Iraq | Water Sector

[sheytanElKebir]

Iraq wastes 50% of water: UNICEF
(AFP) – 11 hours ago
BAGHDAD — Fifty percent of water resources are wasted in Iraq, where six million people have no access to clean water, the United Nations said on Monday, the eve of World Water Day.
"Iraq faces difficulties in meeting the target of 91 percent of households using a safe drinking water supply by 2015," due to decades of conflict, sanctions and neglect, the UNICEF children's fund said in a statement.
"Iraq's average water production level per person, at 327 litres (86 gallons)/capita/day, is considered high by international standards but around 50 percent of the water produced is lost to seepage, leakage and wastage due to system inefficiencies," it said.
"One in five or around six million Iraqis do not have access to safe water, of which the vast majority are in rural areas," it added.
It said more than 500,000 Iraqi children access their water from a river or creek and that over 200,000 access their water from an open well.
In rural areas, one in four children access their water from rivers and creeks and nearly one in 10 use tanker trucks and open wells respectively.
Water-borne diseases are widespread due to polluted drinking water supplies, said the statement.
In the first six months of 2010, there were over 360,000 diarrhea cases as a result of polluted drinking water and a lack of hygiene awareness among local communities, particularly vulnerable groups such as women and children.
"Every day at least 250,000 tonnes of raw sewage is pumped into the Tigris river threatening unprotected water sources and the entire water distribution system," it added.
UNICEF said it had supported a variety of projects to improve Iraq's water situation, including awareness and training campaigns.
UNICEF and the European Union are celebrating Water Day in Iraq with a number of events, including celebrations in 23 schools.
Eleven thousand primary school children will join UNICEF in calling for more investments in water infrastructure, the conservation of water resources and keeping these resources free from pollution.

[ardamir]

It will be incredibly expensive and time consuming to replace/repair all the water distribution infrastructure. This will be an issue that will affect Iraq for decades.

[BigDreamer]

Syria siphoning water from the river Tigris .. Iraqis are enraged about this project.. since the Tigris hardly passes through Syria:

[Persi]

Kurdistan Building 11 Dams, Plans 28 More

28 March 2011.

In a move that could increase tensions over water supplies, the Kurdistan region’s minister for agriculture has announced that the Region is building 11 dams and plan dozens more.

“There are 11 dams now under construction,” Jameel Sulaiman told AFP. “We have studies and designs to build 28 more,” he added.

He said that the dams currently under construction in Kurdistan were “small and medium size,” with storage capacities ranging between one million cubic metres (35 million cubic feet) to 10 million cubic metres.

Four were being built in Erbil, five in Sulaimaniyah and two in Dohuk, but he did not say when they would be completed.

“We are building these dams in order to develop the agricultural sector in the region, and for water storage, because Iraq has suffered droughts for the past several years,” Sulaiman said.

Water is a major source of tension in Iraq, especially between the Kurdistan region and other provinces.

In the multi-ethnic Kirkuk province, Arab farmers accuse the Kurdistan region of ruining them by closing the valves to a dam in winter.

A growing water deficit and dams built by Iraq’s neighbours have significantly reduced the water flow in a country that was until the late 1950s a breadbasket of the Arab world.

[elusive]

Originally Posted by BigDreamer

Syria siphoning water from the river Tigris .. Iraqis are enraged about this project.. since the Tigris hardly passes through Syria:

that's very bad...!

[BigDreamer]

noticed that it's financed by Kuwait... surprise surprise..

[BigDreamer]

BAGHDAD, 18 April 2011 (IRIN) - Iraq is renewing efforts to reach deals with Syria and Turkey to increase water levels on the River Euphrates which flows from these two countries into Iraq, and on which Iraq is heavily dependent for agriculture and electricity generation.

Turkey has tentatively agreed to increase water levels on the river to allow Iraq to reactivate the 400-megawatt Haditha hydroelectric power station, officials say.

The deal - set to be concluded in two months’ time - could be part of a wider agreement with Turkey to import 200 megawatts of electricity, said a spokesman of the Iraqi Electricity Ministry, Musaab Al-Mudaris.

An Iraqi delegation is heading to Syria later this week to try to strike a similar deal. In recent years water levels have steadily fallen on the Euphrates due to below-average rainfall and the construction of dams in Turkey and Syria.

Iraq produces about 7,500 megawatts a day - less than half of current demand - and low water levels on the Euphrates (and the Tigris) have forced some hydroelectricity plants to reduce output or close.

For many years Iraqi officials have been pressing Syria and Turkey to sign agreements specifying a fixed share of the water from these two rivers for Iraq, but no deal has been reached.

“Iraq could experience more (water-related) problems, complexities and challenges unless it gets its fair share of water… Iraq faces great challenges in maintaining its wetlands and agricultural land,” said Ali Al-Alak, the Cabinet general secretary.


http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportID=92504

[baghdad_sara]

Originally Posted by BigDreamer

noticed that it's financed by Kuwait... surprise surprise..

lol oh brother..

[ardamir]

Iraq Diyala Province to build water purification station

Friday, April 15, 2011 16:05 GMT
Diyala Province Water Directorate said on Thursday that it deferred to implementation a project to build a strategic water purification station west of Baquba with a cost of 39 billion Iraqi Dinars stressing that the project will provide potable water for about 150 thousand Iraqi citizen.
“The directorate deferred the project of building a water station at Bani Saad region (17 km southwest Baaquba) to a specialized Iraqi company to implement it”, Diyala water directorate manager Mortada Al Makdami told Alsumarianews. “The cost of the project is 39 billion Iraqi Dinars allocated from the investment budget of Iraq Ministry of Municipalities and Public works for the current year”, he added.
“The time-line to finish all this project is 20 months and the capacity thereof is 4000 meters per hour which will provide potable water to the entire region of Bani Saad and neighboring agricultural villages”, Makdami added.

http://www.alsumaria.tv/en/Economics...n-station.html

[Persi]

New Water Project Opened in Baghdad

Posted on 14 July 2011.

