Iraq relies in its water resources on the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates and their tributaries. The country is located in the lower part of the catchment area of these rivers. The long-term average annual flow that enters Iraq from these rivers is about 30 BCM from the Euphrates, 21.2 BCM from the Tigris, 24.78 BCM from tributaries and 7 BCM from side valleys between Iraq and Iran. Now, the flow of these rivers is decreasing due to climate change and hydrological projects established in the upper parts of the catchment. It is indicated that precipitation will decrease by 15% - 25% during this century and that means that the flow of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers will be reduced by 29% - 73%. This will cause a grave depletion of groundwater resources. Türkiye is trying to finish building 22 dams and 19 hydropower stations. Iran built 12 dams and diverted the flow of some tributaries inside Iran and blocked all the valleys that contribute water from its land to Iraq. For these reasons, Iraq is experiencing shortages in its water resources and there is some sort of friction and conflict between riparian countries within the Tigris and Euphrates basins because each country tries to secure its water resources. In this research, the factors affecting the hydro politics within these basins are water scarcity, climate change and hydrological projects, population growth rate, energy issues, water mismanagement, economic changes, expansions of projects and technology, political issues, international water laws and public awareness. In case the situation remains as it is, Iraq will experience many problems in health, environment, economy, and security. To solve the problem of water scarcity in Iraq, two parallel lines of action are to be considered. These are: 1) Reach agreements with Riparian Parties; 2) Develop a long-term strategy that should take the following: a) Rehabilitating of existing dams, barrages & pump stations, b) Improving the efficiency of diversion and supply, c) Using of nonconventional water resources, d) Irrigation modernization using suitable techniques, e) Developing a public awareness program, f) Developing human resources program and establishing an agenda for training, g) Developing an agricultural plan that takes into consideration the possibility of reducing crops that consume a lot of water.

Worries concerning the possibility of the dam failure due to the seepages under the foundation of Mosul Dam during its construction and operation phases enhanced the application of several dam failure models on Mosul Dam case. All the applied models gave similar results. It was noticed through the models that the wave in case of the dam failure will have a height of 54m and the discharge will be of the order of 551000 m3/sec. This wave will reach the capital city of Iraq “Baghdad” after about 38 hours. The discharge of the River Tigris at Baghdad will be 46000m3/sec and the height of the wave will reach 4m. The propagation of the wave along this distance will cause a catastrophe. About 500000 civilians will die in addition to the unbelievable damage that will be caused to the infrastructure of the country.

The Fatha (ex-Lower Fars) Formation (Middle Miocene) is the predominant stratigraphic unit in the Mosul Dam area. It is about 250 meters thick near Mosul. Marls, chalky limestone, gypsum, anhydrite, and limestone form a layered sequence of rocks under the foundation of the dam. The foundation of the dam is mainly resting on the Fatha Formation (Middle Miocene) which is highly karstified. Karstic limestone and the development of solution cavities within the gypsum and anhydrite layers are the main geological features under the foundation of the dam. The right (west) abutment is located in the steeply dipping Fatha Formation within Butmah East anticline with SE plunge being in the reservoir north of the dam, whereas the left (east) abutment is located on gently dipping beds of the Fatha Formation, which is overlain by fine clastics of the Injana Formation. These differences in lithology as well the dip amount and direction along both abutments as well upstream and downstream of the dam have certainly affected on the hydraulic pressure and increased the dissolution ability of the gypsum and limestone beds, along the abutments and the foundations, which are already karstified in nearby areas. Consequently, more gypsum, anhydrite and limestone beds are dissolved and karst openings are continuously increasing, as the exerted hydraulic pressure is continuous.First appearance of sinkholes on the right bank down-stream was not until approximately six years after the filling of the reservoir began. The surface expression of the sinkholes suggests that they are caused by an under-ground collapse. Concentric tension cracks appear to have developed around the central void as the sinkholes have developed progressively. Karstification and formation of sinkholes are the most dangerous features threatening the safety of Mosul dam.

Euphrates and Tigris Rivers are the longest Rivers in southwest Asia. The main utilizers of the water of these rivers and tributaries are Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq. The two rivers rise in Turkey, which makes it the riparian hegemon. Some of the tributaries of the Tigris and Shat Al-Arab Rivers rise in Iran, which makes it the riparian hegemon for these rivers. Iraq and Syria are the lower countries in the basin and for this reason, they always to ensure the quantity of water required to satisfy their requirements. All these countries are in the Middle East, which characterized by its shortage of water resources. Since the 1970s conflict between riparian counties were noticed due to population growth rates, food security, energy needs, economic and technological development, political fragmentation, international water laws, water and management availability and public awareness. These caused tensions, which sometimes escalated to the verge of war. To solve this conflict a mediator is required that has the capability to bring all countries concerned to the negotiation table. Syria and Iraq are to give Turkey and Iran some incentives to cooperate. Furthermore, all counties are to adopt prudent strategic plan based on comprehensive resources development to ensure good water management and minimum water loses and waste. This due to the fact that modeling studies of the future suggest that water shortage problem will intensify.

