Examination of Iraq's Water Quality and the Stressors That Have Contributed to the Decline of the Water Quality

RUNNING HEAD: Examination of Iraq's Water Quality and the Stressors that have Contributed

Introduction

Many people think that the water quality in war torn Iraq does not affect Americans. Those who think that would be wrong. American service members have been faced with many difficulties that could be resolved if only Iraq's water quality was fixed and managed. We the citizens of the United States are not told of the bodies that have been pulled from the Tigris. We do not see the raw sewage being spilled into the waterways by faulty treatment plants and dilapidated sewage drains. As Americans we cannot imagine our untreated waste being drained into the waterways that provided so many with a livelihood. During the crisis known as Deep Water Horizon, America in general had a proactive approach to the resolution of the problem. While in Iraq oil is leaked into the waterways due to the lack of resources and ability to maintain their oil rigs. One may ask how can something that seems to be a basic concept be so difficult to resolve, or how a government can place on hold a program that would bring relief to its citizens? How is it that the very place that holds a spot in our history books for being for the cradle of civilization is now a vast melting pot for disease and famine? It seems incomprehensible that a countries water quality can be so bad that its citizen have no choice but to drink the very water that their own waste is being dump into. This paper will describe the quality of Iraq's water, the events that led to the pollution of Iraq's water, and the effect that the water quality has on the Iraqi civilization.

Water Quality

Imagine, if you could, your thirty so you turn on the faucet and get a glass of water. Living in the United States this normally would not raise any concerns. Picture living in a country that does not have distinct waste management program leaving debris, garbage and waste lining the streets. In the United States when it rains the rain water is moved from the street through storm drains or is absorbed through the ground layers and back into our waterway. The process is the same in Iraq but the rain water carries with it toxins from the waste lining the streets through drainage systems and ground layers back into the very water that provides drinking water to the Iraqi citizens. With faulty waste management centers, run-off from industrial sites, manufacturing plants, and agricultural grounds Iraq's waterway have become polluted with toxins such as pesticides, oil, and raw sewage.

Waste Management System

The state of Iraq's waste management systems is in dire need of a complete overhaul. The reason for waste build up in the street of Iraq is largely due to faulty management. There is no defined system for the removal of waste off the street of Iraq. When the waste is removed the street of the higher class are the ones that usually reap the benefits. The times that garbage is removed from the streets it is taken to landfills, much like in United States. However, Iraqi landfills are not monitored with the same integrity as landfills in the United States. Often there are no mean of ensuring that surrounding areas are not affected by run-off for the landfill. Another vital part of an effective waste management system is sewage drains. At one point Iraq had all the resources available to monitor and maintain it waste management system. Now with the severe decline of Iraq its sewage systems have become dilapidated causing raw sewage to seep into the ground layers and be dumped directly into the waterways. Coupled with dilapidated sewage drains are faulty water treatment plants. Many of Iraq's treatment plants are no longer in working order. The few treatment facilities that do work often times do not have the resources available to properly treat the water or maintain the facilities. The state of Iraq's waste management system is one of the many problems that have crippled the country. If the quality of the water were improved the citizens of Iraq may once again flourish.

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Agricultural Waste

Although the industrial, manufacturing and agricultural industries provides a much needed livelihood for many Iraqi's they also are part of the cause for the state of Iraqi's water quality.