Baghdad Governorate inaugurated a new water project on Thursday, reports Aswat al-Iraq.

The Zuhoor water project in the Husainiyah area of Baghdad, has a production capacity of 800,000 cubic meters per hour, and a cost of 5 billion Iraqi dinars [4 million dollars], according to a statement issued by the Governor’s office.

The project will serve more than 100,000 residents in the area.

[elusive]

good news!

[IraqiPlan_et]

Iraq in accordance with 12 Turkish companies on the implementation of the irrigation work
September 15


The adviser in the Iraqi government on Thursday that Iraq has agreed with 12 Turkish companies to implement the irrigation work.

Said Abdul-Hussein Al Jabri told the Kurdish news agency (Rn) that "the Iraqi government agreed with 12 Turkish companies are the leaders in Turkey for the implementation of the irrigation work and land reclamation and treatment of waste water."

He explained that "irrigation projects continue to 5 years and will help Turkish companies state-owned enterprises and the development of its work, including contributing to the political support of Iraq's irrigation."

He added that "companies will work on a payment on credit from the budget in 2012 and will implement the projects within the plan of the Ministry of Water Resources."

He noted that "Iraq is a plan to address the waste of water, land reclamation and stressed the expansion of modern irrigation methods that contribute to reducing the amount of waste water."

And decided to Ministry of Water Resources on August 24 / August, increased releases of water of the Tigris River to 75 m 3 / s to reduce the high percentage of the saline tongue in the Shatt al Arab.

And the Iraqi government to address the obstacles and problems facing the implementation of its plans for the development of water resources and agricultural water and solve the problem with Turkey and Iran through joint committees.

And hold Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran responsible for lack of water levels of rivers entering the residence due to irrigation work and the farm.

[Herzeleid]

Turkish companies? u have water issues u go with the best, u go with an Israeli company...!

[iraqishi3i]

Originally Posted by Herzeleid

Turkish companies? u have water issues u go with the best, u go with an Israeli company...!

if i was in charge i wouldnt give a crap about the whole palestine israel situation ... if an israeli does the job and he does it well then I would hire him !

[Herzeleid]

Originally Posted by iraqishi3i

if i was in charge i wouldnt give a crap about the whole palestine israel situation ... if an israeli does the job and he does it well then I would hire him !

we have an Israeli water news as well u should check it out...the latest news was this...

Proposal would allow desalinated water to account for 85 percent of domestic consumption by the year 2013.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1156687

[IraqiPlan_et]

Baghdad Municipality allocated 267 billion dinars for the development of water sector
May 1 2012


Baghdad Municipality allocated (267) billion dinars for the advancement of pure water sector and complete the implementation of strategic projects in the capital Baghdad as part of the investment plan for the current year.

According to the Directorate of relations and the media in a statement received news agency public opinion (and babysit) "that the secretariat of Baghdad allocated (10) billion dinars to modernize the networks of pure water and (8) billion dinars for the extension of networks of pure water for discharge and new neighborhoods and (10.5) billion dinars for the rehabilitation projects liquidation and (4) billion dinars to extend water lines to the tanker net .. "The Secretariat has allocated (4) billion dinars to extend the lines of a tanker of water crude and (10) billion dinars for the processing pipeline Canutaal and plastic with accessories and (15) billion dinars to complete the implementation of the reservoirs earthly in (R3 and (R9 in Jadriya and crumb and thirst."

It showed that "the Secretariat has allocated too (200) billion dinars for the establishment of the center of the filter with civil works, electrical, mechanical and the establishment of a power station and remove symptoms and owning a private project Rusafa water giant, in addition to the allocation of two billion dinars for the preparation of studies and designs.

[ardamir]

Did you put that through a translator?

[Spin Cycle]

Iraq's PM warns Arab states may face 'water war'
Arab states could be headed towards a future war over water if they do not act quickly to tackle shortages, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has warned.
At a conference in Baghdad, he urged countries to work together in order to prevent conflict in the arid region.
Issues include desertification, poor water management, and the need for most Arab countries to rely on the goodwill of upstream states for river water.
Arab countries are seeking to address the water crisis with a unified plan.
The BBC's Rami Ruhayem in Baghdad says Arab leaders have in the past failed to tackle common crises because of infighting and inefficiency.
And with popular uprisings tearing through the region, their differences seem to be getting even worse, our correspondent adds.
At the conference, the head of the Palestinian Water Authority accused Yemen of wasting a substantial amount of its water on irrigating qat plants, whose leaves are a popular stimulant.
Last year, a report funded by the Swiss and Swedish governments said Iraq's marshlands had reduced in size by 50 to 90% from 1960 to 2000.
In March, a report by the US Director of National Intelligence said a global water war would be unlikely in the next 10 years, but warned that the risk of conflict would increase because demand for water would outstrip current supplies by 40% by 2030.
Past water disputes have contributed to tensions between rivals including Israel and the Palestinians, and Syria and Iraq.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18262496

[sheytanElKebir]

Iraq’s Cabinet approved a contract valued at 136 billion dinars ($117 million) with Iran’s ICG to reconstruct the sewage system in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, State Minister Ali Al-Dabbagh said.
ICG is due to complete the project within 3 1/2 years, according to an e-mailed statement by Dabbagh, who is also the official government spokesman.

[sheytanElKebir]

Reuters quotes local media reports in Korea as saying that Ssangyong Engineering & Construction has won a $250 million deal to build a water supply network in Iraq.
The Korean Stock Exchange reportedly asked the company Ssangyong to submit a filing to clarify the report.