Mosul Dam is an earth fill dam, with a storage capacity of 11.11 km3 constructed on highly karstified gypsum beds alternating with marl and limestone. After impounding in 1986, seepage locations were recognized. The dam situation now indicates that it is in a state of extreme relative risk. If it fails, then 6 million people will be affected and 7202 km2 area will be flooded. Grouting operations will elongate the life of the dam but will not solve the problem. Building a protection dam downstream will be the best measures to secure the safety of the downstream area and its’ population.

The Middle East is considered as an arid to a semi-arid region where the annual rainfall does not exceed 166 mm/y. Water shortage issue within this area is one of the prime issues of friction and tension between the countries of the Middle East. Iraq is located within the Middle East. It covers an area 437072 square kilometer with a population of 38.27 million.  Iraq used to be considered rich in its water resources due to the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The catchments of these rivers are shared with Turkey, Syria, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Building of dams in the upper parts of the catchment since the seventies as well as climate change affecting the region caused water shortage problems in Iraq. The flow of the two main rivers decreased tremendously. To overcome this problem, prudent water management plan is required. Such plan should include the use of non-conventional water resources, new irrigation techniques, public awareness, and new water management strategies.  This will help to reduce the impact of water shortage problems.

Water shortage problem is an international issue where 80 countries of the third world supporting 40% of the world’s population suffer from water shortage problems. There are 1.2 billion people suffering physically from water shortage problems and 1.8 billion lack adequate sanitation. In addition, in the Third World, about 80% of illnesses and 30% of unnatural deaths are due to water disease and polluted water. Future expectations indicate that 37 countries in 2015 will be having water shortage problems. Iraq was an exception till the seventies due to the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The flow of these rivers is decreasing due to climate change and building of dams within the upper parts of the catchments. Temperatures are increasing while rainfall is expected to decrease by (15-25%). This will cause reduction of surface water resources by (29-73%). As a consequence, groundwater resources will be depleted. Water shortage will lead to an increase in transpiration, reduction off arable land, decrease of natural vegetative cover, extended desertification, more dust storms and soil destruction. It is expected that Iraq in 2040 is expected to have -20.6 billion cubic meters shortage in its water requirements.

Mosul Dam is located on River Tigris north of Iraq with a storage capacity of 11.11 billion cubic meters. Since its operation in 1986 plenty of problems were noticed that might lead to the failure of the dam. The book highlights the geological and engineering problems experienced within Mosul Dam. It also reviews the expert’s opinion on these problems. Recent investigations were described and the consequences of the dam failure were given. It is believed that 500,000 people will die in case of the dam failure and for this reason it is considered as the most dangerous dam in the world. Finally, possible solutions were explained to avoid the dam failure

Mosul Dam is an earth fill dam located on the Tigris River in North Western part of Iraq. It is 113 m in height, 3.4 km in length, 10 m wide in its crest and has a storage capacity of 11.11 billion cubic meters. It is, constructed on be- drocks which consist of gypsum beds alternated with marl and limestone, in cyclic nature. The thickness of the gypsum beds attains 18 m; they are in- tensely karstified even in foundation rocks. This has created number of prob- lems during construction, impounding and operation of the dam. Construc- tion work in Mosul Dam started on January 25th, 1981 and started operating on 24th July, 1986. After impounding in 1986, seepage locations were recog- nized. The cause of seepage is mainly due to: 1) The karsts prevailing in the dam site and in the reservoir area. 2) The existence of gypsum/anhydrite rock formations in the dam foundation alternating with soft marl layers and wea- thered and cavernous limestone beddings. 3) The presence of an extensive ground water aquifer called Wadi Malleh aquifer, which affects considerably the ground water regime in the right bank. The dissolution intensity of the gypsum/anhydrite ranged from 42 to 80 t/day which was followed by a noti- ceable increase in the permeability and leakages through the foundation. In- spection of the dam situation in 2014 and 2015 indicates that the dam is in a state of extreme unprecedentedly high relative risk. In this work, possible so- lutions to the problem are to be discussed. It is believed that grouting opera- tions will elongate the span life of the dam but do not solve the problem. Building another dam downstream Mosul Dam will be the best protective measures due to the possible failure of Mosul Dam, to secure the safety of thedownstream area and its’ population.

