WATER SHORTAGE IN IRAQ

Water Shortage Issues and its effect on Rice Cultivation in Najaf

List of Contents

Chapter 19

1-Introduction9

1-1 Background9

1-2 Problem Statement11

1-3 Objective of the research12

1-4 Data Source12

Chapter 213

2. Water Shortage in Iraq13

2.1 Introduction13

2.2 Water Resources of Iraq13

2.2.1 Iraqi rain13

2.3 Causes of Water Shortage in Iraq17

2.3.1 Climate change17

2.3.3The strategic importance of water22

2.3.4Effect of the Trans-boundary Issues on the Water Resource22

2.4 Foreign Control of the river water bodies and its affects Iraq24

2.4.1 Turkey's treaties with neighbouring countries25

2.4.2 Turkish and Syrian projects in the basins of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers25

2.4.2.1 Turkish businesses25

2.4.2.2 Syrian projects:26

2.5Conclusion27

Chapter 329

3 Rice Cultivation29

3-1 Iraq's agricultural history:29

3-2 Rice Production33

3-2-1 Brief view33

3-2-2 Rice in Iraq33

3-3 Rice in Najaf34

3-4 Rice verities in Najaf under cultivation currently38

3-4-1 Anber38

3-4-2 Jasmine39

3-4-3 Verities prevented39

3-5 Agricultural policy in Iraq40

3-5-1 Agriculture Policy and its importance in the Iraqi economy40

3-5-2 The contribution of the agricultural sector in GDP41

Conclusion44

Chapter 445

4 Methodology45

An abundant supply of good quality irrigation water is needed for optimum rice production. Knowledge of the quality and quantity of irrigation water is required for proper water management.45

4.1 Determining Water Needs45

A water supply is adequate for a given field if you can:45

?Flush in two to four days;45

?Flood in three to five days;45

?Maintain flood for the entire season.45

4.2 Water flows in irrigation systems49

4.3 Field versus irrigation system level51

4.4 Irrigation system management53

4.5 Irrigation system design54

Chapter 556

5.0 Previous Studies on Rice and Water56

5.1 Background56

5.1.1 Researches on water right and riparian57

5.1.2 Researches on Rice Production58

Chapter 664

6.0 Conclusion64

6.1 Najaf and Diwaniya Provinces Report 2009 Season Activities64

6.2 SRI at Agriculture Fair in Najaf Province, Iraq67

6.3 2008-2009 ACTIVITIES67

6.3.1 2008 SRI Trials Undertaken on Jasmine Rice in Al-Muthanna Province67

References69

List of Tables

Table 3-1 show national rice requirement and self- sufficiency32

Table 3-2: Area, production and the yield per acre of Iraq in general and the province of Najaf for the period (1991-2009)33

Table 3-3: the relative importance of rice production and area of the province of Najaf to the percentage of area and production of the country for the period 1991-200936

Table 3-440

Table 4.1 Paddy rice: Iraq's area under cultivation. Rice Cultivation46

Table 4.2 Paddy Rice: Middle East Average Yields47

Table 4.4 Plant height (cm)48

Table 4.5 Panicle length (cm)49

Table 4.6 Tiller number m-249

Table 4.7 Sterility ratio (%)50

Table 4.8 Filled grains per panicle50

Table 4.9 1000-grain weight (gm)51

Table 4.10 Grain yield (kg per hectare)51

List of Figures

Figure 114

Graph 1: Showing the quantity of annual water flowing to the Euphrates River in the Iraqi—Syrian border for the period (1992-2009).25

Figure -2 cultivated area of rice at the country level compared to the Najaf governorate for the period 1991-200434

Figure - 3 Rice productions in Iraq, compared the Najaf Governorate; 1991-200435

AcknowledgementAbstract

Iraq is generally divided into three river basins: the Tigris, the Euphrates, and the Shatt Al-Arab. The average annual flow of the Euphrates as it enters Iraq is estimated at 30 km3 and that of Tigris at 21.2 km3. While 50% of the Tigris water comes from within Iraq, more than 90% of Euphrates water comes from outside the country. Currently, ground water resources provide an estimated 0.9 billion m3 of water annually covering the needs of 64,000 ha of agricultural ...