Mesopotamian Marshes

The Mesopotamian Marshes, also known as the Iraqi Marshes, are a wetland area located in southern Iraq and southwestern Iran as well as partially in northern Kuwait. The marshes are primarily located on the floodplains of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers bound by the cities of Basra, Nasiriyah, Amarah and a portion of southwestern Iran and northern Kuwait (particularly Bubiyan Island). Historically the marshlands, mainly composed of the separate but adjacent Central, Hawizeh and Hammar Marshes, used to be the largest wetland ecosystem of western Eurasia. The unique wetland landscape is home to the Marsh people, who have developed a unique culture tightly coupled to the landscape – harvesting reeds and rice, fishing, and herding water buffalo. Draining of portions of the marshes began in the 1950s and continued through the 1970s to reclaim land for agriculture and oil exploration. In the late 1980s and 1990s, during the presidency of Saddam Hussein, this work was expanded and accelerated to evict Marsh people from the marshes. Before 2003, the marshes were drained to 10% of their original size. Since the American overthrow of Hussein in 2003, the marshes have partially recovered. However, drought along with upstream dam construction and operation in Turkey, Syria, and Iran have hindered the process. The Mesopotamian marshes were listed as an UNESCO Heritage Site in 2016.

Geography

As its name suggests, the Mesopotamian Marshes are located in the larger region of Mesopotamia. Originally covering an area of 20,000 km2 (7,700 mi2) and divided into three major areas, the Central Marshes lie between the Tigris and Euphrates, while the Hammar Marshes lie south of the Euphrates and the Hawizeh Marshes are bound east of the Tigris. Before the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, about 90% of the marshes had been drained. The marshes lie on a flat alluvial plain, as the Euphrates decreases only 12 m (39 ft) in elevation during its last 300 km (190 mi) while the Tigris falls 24 m (79 ft). This delta provides an environment that allows the Tigris and Euphrates to meander, forming distributaries. The Euphrates has often terminated near Nasiriyah into the Hammar Marshes as its flow slows. The Tigris can distribute some of its flow into the Central and Hawizeh marshes as it slows near Amarah. Downstream of Amarah, though, several of its tributaries originating in Iran allow the Tigris's flow to increase, and it maintains a steady course thereafter. The three marshes once provided an intertwined environment, particularly during periods of flooding as the rivers overflowed.

Central

The Central Marshes receive water from influxes of the Tigris's distributaries, namely the Shatt al-Muminah and Majar al-Kabir south of Amarah. The Tigris serves as the marshes' eastern boundary while the Euphrates serves as its southern boundary. Covering an area of 3,000 km2 (1,200 mi2), the marshes consist of reed beds and several permanent lakes including Umm al Binni lake. The Al-Zikri and Hawr Umm Al-Binni lakes are two of the notable lakes and are 3 m (9.8 ft) deep.

Hammar

The Hammar Marshes are primarily fed by the Euphrates and lie south of it with a western extent to Nasiriyah, eastern border of the Shatt al-Arab and southern extent of Basrah. Normally, the marshes are a 2,800 km2 (1,100 mi2) area of permanent marsh and lake but during period of flooding can extend to 4,500 km2 (1,700 mi2). In periods of flooding, water from the Central Marsh, fed by the Tigris can overflow and supply the marshes with water. Hammar Lake is the largest water body within the marsh and has an area of 120 km (75 mi) by 250 km (160 mi), with depths ranging between 1.8 m (5.9 ft)-3 m (9.8 ft). In the summer, large portion of the marshes' and lake's shore are exposed, revealing islands that are used for agriculture.

Hawizeh

The Hawizeh Marshes lie east of the Tigris and a portion lie in Iran. The Iranian side of the marshes, known as Hawr Al-Azim, is fed by the Karkheh River, while the Tigris distributaries Al-Musharrah and Al-Kahla supply the Iraqi side, only with much less water than the Karkheh. During spring flooding, the Tigris may directly flow into the marshes. The marshes are drained by the Al-Kassarah. This river plays a critical role in maintaining the Al-Hawizeh marshes as a flow-through system and preventing it from becoming a closed saline basin. The marshes are 80 km (50 mi) from north to south and about 30 km (19 mi) from east to west, covering a total area of 3,000 km2 (1,200 mi2). Permanent portions of the marshes include the northern and central portion while the southern part is generally seasonal. Moderately dense vegetation can be found in the permanent areas along with large 6 m (20 ft)-deep lakes in the northern portions. As the Hawizeh Marshes fared the best during the draining, they can facilitate the reproduction of flora, fauna and other species in Central and Hammar marshes.

Ecology

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