The River Euphrates is the longest River in southwest Asia. Its length reaches 2786 km and drains an area of about 440000 km2, which is occupied by 23 million inhabitants. The Euphrates basin is shared by 5 countries (Iraq 47%, Turkey 28%, Syria 22%, Saudi Arabia 2.97%, Jordan 0.03%) where the first three countries are the main riparian. Climate change and construction of dams in the upper parts of the basin has reduced the flow downstream with time. The flow was about 30.6 BCM in Hit (Iraq) before 1974, and now it is about 4 BCM. Syria and Iraq are facing water shortage and quality deterioration problems, which require national, regional and international cooperation to overcome these problems.

The Tigris River is one of the longest rivers in western Asia. Its length is about 1800 km. It drains a catchment area of 473103 km2 divided in 4 countries (Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq). About 23 million people live within this catchment. The flow of the River Tigris is decreasing with time due to the construction of dams and climate change. The discharge of the Tigris River at Baghdad was 1,207 m3/s for the period 1931-1960 and since 2000 onward it is 522m3/s. Riparian countries (mainly Iraq and Iran) are facing water shortage problems. This requires prudent regional and national cooperation and management to overcome this problem.

Iraq covers an area of 437072 km2 in the northeastern part of the Middle East. Its population now is more than 40 million. It relies mainly on its water resources from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and their tributaries. Recently, Iraq has been experiencing a severe water scarcity problem. This is mainly due to climate change, increased hydrological projects in riparian countries, and water resources mismanagement inside Iraq itself. To overcome the problem, a new strategy should be implemented. Such strategy should consider two main courses of action: a) serious negotiations with riparian countries to reach an agreement giving Iraq equitable water shares from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and their tributaries. b) Prudent water management practices inside Iraq that consider adopting realistic distribution of water between the governorates, rational policies aiming at increased water use efficiencies within Irrigation networks, increased use of non-conventional sources of water, adjustment of water tariffs and their collection procedures, improving agricultural techniques, introduction of intensive guidance and public awareness programs, and promulgation of new legislations, in addition to creation of human resources development programs.

Treated waste water is normally used for irrigation purposes in countries suffering from water shortages to narrow the gap between supply and demand. The concept behind this is to save water consumed for agricultural activities, which consumes most of the water, for municipal and industrial uses. The Alsukhna area in Jordan is used to grow vegetables which are irrigated by treated wastewater. Surface and groundwater samples from the Zarqa region were analyzed for their major cations, anions and heavy metals. The impact of the treated waste water on the chemical components of vegetables was studied using Zn, Mn, Fe, Pb and Ni in sweet and hot pepper, tomato, cauliflower, cabbage, squash, cucumber and eggplant which were compared with similar vegetables irrigated by natural unpolluted water from the Mafraq region. The four metals, namely Zn, Fe, Pb, and Ni, had concentrations higher than in the reference vegetables by 3423%, 155%, 397%, 2949% and 289%, 187%, 211%, 214% fortomato and cauliflower, respectively. Sweet pepper was mainly influenced by an increased content of Fe, which was almost 180% higher than that in sweet pepper from the Mafraq region. Hot pepper had highly elevated concentrations of Ni (6980%) and Zn (419%), while squash demonstrated high Zn (207%) and Pb (666%). When all the heavy metals are considered, the most affected vegetable is the hot pepper with an average percent of heavy metals accumulation of 1559% while the least effected is cabbage at 116%.

Protection of the environment from solid waste hazards is becoming a serious problem. Different laws and legislations had been put into practice for this purpose. The effect of solid waste in countries like Jordan with limited financial and natural resources and high population growth rate is more severe. To overcome these difficulties, prudent management system for solid waste is required. Furthermore, solid waste disposal site should be selected using scientific criteria to prevent any harmful effect on local communities and the environment. Criteria for solid waste disposal dump site for Mafraq city were selected in accordance with well known international requirements that suit the local conditions. These criteria were used to select the best suitable solid waste dump site using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques. The selected sites are harmless to human life, natural resources and the environment.

The Middle East area and in particular Jordan suffer from water shortages. It is believed that water harvesting techniques can solve part of the problem. Jawa and Umm El-Jimal water harvesting schemes were established 6000 and 2000 years ago respectively. They are considered as the most ancient water harvesting scheme. The engineering design and techniques used in those schemes are very unique.The adaptation of the engineering techniques used in the ancient schemes in the newly established schemes will help to save energy and minimize the evaporation losses. In addition, harvested water can be used for ground water recharge.

