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KARBALA, Iraq - The second largest lake in Iraq has dried up, threatening people's income and agriculture, with locals saying they have been forced to abandon their homes and move to urban areas.
Milh Lake was once a popular destination for tourists to cool down during scorching summer temperatures. It is now experiencing a dangerous drought, threatening the lives of local Iraqis.
The second-largest lake in Iraq, also known as Razzaza Lake, is located west of the city of Karbala.
Water levels here have plummeted and the once-thriving touristic spot currently resembles a desert. The only things to see now are dead animals and large amounts of salt.
“I am one of the fishermen of al-Razzaza Lake. I have been working here for many years. I fish and then go to sell them in the market, but now the fish are gone," Yasser al-Darwish, a fisherman from the area told Rudaw on Friday. "Hundreds of fishermen used to make a living out of fishing. Now, the lake has dried up completely. We too have died because of the excessive drought. Salt has appeared, and so have the dead fish."
The lake is important because of the rare fish and birds that live there, however, the high levels of drought may ultimately lead to its extinction.
Locals have decried the Iraqi government’s inaction, calling on authorities to implement a plan to save the lake by releasing water from the Euphrates River.
The drying up of the lake has contributed to the migration of thousands of fishermen and farmers to urban areas, leaving behind their homes and land, which they say produced the best fruit and dates.
"Our land dried up due to abundant salt. We do not have water, so we moved to the urban areas, shifting our jobs and working as construction workers," Karim Al-Mashhadani who was a fisherman in the area told Rudaw.
Despite facing a strong wave of cold weather, rain, and snow in January, Iraq still suffers from the long-term effects of climate change.
Officials have warned for years that dams built by Iran and Turkey have contributed to a growing water crisis in the southern and central provinces of Iraq, as well as the northern Kurdistan Region. Iran has built around 600 dams over the last 30 years, cutting or diverting river courses from its territory into Iraq.
The country is the fifth-most vulnerable nation in the world to the effects of climate change, including water and food insecurity.
Last year, low rainfall levels and high temperatures caused by climate change depleted water supplies across the country. Much of Iraq’s agricultural lands depend on irrigation, and dams and reservoirs were at record-low levels in the summer of 2021.
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