The Turkish Cizre Dam and its impact on the water flow of the Tigris River in Iraq

Abstract

This research addresses the Jazira Dam, which Turkey plans to build on the Tigris River, (40) km north of the Iraqi-Turkish border, and the serious and significant impacts it will have on water, human, environmental, and economic resources. Upon completion of the dam, the water flow in the Tigris River will decrease by approximately (9.7) billion m3/year, compared to the normal water flow before the dam was built, which was approximately (20.93) billion m3/year. This decrease represents approximately 50% of the current flow of water, in addition to the deterioration of water quality compared to its previous normal state. It will also deprive approximately (696) thousand hectares of agricultural land in Iraq of irrigation water, transforming it into unsuitable land for agriculture, thus increasing the area of desertified land in Iraq. Turkey's goal in building the dam is to advance its regional agenda by pursuing its strategic development plans to establish a regional "water superpower" that would give it control over the waters of the Tigris River. This raises numerous political, security, environmental, economic and demographic issues that carry negative consequences for Iraq, which is threatened with losing a third of its agricultural land, a decline in its livestock wealth and a large wave of displacement. These repercussions and effects are reinforced by a number of political and natural factors that exacerbate the Tigris River water crisis in the country.