River Tigris is a major river in Iraq. Sediment at the bed of the river within a reach of about 18 km starting at the center of Baghdad upstream was investigated. Sixty five cross sections were surveyed and 46 sediment samples were collected and analyzed. It was noticed that fine sand was dominating the bed (90.74%). The average median size within the reach was 2.49 phi (0.177mm) while the mean size was 2.58 phi (0.16mm). In addition the sediments were moderately sorted, fine skewed and leptokurtic. The size of the bed sediment relatively decreased compared to older investigations due to the construction of Adhaim dam on tributary which used to be the main sediment supplier to the Tigris River before entering Baghdad. Furthermore, the discharge of the Tigris River for the period 1983-2013 (715m3/s) had decreased by about 40% and 30% since 1983 compared with the period 1931-1956 (1208 m3/s) and 1956-1980 (1015 m3/s ) respectively. This had decreased the capacity and competence of the river. The bed elevation had increased compared to previous surveys. It was noticed that dredging operations and obstacles (e.g. fallen bridges and islands) disturbed the flow of the river and sediment characteristics in several sites.

Iraq is located in the Middle East. It covers an areaof 433,970 square kilometres populated by about 32 millioninhabitants. Iraq greatly relies in its water resources on the Tigrisand Euphrates Rivers. Recently, Iraq is suffering from watershortage problems. This is due to external and internal factors. Theformer includes global warming and water resources policies ofneighbouring countries while the latter includes mismanagement ofits water resources.The supply and demand are predicted to be 43 and 66.8 BillionCubic Meters (BCM) respectively in 2015, while in 2025 it will be17.61 and 77 BCM respectively. In addition, future predictionsuggests that Tigris and Euphrates Rivers will be completely dry in2040.To overcome this problem, prudent water management policiesare to be adopted. This includes Strategic Water ManagementVision, development of irrigation techniques, reduction of waterlosses, use of non-conventional water resources and research anddevelopment planning.

Iraq is part of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA region). It greatly relies in its water re-sources on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Iraq was considered rich in its water resources till 1970s. After that problems due to water scarcity aroused. Recently, it is expected that water shortage problems will be more serious. The supply and demand are predicted to be 43 and 66.8 Billion Cubic Meters (BCM) respectively in 2015, while in 2025 it will be 17.61 and 77BCM respec-tively. In addition, future prediction suggests that Tigris and Euphrates Rivers will be completely dry in 2040.To overcome this problem, prudent water management plan is to be adopted. It should include Strategic Water Management Vision, development of irrigation techniques, reduction of water losses, use of non-conventional water resources and research and development planning.

Jordan is located in the Middle East in the eastern Mediterranean. It has a surface area of approximately 90,000 km2 and its population reaches 6.3 million. Jordan is one of the fourth driest countries in the World and water demand exceeds Jordan's available water resources.Annual per capita water availability has declined from 3600m3/year in 1946 to 145 m3/year today. It is estimated that the population will continue to grow from about 5.87 million in 2008 to over 7.80 million by 2022. Total projected water demand will be 1673 million cubic meters by 2022.Fifteen years of complete records for water consumption was studied to see the supply and demand variation with time. It had been noticed that water demand management will address the actual needs for water. This management program will ensure further reduction in water use, reduce water loses through the distribution supply net, prevent pollution and waste water disposal in nature, efficient use of available water resources, prudent future planning for new water re-sources and finally imposing real cost for water supply that would be acceptable. In addition to the above, public awareness program is to be put in action. Such a program should be used in schools as well as the media. The public are to be aware of the problem and how they can assist to overcome the water shortage crisis.

Water supply network losses are an international problem especially in countries suffering from water scarcitylike Jordan. Jordan is one of the poorest countries in its water resources and it is estimated to be below the waterpoverty line. Jordan is located in the Middle East and has a surface area of approximately 90,000 km2. Its populationis around 6.3 million and it is estimated that the population will be 7.8 million in 2022. The gap betweenwater supply and demand is widening due to development and a relatively high population growth rate. In addition,global climate change is expected to intensify the water shortage problem in Jordan. Thirteen years of completerecords obtained from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation were analyzed. According to these records,water losses in Jordan reach about 50%. In view of the evaluation of the data and the case study conducted inthis research, it is believed that Jordan can overcome the water shortage problem by adopting a water demandmanagement strategy. In this context, efforts should be focused on reducing water losses. If this is achieved, itwill save huge quantities of water and revenue.

Euphrates and Tigris Rivers are the longest two rivers in southwest Asia. The Basins of these rivers cover an area of 917 103 km2 which is occupied by about 46 million inhabitants. Four countries (Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria) share the basin area of the Tigris River and the other four (Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia) share the catchment area of the Euphrates River. The flow of the two rivers is decreasing with time due to construction of dams in the upstream part of the basins and climate change. This has impacted the water quality of the two rivers. Iraq is highly affected followed by Syria. The salinity of Tigris Rivers has become alarming downstream Baghdad while the Euphrates water quality deteriorates before entering the Iraqi border. To overcome water quality deterioration, international, regional and national cooperation is required to reach prudent planning for water resources management of the two basins.

