Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer

Research Articles

Vol. 12 No. sp1 (2025): Recent Advances in Agriculture by Young Minds - II

Impact of Euphrates River level decline on agriculture in Fallujah district

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.7737
Submitted
14 February 2025
Published
25-08-2025 — Updated on 16-09-2025
Versions

Abstract

Water scarcity in Iraq, particularly in the agricultural sector, has emerged as a pressing concern. This study examines the impact of declining Euphrates River flow on agricultural productivity in a region where the river traverses approximately 103 km, starting from the north of Al-Saqlawiyah (in the Sen al-Dhaban region) to the outskirts of the district. The highest annual discharge rate of the Euphrates River was recorded in 2005-2006 at 680 m³/s, while the lowest discharge was recorded during 2010-2020, at 290 m³/s. This decline has negatively impacted the water levels of its tributary streams due to several factors, including climate change, global warming, political tensions with Turkey and Turkey's non-compliance with international laws and treaties signed with Iraq. These factors have had a direct impact on agricultural productivity in terms of cultivated areas and production volumes during the period (2010-2020). This period witnessed a negative change in cultivated areas, which decreased to 25818 dunums, with cereal crops being the most affected. The area cultivated with cereals decreased by 39597 dunums, with a corresponding drop in production by 2449 tons. Industrial crops were next, experiencing a reduction in cultivated area by 982 dunums and a decline in production by 275 tons. Finally, horticultural crops saw a production decrease of 103 tons.

References

  1. 1. Khallaf HA. Agricultural land ownership and its investments in Baghdad Governorate. 1st ed. Baghdad: Al-Irshad Press; 1976.
  2. 2. Petruzzello M. Water scarcity. In: Encyclopedia Britannica. 2023. https://www.britannica.com/science/water-scarcity
  3. 3. Al-Dulaimi RMMG. Agricultural development in Fallujah District. Ramadi: University of Anbar, College of Arts; 2023.
  4. 4. Assi NA, Abdulaziz RAH. The role of strategic planning in managing the water crisis: A field study on the opinions of the Directorate of Water Resources in the Middle Euphrates. J Coll Adm Econ Econ Adm Financ Stud. 2020;12(2).
  5. 5. Al-Fahdawi LMKA. Climate change and its impact on the hydrological characteristics of water reservoirs on the Euphrates River. Ramadi: University of Anbar, College of Education for Human Sciences; 2017.
  6. 6. Al-Ta’i AO. Water scarcity in the Middle Euphrates region and its impact on agricultural reality. J Coll Educ Univ Misan. 2024;56(1).
  7. 7. Zarei M. The water-energy-food nexus: A holistic approach for resource security in Iran, Iraq and Turkey. Water-Energy Nexus. 2020;3:81–94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wen.2020.05.004
  8. 8. Ewaid SH, Abed SA, Chabut A, Al-Ansari N. Water footprint of rice in Iraq. IOP Conf Ser Earth Environ Sci. 2021;722:012008. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/722/1/012008
  9. 9. Giovanis E, Özdamar Ö. The transboundary effects of climate change and global adaptation: The case of the Euphrates-Tigris water basin in Turkey and Iraq. SSRN Electron J. 2023. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4320746
  10. 10. Al-Saadi DAHA. Optimal investment of water resources and its impact on grain crop productivity in Muqdadiyah District. J Univ Anbar Hum Sci. 2023;20(1).
  11. 11. Alalosy BMA, Daood ST, Mohamed MR, Al-Karbouli ASE, Ahmad JM, Ghani ETA. Effect of climate on variation of oil crop production in Anbar Governorate. Plant Sci Today. 2024;11(3). https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.4098
  12. 12. Al-Jughayfi MIMA. Future prospects for rationalizing and investing surface water resources in Anbar Province. J Univ Anbar Hum Sci. 2013;2(4).

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.