Tigris–Euphrates river system

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Tigris–Euphrates river system
Ecology
RealmPalearctic
Biometemperate floodplain rivers and wetlands
Geography
Area879,790 km2 (339,690 sq mi)
Countries
List
Oceans or seasempties into the Persian Gulf
RiversTigris, Euphrates, Greater Zab, Lesser Zab.

The Tigris–Euphrates river system is a large river system in

Western Asia that discharges into the Persian Gulf. Its principal rivers are the Tigris and Euphrates, along with smaller tributaries
.

From their sources and upper courses in the mountains of eastern Turkey, the rivers descend through valleys and gorges to the uplands of Syria and northern Iraq and then to the alluvial plain of central Iraq. Other tributaries join the Tigris from sources in the Zagros Mountains to the east. The rivers flow in a south-easterly direction through the central plain and combine at Al-Qurnah to form the Shatt al-Arab and discharge into the Persian Gulf.[1] The rivers and their tributaries drain an area of 879,790 km2,[2] including almost the entire area of Iraq as well as portions of Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Kuwait.[3][4][5][6][7]

The region has historical importance as part of the Fertile Crescent region, where Mesopotamian civilization first emerged.

Geography

The Tigris–Euphrates Basin is shared between Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait.[6][3][4][5][7] Many tributaries of the Tigris river originate in Iran, and the Shatt al-Arab, formed by the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, makes up a portion of the Iran–Iraq border, with Kuwait's Bubiyan Island being part of its delta.[8][9] Since the 1960s and in the 1970s, when Turkey began the GAP project in earnest, water disputes have regularly occurred in addition to the associated dam's effects on the environment. In addition, Syrian and Iranian dam construction has also contributed to political tension within the basin, particularly during drought.

The ecoregion is characterized by two large rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates. The high mountains in the upper watershed receive more rain and snow than the lower watershed, which has a hot and arid subtropical climate. Annual snow melt from the mountains brings spring floods, and sustains permanent and seasonal marshes in the lowlands.

The plain between the two rivers is known as

Cradle of Civilization
".

There is a large floodplain in the lower basin where the Euphrates, Tigris, and Karun rivers converge to create the Mesopotamian Marshes, which include permanent lakes, marshes, and riparian forests. The hydrology of these vast marshes is extremely important to the ecology of the entire upper Persian Gulf.

History

The confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was the place where some of the first civilizations emerged. From ancient times empires arose and fell in the river basin, including Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia, Assyria, and the Abbasid Caliphate.

Ecology

The most abundant fishes are species of barbs (

Hilsa shad (Tenualosa ilisha) is an important food fish that lives in the coastal waters and spawns in the lower reaches of the basin. Other ocean species occasionally visit the lower reaches of the rivers; bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) used to swim up the Tigris as far as Baghdad.[10]

Iraq blind barb (Typhlogarra widdowsoni), from a cave habitat near Haditha on the Euphrates.[10]

One-third of the fish species in the upper watersheds are endemic, including species of

Batman River loach (Paraschistura chrysicristinae) is a Critically Endangered fish species endemic to the Batman and Ambar rivers, Turkish tributaries of the Tigris. The species is endangered by drought, habitat destruction, and habitat fragmentation from the construction of the Batman Dam. It had not been observed since 1974 and was feared extinct until a 2021 expedition netted 14 fish living above the Batman Dam.[12]

Mesopotamian Marshes

Main article: Mesopotamian Marshes
Marsh Arabs poling a mashoof in the marshes of southern Iraq

The

endemic rodent species, antelopes and gazelles and small animals such as the jerboa and several other mammals. The wetland birds Basra reed warbler (Acrocephalus griseldis) and Iraq babbler (Argya altirostris) are endemic to the Mesopotamian Marshes. The Basra reed warbler is endangered. Another wetland endemic species, Bunn's short-tailed bandicoot rat
(Nesokia bunnii), is possibly extinct.

Central Marshes.[13]

Ecological threats

This visualization shows variations in total water storage from normal, in millimeters, in the Tigris and Euphrates river basins, from January 2003 through December 2009. Reds represent drier conditions, while blues represent wetter conditions. The effects of the seasons are evident, as is the major drought that hit the region in 2007. The majority of the water lost was due to reductions in groundwater caused by human activities.

Iraq suffers from

Ba'athist regime. The destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife
populations. There are also inadequate supplies of potable water.

The

United Nations Environmental Program and the AMAR Charitable Foundation, between 84% and 90% of the marshes have been destroyed since the 1970s. In 1994, 60 percent of the wetlands were destroyed by Hussein's regime – drained to permit military access and greater political control of the native Marsh Arabs
. Canals, dykes and dams were built routing the water of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers around the marshes, instead of allowing water to move slowly through the marshland. After part of the Euphrates was dried up due to re-routing its water to the sea, a dam was built so water could not back up from the Tigris and sustain the former marshland. Some marshlands were burned and pipes buried underground helped to carry away water for quicker drying.