Great Development in the military industry had been witnessed in the past two decades, especially in depleted uranium weapons. These weapons were first used by USA and its allies in 1991 in Iraq. Later they were used in Bosnia (1995), Kosovo and Serbia (1999) Afghanistan (2001) and finally Iraq (2003). The manufactures and users of these weapons continued to blackout the nature of these weapons and deny the harm caused on the public health, animals and the environment. After a short period of time, facts were revealed by the investigations and research executed by large number of scientists and investigators. This paper highlights the important effects caused by the use of depleted uranium weapons on human health and environment.

Jordan is located in the Middle East and covers an area of 89,342 km2. The total population of Jordan is 6,508,271. Jordan is rapidly facing a severe water supply crisis due to greater demands on a finite quantity of available water. If current trends continue, it has been estimated that the country will experience a chronic water shortage by 2020. Despite these shortages, water loss in the distribution network is relatively high where it reaches 46%. Mafraq Governorate has the maximum water loss. Continuous records and data for the period 1999-2004 for Mafraq water authority were investigated for the water supply and lose. Water losses were evaluated, and suggestions were given to minimize the loss.

Jordan is among the least countries in its water resources and about 85% of its area is desertic. Due to this reason the inhabitants of the Badia region used centuries ago water harvesting techniques to augment water for human and animal use. Two ancient water harvesting schemes (Burqu and Dier Al-Kahf) were investigated. Bathymetric survey was conducted and both bottom and water samples were collected to study the nature of sediments in these schemes. The calculated volume of Burqu and Deir Al-Kahf reservoirs were 629505 and 12071m³ respectively. Sediments entering these reservoirs are mainly fine sand derived from the main and side valleys entering the reservoirs during rain events. The sediments at Burqu reservoir have a mean grain size of 0.1 mm, very poorly sorted and negatively skewed. The sand: silt: clay ratios were 70:17:13 respectively. At Deir Al-Kahf reservoir, the sediment mean grain size was 0.11mm and they were very poorly sorted and they were finely skewed. The sand: silt: clay ratios were 69: 23: 8 respectively. Annual rates of sediments deposited in these reservoirs were 29016 m3 for Burqu and 29016 m3 for Deir Al-Kahaf.

Jordan is among the least countries in its water resources and about 85% of its area is desertic which is referred to as the Badia region. Only 5% of the population of Jordan occupies this area. The growing power of urban communities during the twentieth century has affected the local inhabitants (Bedouin) social life and the physical environment of arid lands in which they live in Jordan. The 15% of the total area of the country (urban areas) are not able anymore to absorb the expanding population. Therefore, people have started to move to the Badia. This area is very poor in its surface water resources. Due to this reason the Jordanian government started a development program for the region. Part of the program is providing water resources by establishing water harvesting schemes. It is of prime importance to maintain these schemes to support the growing development in the area.In this research, two of these schemes had been investigated for their sediment characteristics and rate of deposition. They are Beqawiya (constructed 1994) and Suweied (constructed 1995). The sediments in both schemes were generally fine sand which is poorly sorted and negatively skewed. The rate of sedimentation was found to be 1679 and 1583 m3/ year in Beqawiya and Suweied respectively.

Evaluation of water quality is important for the management of water resources. The current study is focused on the interpretation of the water quality monitoring data of the Tigris River in Iraq by the application of the principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA), and water quality index (WQI). Twelve water quality parameters were taken from 14 stations along the river Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+, Cl−, SO2−4SO42− , HCO−3HCO3− , NO−3NO3− , TH, TDS, BOD5, and EC to apply the PCA and CA. The results show that the mean of all the parameters was under the standards except Ca2+, EC, Mg2+, TH, and SO2−4SO42− . The amount of EC is the critical factor that affects the river water quality. The PCA obtained one principal component responsible for 97% of the variation caused by different pollution sources. The CA divided the river into three regions of sampling stations with similar water quality, the best in the north, and the worst in the far south. In this paper, the computer-automated tool (IraqWQI) was presented and evaluated, which has been developed by authors to classify and measure the quality of Iraqi surface water. The proposed index is of hundred degrees and includes six variables for drinking water quality Cl−, TH, TDS, COD, DO, and total coliform (TC) according to the Iraqi specifications. The result of the IraqWQI application showed a decrease in the water quality of the river and its suitability for drinking in the south of the country. The best value of the index was (81.48, Good) in Fishkhabour during winter, and the worst value was (46.23, Bad) in Qurnah during summer. The result of this study proved the success and importance of using statistical techniques and WQI as useful tools for the management, control, and conservation of surface water.

