Iraq’s ‘pearl of the south’ Lake Sawa dry amid water crisis

A dock on the dry Lake Sawa

LAKE SAWA, Iraq (AP) — This year, for the first time in its centuries-long history, the lake dried up. A combination of mismanagement by local investors, government neglect and climate change has ground down its azure shores to chunks of salt.

Lake Sawa is only the latest casualty in this broad country-wide struggle with water shortages that experts say is induced by climate change, including record low rainfall and back-to-back drought. The stress on water resources is driving up competition for the precious resource among businessmen, farmers and herders, with the poorest Iraqis counting among the worst hit amid the disaster.

“This lake was known as the pearl of the south,” said Hussam al-Aqouli, 35, a native of the nearby city of Samawa, looking out onto the dry cavernous emptiness. “Now it is our tragedy.”

Between the capital Baghdad and the oil-rich heartland of Basra, Muthanna is among Iraq’s poorest provinces. The number of those living under the poverty line in the province is almost three times the national average.

Locals call the area surrounding Lake Sawa “atshan” — or simply “thirsty” in Arabic.

Experts said the lake has not dried up for good but its disappearance this year is a concerning consequence of the thousands of illegal wells dug by businessmen in nearby cement factories and manufacturing zones, a result of drought and decreasing waters along the nearby Euphrates.

Locals say the drying up of the waters of Lake Sawa presages the return of the Imam al-Mahdi, a revered figure in Shiite Islam and a descendent of the prophet.

“It means the end of days is near,” said al-Aqouli, in jest.

For environmentalists, the doomsday predictions may not be far off.

Studies have shown the lake is fed by underground water sources through a system of cracks and fissures. It can also receive rainwater from surrounding valleys and heavy rainfall in past years has caused flash floods.

Species of fish, unfit for human consumption, were food for various vulnerable migratory birds that sojourned along its banks. With the fish gone, the birds too will have to reroute their seasonal passage or perish, said al-Obeidi.

And the future is poised to bring more hardship, with alarming predictions of more water stress. The Water Resources Ministry has said water levels decreased by 60% in 2022 compared to last year.