Iraqi agriculture bears the brunt of Increasing water salinity

Iraqi land, once nourished by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, is sliding further into crisis, threatening farmland, rural livelihoods, and traditional ways of life.

Farmers across southern Iraq are witnessing a creeping ecological collapse, as rising salinity in rivers, desertification, and shrinking freshwater flows devastate crops, kill livestock, and force families from their homes, according to Arab Weekly plus agencies on October 27th.

Salt concentrations in key waterways have surged this year, particularly in the Basra region, where readings in central Basra province in September reached nearly 29,000 parts per million (ppm) compared to 2,600 ppm during 2024. Freshwater is typically considered safe at under 1,000 ppm, while seawater salinity levels averages around 35,000 ppm.

The crisis is driven by shrinking water flow in the Tigris and Euphrates, excessive irrigation, and upstream dams in Turkey and Iran, which have reduced the river water to less than a quarter of what farms need. As the rivers shrink, seawater from the Gulf is creeping inland through the Shatt al-Arab, contaminating farmland and killing fish. Fishermen report they have empty nets as saltwater is killing their native fish species.

Iraq’s southern provinces, which encompass the Mesopotamian Marshes, a UNESCO World Heritage site, are now drying. The loss threatens not only biodiversity but also Iraq’s cultural memory as ancient farming methods gradually vanish. To many Iraqis, agriculture is not only a livelihood but a link to their heritage, one that is now drying up alongside the rivers that nourished it.

Iraqi farmer Umm Ali has seen her poultry die as salinity levels in south Iraq reached unprecedented highs, making the little water that there is unsuitable for human consumption and killing livestock.

“We used to drink, wash and cook with water from the river, but now it’s hurting us,” said Ali, 40, who resides in the once watery Al-Mashab marshes of the Basra province.

During this season, she said the water has killed many of her ducks and 15 chickens. “I cried and grieved, I felt as if all my hard work had been wasted,” said the mother, who is widowed.

According to Iraq’s Agriculture Minister Abbas Jabr al-Maliki, nearly half the country’s arable land is lost each year due to desertification. The UN’s International Organization for Migration estimates that roughly 170,000 people in central and southern Iraq have already been displaced by climate-related pressures.

Climate change is intensifying the damage as rising temperatures, prolonged droughts, and poor water management accelerates an environmental crisis in the country.

But the crisis extends far beyond Iraq. “Desertification isn’t limited to Iraq,” Dr Omar al-Sheikhly, an Iraqi environmental expert, said. “It affects dry-belt countries like Saudi Arabia, southern Syria, Jordan, western Iraq, and parts of Iran.”

He continued: “Desertification is advancing fast in Iraq. Without action, fertile lands become barren. While smart farming and efficient irrigation can help conserve water, restoring the land will require decades, a daunting but necessary task as conditions worsen.”

Dr Omar called for cooperation with experts and leaders to maintain land and water resources, claiming that efforts, without a sense of unity, only provide a short-term solution.

“Reduced rainfall, poor water management, and rising temperatures deepen the crisis. Iraq needs science-based policies to avoid irreversible degradation,” he said.

Authorities have introduced plans to modernise irrigation infrastructure and agriculture within the Kurdistan Region. “These efforts are vital,” he said, “but strong legal frameworks are needed for impact.”

In spite of these plans, progress has not been extensive. He explained: “Weak coordination and limited capacity hold Iraq back. Public sustainability awareness is crucial to recovery and links policy with action.”

According to Al Jazeera via AFP, the Iraqi government has pledged to build a Basra desalination plant capable of treating one million cubic metres of water per day, aimed at countering saltwater intrusion. Authorities are also promoting smart farming and drought-resistant seeds.

But the crisis cannot be separated from regional politics, according to Kurdish lawmaker Gharib Ahmed, a parliamentary committee member on agriculture, water, and marshes.

“Climate change has hurt Iraq, but Turkey is using water as a political tool to pressure Iraq and the Kurdistan Region,” Ahmed said to The New Arab and agencies.

He also said that the committee summoned the Turkish ambassador, calling on Turkey to stop what he termed the “collective punishment” of Iraqis over the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) conflict, revealing the ties between environmental problems and geopolitics.

Ahmed said that during his field trips to Najaf, Karbala, Kut, and Nineveh, he saw that the majority of marshlands had dried up, rendering them barren and unsuitable for farming or fish breeding. After talks with Turkish officials, Iraq gained a slight increase in water flow, but Ahmed insisted that in order to gain long-term solutions Iraq needs to create more dams and invest in up-to-date irrigation infrastructure.

He dismissed reports of a farming prohibition, claiming authorities intend to attain agricultural aircraft and equipment to aid farmers instead.

Hasan al-Khateeb, who is an expert from the University of Kufa in Iraq said that that in addition to acquiring its share of the rivers, Iraq must go ahead with desalination projects in the Shatt al-Arab.

Environmentalists urge for regional cooperation and long-term investment in irrigation efficiency, aquifer recharge, and reforestation to prevent irreversible degradation.

The New Arab and agencies, Al Jazeera via AFP, The Arab Weekly plus agencies, Maghrebi.org