Mosul dam is the biggest dam in Iraq on Tigris River. It is a multipurpose dam with a designed storage capacity of 11.11*109 m3. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) working with Geographical Information System (GIS) was applied to simulate the daily runoff and sediment yield from the seven valleys entering the reservoir from the left side. The model was applied for the period 1988-2008 based on daily climatic data of Mosul city and Mosul Dam Stations. The results indicated that the average yearly water flow was 13.8 *106 m3. It varies with time and among the valleys depending on the soil type, land watershed topography, watershed area in addition the other effective factors, and rainfall depth of that year. The resultant average annual sediment yield was 702*106 ton from these valleys. The sediment yield from each valley depends on runoff coefficient of the valley, soil type and plant cover. These factors affect soil detachment and rainfall properties (depth and intensity) that in turn affect rainfall detachment force. The total sediment yield for the considered period was 14753*103 ton. This represent about 0.42% of the dead storage of the reservoir (2.9*109m3) which is about 0.11% of the total reservoir storage capacity.

Iraq is experiencing water resource shortages which are expected to become more severe in the future. It is believed that rain water harvesting will be one of the solutions to overcome this problem. In this paper rain water harvest modeling techniques were applied to the Sinjar area of Northwest Iraq for agricultural purposes. A watershed modeling system (WMS) and linear programming (LP) optimization techniques were applied to maximize the irrigated area which could be supplied by each selected reservoir for the period 1990-2009. This technique proved to be efficient for solving large scale water supply problems with multiple parameters and constraints, including the required input data for the model. Two scenarios of operation were considered for each main basin. In the first, each reservoir was operated as a separate unit while, in the second, all reservoirs within the basin were operated as one system. Both scenarios gave encouraging results but scenario two provided better results.

Mosul Dam is one of the biggest hydraulic structures in Iraq. It was constructed in 1986 on the Tigris River in the north of Iraq. The initial storage capacity and water surface area of its reservoir reaches 11.11 km3 and 380 km2 respectively at the maximum operation level 330 m a.s.l. The dam was operated in 1986. A total of 56 samples were collected from the bottom of Mosul reservoir covering most of the reservoir area. The results of the analysis of these samples revealed that they were composed of gravel (3.8%), sand (15%), silt (55.5%) and clay (25.7%). The distribution of these sediments indicates that the silt portion represents the highest followed by clay and then sand. However, sand percentages are the highest in the northern zone of the reservoir where the River Tigris enters the reservoir and decreases gradually toward the dam site. In the meantime, silt percentage decreases toward the dam site while the finer fraction (i.e. clay) increases.

Mosul Dam is one of the biggest hydraulic structures in Iraq. It was constructed in 1986 on the Tigris River in the north of Iraq for multiple purposes: irrigation, flood control and power generation. The initial storage capacity and water surface area of its reservoir reaches 11.11 km3 and 380 km2 respectively at the maximum operation level 330 m a.s.l. The dam was operated in 1986. Blockage of the intakes of the pump station for North Al-Jazira Irrigation Project in Mosul Dam reservoir has highlighted the importance of sedimentation problems within the reservoir. A total of 56 samples were collected from the bottom of Mosul reservoir covering most of the reservoir area. The results of the analysis of these samples revealed that they were composed of gravel (3.8%), sand (15%), silt (55.5%) and clay (25.7%). The distribution of these sediments indicates that the silt portion represents the highest 77% of the bottom sediments of this reservoir followed by clay (13.5%) and then sand (9.5%). However, sand percentages are the highest in the northern zone of the reservoir where the River Tigris enters the reservoir and decreases gradually toward the dam site. In the meantime, silt percentage decreases toward the dam site while the finer fraction (i.e. clay) increases. Statistically, the average median and mean sizes of the sediments are 2.81 phi (0.142 mm) and 6.1 phi (0.0146 mm) respectively. In addition, the sediments are poorly sorted, nearly symmetrical in skewness and leptokurtic, very leptokurtic, to mesocratic. Finally, it is believed that the geometry and hydrodynamics of the Mosul reservoir, the location of the River Tigris entrance together with the side tributary valleys have played the most important role in the sediments distribution and their characteristics.

Mosul Dam is an earthfill multipurpose dam. It is located on the River Tigris in northwestern Iraq. The dam is 3.65 km long and its crest elevation is at 341 m above sea level. The storage capacity at normal operation level (330 m above sea level) is 11.11km3. The work to build the dam started on 25thJanuary, 1981 and finished on 24thJuly, 1986. The total cost of the development was estimated at 2.6 billion US$.The foundation of the dam lies on the Fatha Formation. This formation is composed of alternating beds of marls, limestone, gypsum and claystone. It is highly karstified, which has which created a lot of problems during the construction, impounding and operation phases.

