off all waters that used to feed the Hawizeh Marsh. 

Nature Iraq visited the area in the winter of 2009 and found it covered by water.  But our current survey now on-going in the area finds almost no water at all … just dry lands and patches of reeds lingering on, which may soon die.  In an 8 kilometer stretch possibly less than 1% of these lands had any water left in them at all and the summer is just at its start.

The results will be a disaster for the people of the marshlands and the south, with far-reaching consequences for the flora and fauna that will have adverse affects into the Gulf. Iraq and its neighbors desperately need to address these issues and come to an equitable agreement for water resource sharing and management.   
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« Reply #37 on: July 04, 2009, 04:57:00 pm »










Wild Boar Not a Threat to Human Health in Iraq 


 
Recent coverage of the A/H1NI virus known commonly as the Swine Flu has led to proposals to kill wildboar in Iraq. Nature Iraq, an Iraqi conservation organization, urges against such action. Such an eradication policy is not economically feasible or justified by the current health threat as there is absolutely no evidence that the wild boar in Iraq are a health hazard to humans. In addition, any actions to use poisons to kill these animals, as has been suggested, would likely cause harm to many non-target, benign species as well as causing a potential health threat to humans.
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« Reply #38 on: July 04, 2009, 04:58:06 pm »










Flora of Iraq kick off meeting


   
The Twin Rivers Institute for scientific research (TRI), a division of the American University of Iraq- Sulaimani(AUI-S) www.auis.org in collaboration and funding from Nature Iraq (NI)www.natureiraq.org under the framework of the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea (IMELS) supported New Eden project, hosted this week an important meeting in Sulaimani- Iraqi Kurdistan, to discuss the options Iraq has to finalize and update the long needed Flora of Iraq.
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« Reply #39 on: July 04, 2009, 04:59:17 pm »











Flora of Iraq Meeting to be held in March 


 
There will be a meeting in Sulaimani, Kurdistan Iraq on 22-23 March, 2009 to discuss the status of the Flora of Iraq.  This meeting will bring together of some of the top Iraqi botanists and their international counterparts, representatives from the Iraqi Ministries of Environment and Agriculture, Kew Botanical Garden, Twin Rivers Institute (TRI) of the American University in Iraq-Sulaimani, Italian Ministry for Environment, Land and Sea, Nature Iraq and other international experts.  The Flora was a project of the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture and Kew Gardens in the UK and was one of the best botanical series in the Middle East and one of the oldest floras published in the region. The first volumes were published in 1966 and the last one released was published in 1985.  It was supposed to be in nine volumes, but unfortunately, volumes 5, 6, and 7 were never completed due to the situations in Iraq during the eighties and after.  Current botanical research within Iraq would be greatly augmented by the completion of the Flora.  Nature Iraq, which has been conducting such research since 2005, has been hindered in this work by a lack of current taxonomical references.
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« Reply #40 on: July 04, 2009, 05:00:29 pm »













Nature Iraq participation in the Middle Eastern Biodiversity Conference that was held in Jordan, Aqaba.


By Mudhafar Salim





TO READ ALL THE ABOVE ARTICLES,

SEE:


http://www.natureiraq.org/Eng/home.html
Amman, 20-23, Oct 2008
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« Reply #41 on: July 04, 2009, 05:02:59 pm »













 THE MARSH ARABS - IRAQ

http://atlantisonline.smfforfree2.com/index.php/topic,1669.15.html




THE MARSH ARABS - HISTORY

http://atlantisonline.smfforfree2.com/index.php/topic,2798.0.html
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