“After we received news about large numbers of fish that had died in the al-Khair River area, we contacted our colleagues in the agricultural branch in al-Khair, and they confirmed that many fish had died because of evaporation and lack of oxygen,” Majd al-Saadi, head of Maysan agriculture directorate, told Rudaw on Friday.
He added that around 8.6 million fingerlings were released in the area in spring to increase fish abundance, adding that they released water at a flow rate of one cubic-meter to avoid further losses.
Saadi ruled out environmental pollution as the cause of the death, affirming that samples from the dead fish and water were taken to determine the reason.
He emphasized that a large number of residents and animals, especially buffalo depend on the Marshlands in Maysan, prompting them to request relief from the water resources ministry as the river's flow is insufficient to sustain the area’s needs.
Saadi warned that if the river's water levels drop further, the fish deaths will threaten the stability of the area's residents.
In July 2023., a myriad of fish, totaling three tons in weight, were found dead and floating on the banks of the Al-Ezz River in Maysan province following a 20-fold increase in water salinity and a drop in water levels.
In August 2023, Khaled al-Shamali, spokesman for the Iraqi water resources ministry, told Rudaw that the country's water reserves are at their lowest levels ever recorded.
A report by Iraq’s water resources ministry towards the end of last year predicted that unless urgent action is taken to combat declining water levels, Iraq’s two main rivers - the Tigris and Euphrates - will be entirely dry by 2040.
Iraq is among the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including water and food insecurity, according to the United Nations. It is facing a severe water shortage because of reduced precipitation and higher temperatures, and waste and mismanagement. The crisis is worsened by dams upstream in Turkey and Iran that have led to a significant decrease in the volume of water entering the country.
The UN Environment Program (UNEP) has long warned that water availability in Iraq will decrease by around 20 percent by 2025, threatening the long-term stability of agriculture and industry sectors.
