• An aerial picture shows cattle in the shallow waters of the Shatt Al-Arab river in the southern Iraqi port city of Basra on March 21, 2022. - Basra sits on the Shatt Al-Arab waterway formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers which flow into the Gulf. Today, the salt water from the sea has taken over and now reaches 300 kilometres upriver. Waste water produced by Iraq, a country of 38 million people, is also poisoning the Tigris and Euphrates. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP)
    An aerial picture shows cattle in the shallow waters of the Shatt Al-Arab river in the southern Iraqi port city of Basra on March 21, 2022. - Basra sits on the Shatt Al-Arab waterway formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers which flow into the Gulf. Today, the salt water from the sea has taken over and now reaches 300 kilometres upriver. Waste water produced by Iraq, a country of 38 million people, is also poisoning the Tigris and Euphrates. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP)
  • A palm orchard degraded by salt and pollution on a bank of the Shatt Al Arab river.
    A palm orchard degraded by salt and pollution on a bank of the Shatt Al Arab river.
  • Basra sits on the Shatt Al Arab waterway, formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers that flow into the Gulf.
    Basra sits on the Shatt Al Arab waterway, formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers that flow into the Gulf.
  • Today, saltwater from the sea has taken over and reaches 300 kilometres upriver.
    Today, saltwater from the sea has taken over and reaches 300 kilometres upriver.
  • Wastewater produced by Iraq, a country of 38 million people, is also poisoning the Tigris and Euphrates.
    Wastewater produced by Iraq, a country of 38 million people, is also poisoning the Tigris and Euphrates.

MENA

Iraq

Iraq's poisoned and polluted rivers - in pictures

On World Water Day, aerial photos show how saltwater and waste have polluted the Shatt Al Arab

The National

March 22, 2022

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Updated: March 22, 2022, 8:45 AM
PhotographyIraqEnvironment