Iraq relies greatly on the water of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. These rivers rise in Turkey. As far as the water quality of the Tigris River, when it enters the Turkish- Iraqi border is considered normal where the total dissolved salts do not exceed 450ppm. In Iraq, the salinity increases downstream and it reached undesirable limits downstream Baghdad. As far as the Euphrates River is concerned, the salinity of its water reached 600ppm at the Syrian-Iraqi border. The salinity increases downstream and it reaches 1500ppm downstream Kufa city. This indicates that the salinity of the major Rivers (Tigris, Euphrates and Karkheh) that are supply Shatt Al-Arab River with water is increasing with time. Causes of water quality deterioration is due to several factors. These are: i) construction of dams and irrigation projects in the upper parts of the catchments and the reduction of flow of these rivers ii) Al-Tharthar Scheme, where some water from this reservoir having salinity of 2500ppm is diverted to the River Euphrates iii) Agricultural and Irrigation Projects iv) dumping wastewater directly to the rivers v) Waste of Wars vi) Climate Change vii) disposal of solid waste directly to the rivers viii) Population Growth. All these factors are affecting the population and the environment in Iraq.

Scarcity of water resources in the Middle East represents a prime factor in the stability of the region and its economic development and prosperity. Accordingly, augmenting water is considered very important. Therefore, building of dams is an important mean to achieve such a goal. Despite the fact that number of dams had been built but maintenance operations and reduction of siltation rates are still not up the standards. Two small reservoirs north west Jordan were investigated. Sad Wadi Alarab reservoir constructed in 1986 (storage capacity of 20x106 m3). The second, Alghadeer Alabyadh, was constructed 1966(storage capacity 7 x105 m3). The actual storage capacities of these reservoirs were calculated using echo-sounding traverses. Data obtained were used in special computer software to construct the bathymetric maps and calculate the existing storage volume. The results showed that the reservoir storage capacities were reduced at an average annual rate of 0.3 x106 and 1.7 x104 m3 respectively. This implies that Sad Wadi Alarab reservoir will be filled with sediment within 38 years, while Alghadeer Alabyadh reservoir is already filled with sediment now. Bottom sediments of the reservoirs were collected and analyzed. In all the cases, sand, silt and clay were the dominant sediment components.

In 1977 the Turkish Government started to utilize the water of Tigris and Euphrates Rivers through South-eastern Anatolia Project (GAP). The project includes 22 dams and 19 hydraulic power plants which are to irrigate 17 103 km2 of land with a total storage capacity of 100 km3 which is three times more than the overall capacity of Iraq and Syrian reservoirs Prior to 1990, Syria used to receive 21 km3/year of the Euphrates water which dropped to 12km3 in 2000 onward and for Iraq it dropped from 29 km3 before 1990 to 4,4km3 (90% reduction) now. This reduced agricultural land in both countries from 650 103 to 240 103 hectares. Iraq used to receive 20.9 km3/year of water from the Tigris River and once Ilisu dam is constructed, this is likely to drop to 9.7 km3 which means that 47% of the river flow will be depleted. This means that 696 103 hectares of agricultural land will be abandoned due to water scarcity. The reduction of flow in the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Iraq is considered to be national crises and will have severe negative consequences on health and on environmental, industrial and economic development. It is believed that the Iraqi Government should take solid and fast measures to ensure prudent management of its water resources and to secure the life of huge sector of its society and protect the environment.

The Iraqi marsh lands, which are known as the Garden of Eden, cover an area about 15-20 103. km2 in the lower part of the Mesopotamian basin where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flow. The area had played a prominent part in the history of man kind and was inhabited since the dawn of civilization. The area was considered among the largest wetlands in the world and the greatest in west Asia. Saddam regime began to drain the marsh lands for military and political reasons. Accordingly, at 2000 less than 10% of the marshes remained. The consequences were that most of the marsh dwellers left their places and some animals and plants are eradicated now. After the fall of Saddam regime in 2003, the process of restoration and rehabilitation of Iraqi marshes started. There are number of difficulties encountered in the process. Some of them are land use changes, climatic variations and changes, soil and water salinity as well as ecological fragmentation where many species were affected as well as the marsh dwellers.In this research we would like to explore the possibilities of restoring the Iraqi marshes. It is believed that 70- 75% of the original areas of the marshes can be restored. This implies that 13 km3 water should be available to achieve this goal keeping the water quality as it is. To evaluate the water quality in the marshes, 154 samples were collected at 48 stations during summer, spring and winter. All the results indicate that the water quality was bad. To improve the water quality, then 18.86 km3 of water is required. This requires plenty of efforts and international cooperation to overcome the existing obstacles.