The drying of the marshes led to the disappearance of the

buffalo and water birds
of the marsh habitat.

Climate change in Turkey and climate change in Iraq are also a threat.[15]

Water dispute

The issue of water rights became a point of contention for Iraq, Turkey and Syria beginning in the 1960s when Turkey implemented a public-works project (the

UN embargo against Iraq following the Gulf War. However, the issue had never become as significant as the water dispute between Turkey and Syria.[16]

The 2008 drought in Iraq sparked new negotiations between Iraq and Turkey over

trans-boundary river flows. Although the drought affected Turkey, Syria and Iran as well, Iraq complained regularly about reduced water flows. Iraq particularly complained about the Euphrates River because of the large number of dams on the river. Turkey agreed to increase the flow several times, beyond its means in order to supply Iraq with extra water. Iraq has seen significant declines in water storage and crop yields because of the drought. To make matters worse, Iraq's water infrastructure has suffered from years of conflict and neglect.[17]

In 2008, Turkey, Iraq and Syria agreed to restart the

Ilisu Dam – is strongly opposed by Iraq and is the source of political strife.[18]

In media

See also

References

  1. ^ "Euphrates River". Encyclopædia Britannica. 17 December 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  2. ^ "Euphrates–Tigris River Basin". AQUASTAT Survey 2008, UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Accessed 30 June 2020. [1]
  3. ^
    ISBN 9783642237430
    . The Tigris-Euphrates-Shatt al Arab is shared between Iraq, Iran, Syria, Kuwait and Turkey.
  4. ^ a b "Lower Tigris & Euphrates". feow.org. 2013. Archived from the original on 2015-11-17.
  5. ^ a b Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team (February 3, 2003). "Mesopotamia" – via Internet Archive.
  6. ^ a b Deniz Bozkurt; Omer Lutfi Sen (2012). "Hydrological response of past and future climate changes in the Euphrates-Tigris Basin" (PDF). p. 1. The Euphrates-Tigris Basin, covering areas in five countries (Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Iran and Kuwait), is a major water resource of the Middle East.
  7. ^ a b "Tigris-Euphrates river system". Encyclopædia Britannica. 17 December 2017.
  8. ISBN 978-0-8047-7749-0
    .
  9. S2CID 248250022
    .
  10. ^ a b "Lower Tigris & Euphrates". Freshwater Ecoregions of the World. Accessed 30 June 2020. [2]
  11. ^ "Upper Tigris & Euphrates". Freshwater Ecoregions of the World. Accessed 30 June 2020. [3]
  12. ^ Greene, Graeme (2021) "Batman loach returns: fish feared extinct found in Turkey". The Guardian 9 December 2021. [4]
  13. UNEP
    )
  14. ^ "Iraq marshes face grave new threat". February 24, 2009 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  15. ^ "Climate". climatechangeinturkey.com. Retrieved 2021-02-19.
  16. ^ Uzgel I., 1992. GÜVENSİZLİK ÜÇGENİ: TÜRKİYE, SURİYE, IRAK VE SU SORUNU, MÜLKİYELİLER BİRLİĞİ DERGİSİ, 162, p.47-52
  17. ^ "Turkey lets more water out of dams to Iraq: MP". Reuters. 23 May 2009.
  18. ^ "Turkey to up Euphrates flow to Iraq". AFP. 19 September 2009. Archived from the original on 31 December 2010.

Further reading

  • Adamo, Nasrat, Nadhir Al-Ansari, and Varoujan K. Sissakian. "Global climate change impacts on Tigris-Euphrates Rivers basins." Journal of Earth Sciences and Geotechnical Engineering 10.1 (2020): 49–98. online
  • Al-Ansari, Nadhir, et al. "Water Quality and its Environmental Implications within Tigris and Euphrates Rivers." Journal of Earth Sciences and Geotechnical Engineering 9.4 (2019): 57–108. online
  • Husain, Faisal. Rivers of the Sultan: The Tigris and Euphrates in the Ottoman Empire (Oxford University Press, 2021) online review
  • Hussein, Omar Ahmed, and Khadijah Mohamed. "Legal Rights of International Water Resources: A Case of Tigris and Euphrates Rivers." International Journal of Law, Government and Communication 6.22 (2021): 130–137. online
  • Jawad, Laith A., ed. Tigris and Euphrates Rivers: Their Environment from Headwaters to Mouth (Springer Nature, 2021) online

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to Tigris–Euphrates river system.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Mesopotamia (Middle East).

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