TWCA Fall Conference 2019

1. Sept. 25-29, 2017October 2019
Colonel Gordon Wells Dr. Barney Austin

2. 2
Map of the Middle East Google Earth

3. 3
Some statistics on Iraq
 Population: 38 million people (lots of refugees)
 20% of residents are employed in Ag. Sector
 Literacy rate is appr. 70% (and falling)
 Size: 168,754 mi2 (OK is 268,597 mi2)
 Average annual rainfall: 5 inches (varies)
– El Paso gets about 9 inches per year
 Oil & gas is main revenue source
 Temperature high: 130o not uncommon
Various
sources

4. 4
Recent Baghdad protests 100+ deaths
6,000+ injuries
Water, electricity, internet. Infrastructure is failing…

5. 5
Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003 - 2011

52. 6
Water Resources in Iraq Barney…

53. 7
Renewable Water Resources per Person World Bank

54. 8
Renewable Water Resources per Capita World Bank

55. 9
Iraq’s sources of water
Euphrates
& Tigris
More than 80% of
Iraq’s water comes
from out of the
country.
Iraq does not have a
water-sharing
agreement with
either Turkey or Iran
Turkey and Iran are
building dams and
diverting rivers
aggressively!
MAJOR regional
drought in 2018

56. 10
Hydrology of the Tigris River
Declines
accelerating!

57. 11
Synergies between US and Iraq? Q&A

58. 12
Workshops in Iraq
17 workshops
13 Television interviews
5 radio interviews

59. 13
Some more relevant statistics
 >90% of water used in Iraq is in agriculture sector
 Primarily flood irrigation
 Crops subsidized, often 10% of potential crop yield
 Water supply mostly surface water
 Groundwater availability low and many places
quality is poor
 Agricultural water allocations cut 70% in 2018
– Affected more than 8 million people!
Water use in Iraq

61. 15
Municipal water issues
Municipal leaks > 50%
Water not potable
Wastewater often
discharged without
treatment (83%)
Industrial discharges
poorly regulated and
medical waste not treated
Water quality testing
infrequent and not
extensive
Untrained WTP operators
Big cities

62. 6
Water Resources in Iraq Barney…

63. 17
Power outages 10+ per day!
Power supply unreliable
Businesses have generators
Corruption is rampant (e.g.
money for US$40B contract for
power grid upgrades went
missing)
Sometimes power out for 6+ hrs
Internet too!

64. 18
Basrah water issues
Trash collection
not consistent
Venice of the East!

65. 19
Basrah rivers now Not Venice

66. 20
Basrah in the 1970’s Venice-y

67. 21
Basrah water issues Salinity

68. 22
Fish farm casualties Salt water

69. 23
Casualties from water shortages Basrah
 130,000+ hospitalizations in summer of 2018
 Small-scale desalination plants – “scalping”
bottled water and home delivery.
 Salt, bacteria and (unknown) industrial pollutants
in municipal water distribution networks
– Cadmium
– Medical waste from hospitals not treated
 Corrosion of water infrastructure
 Austin boil water notice!

70. 11
Synergies between US and Iraq? Q&A

71. 25
Riots and protests in Iraq
Government
services and jobs
Sept. 2018

72. 26
15 Compact Desalination Units
Plant#
Facilityname
Capacity(m3/hr)
Dateofvisit
WTPCurrently
operating?(y/n)
ROUnitscurrently
beingused?(y/n)
Sourcewater
Severityofproblem
(min,avg,maj)
Refurbishment
recommended?(y/n)
1 Khor Al-Zubair 25 1/20/2019 No No Network Major No
2 Al Shuaiba 25 1/18/2019 No No Well & network Major Maybe
3 Al Sudan 35 1/20/2019 No No Network Major Maybe
4 Al Turaba 25 1/14/2019 No No River Average Yes
5 Ktaiban 10 1/15/2019 No No River Minor Yes
6 Al Medina Res #2 10 1/14/2019 No No Network Average Yes
7 Al Salam 10 1/12/2019 No No Network Minor yes
8 Al Zuraiji 150 1/8/2019 No No River Average Yes
9 Ali Nour 50 1/9/2019 No No River Minor Yes
10 Al Bobsairi 25 1/11/2019 No No River Major No
11 Al Abara 25 1/14/2019 No No Network Average Yes
12 Al Nashwa 25 1/11/2019 Yes Yes Network Minor Yes
13 Al Saleem 25 1/12/2019 No No River Minor Yes
14 U. of Basrah 10 1/9/2019 Yes Yes Network & River Minor Yes
15 Hansani 10 1/21/2019 No No Network Minor Yes
$1 Million

73. 13
Some more relevant statistics
 >90% of water used in Iraq is in agriculture sector
 Primarily flood irrigation
 Crops subsidized, often 10% of potential crop yield
 Water supply mostly surface water
 Groundwater availability low and many places
quality is poor
 Agricultural water allocations cut 70% in 2018
– Affected more than 8 million people!
Water use in Iraq

74. 28
Hydrodynamic Model for the
Shatt Al-Arab River?
 Water moves up from the Persian Gulf
 When river is dry, problem is worse
 Saltwater being sucked up by Basrah Water Treatment Plant
 Tides push waste back upriver to WTP intakes
 Problem is getting worse
 Saltwater barrier?
Basrah

75. 29
Marshes of Southern Iraq UNESCO

76. 30
Marshes of Southern Iraq
Garden of
Eden

77. 17
Power outages 10+ per day!
Power supply unreliable
Businesses have generators
Corruption is rampant (e.g.
money for US$40B contract for
power grid upgrades went
missing)
Sometimes power out for 6+ hrs
Internet too!

78. 32
Scenery in Kurdistan Tourism
Tallest mountain: 11,847 feet

79. 19
Basrah rivers now Not Venice

80. 20
Basrah in the 1970’s Venice-y

81. 35
Petrochemical products Containment
breached

82. 36
WaterKeeper Iraq Nabil Musa

83. 22
Fish farm casualties Salt water

84. 38
Action needed Iraq water
- Secure International water-sharing compacts
- Aggressive water conservation (agr. & mun.)
- Waste collection/containment/remediation
- Fish farm restoration/conversion
- Desalination plant refurbishment
- Wastewater treatment
- Improve water quality monitoring
- Saltwater barrier
- New dams?
- Groundwater management/regulation/modeling
- Streamline infrastructure implementation
- Inter-agency communication improvements
- Attract international attention
- Training
- International investment