Depleted uranium (DU) is a by-product of the enrichment of natural uranium for nuclear reactor-grade or nuclear weapons-grade uranium. DU is chemically identical to natural uranium. Depleted uranium is chemically identical to natural uranium. DU is depleted with isotope of U235 and its radioactivity is 60% of the natural uranium and increases to 80% after few months and is usually considered as low level radioactive waste (LLW).Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massive amounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weapons were used -called Depleted Uranium (DU).During the second Gulf war in 2003 U.S. and British troops have reportedly used more than five times as many DU bombs and shells as the total number used during the 1991 war for the invasion and occupation of Iraq. It was estimated that more than 1100 to 2200 tons of DU was used. As a consequence the ruminants of wars are affecting the people (30 million) and environment. There are hundreds of sites contaminated with nuclear radiation.There is no Iraqi strategy and/or national program, not even well thought out plans and scientific personnel and technical equipment required to clean Iraq of these wastes. The aim of this work is to high light the environmental implications of the two Gulf wars on Iraq and suggest possible solutions to the problem.

Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massiveamounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weaponscalled depleted uranium (DU) were used. DU is a by-product of the enrichmentof natural uranium for nuclear reactor-grade or nuclear weapons-grade uranium. Depleted uranium is chemically identical to natural uranium. During the second Gulf war in 2003 U.S. and British troops used more than 1100 to 2200 tons of DU. As a consequence the ruminants of wars are reported to have seriously affected people and the environment, causing cancer and abnormal birth defects. The water and soil all over most of Iraq is contaminated. There is no strategy, national or international program for cleaning Iraq of DU wastes. Site selection criteria have been suggested for the disposal of radioactive waste but no principle of designing and constructing disposals. The present paper describes a large geological feature, a deep natural depression, which would be useful for isolating DU by isolating it in smectitic Iraqi clay.

Iraq is experiencing water-resource shortages which are expected to become more severe in the future. Water harvesting techniques (WH) will definitely help to overcome or minimize the effect of this problem. Two areas (northwestern and northeastern part of Iraq) were tested for the feasibility of WH using small dams not more than 6m height. The locations of the dams and reservoirs were selected depending on the drainage area, the cross section of the valley (to ensure minimum construction material to be used for building the dams) and to minimize evaporation losses and insure the required storage was obtained; the ratio of surface area to storage volume was kept to a minimum. Watershed modeling system (WMS) and linear programming (LP) optimization techniques were applied to maximize the irrigated area, which could be supplied by each selected reservoir for the period 1990–2009.In northeastern part of Iraq, the technique was applied in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah. In the former, 22 dams (catchment areas ranged between 3.34 to 111.63 km2) were tested. While in the latter, five separated dams were used with total catchment area of 176.79 km2. Their area ranged between 7.35 to 98.08 km2. In northwestern part of Iraq, the technique was applied in Sinjar Mountain. At northern Sinjar Mountain, ten dams were selected, their catchment area ranged between 43.48 to197.7 km2.The results obtained from all areas were encouraging.

Iraq experienced two devastating wars in 1991 and 2003, during which massive amounts of new weapons and sophisticated manufactured nuclear weapons were used called Depleted Uranium (DU). As a consequence of the radioactive contamination; the humans are suffering from various disease like cancer and the environment is polluted.In practice, there is no strategy and/or national program, not even well thought out plans and scientific personnel and technical equipment required to clean Iraq of these wastes. Reviewing the geological, topographical and hydrological data, it had been noticed that Umm Chaimin depression is a good candidate site to dump all contaminated radioactive scrap and soil. The suggested design of the landfill will ensure safe containment of the waste for hundreds of thousands of years even if significant climatic changes will take place.

Iraq has been subject to a series of wars for more than fifty years, the latest one leaving large amounts of wrecked tanks, vehicles, weapons and ammunition. A considerable part of the waste has the form of, or contains, depleted uranium (DU), that is concluded to have cancerogenic effects through its radioactivity and toxicity. The DU exists in significant concentrations in areas where combat took place, mostly in and around the cities of Bagdad and Basra, the total number of particularly encountered areas being about 15. The way of long-term isolation of DU that is proposed in this paper is to construct relatively simple landfills of sandwiched contaminated soil and clay or clayey soil, covered by sand/gravel and erosion-resistant coarser material on top. The very low annual precipitation and long draught in the deserts, implying significant evaporation, means that the system of tight soil interlayered with contaminated soil, embedding wrecked military objects, minimizes percolation and release of DU, keeping it adsorbed on the finest soil particles. The clay-based material must be composed in a way that, i/ desiccation fractures are not formed in periods of long draught and ii/ not swell uncontrolled and loose strength in wet periods. The DU-contaminated soil is proposed to be scraped off and transported in closed trucks to four desert sites where landfills of the sandwich-type are proposed to be constructed.

Iraq has been subject to a series of wars for more than fifty years, the latest one leaving large amounts of wrecked tanks, vehicles, weapons and ammunition. A considerable part of the waste has the form of, or contains, depleted uranium (DU), that is concluded to have cancerogenic effects through its radioactivity and toxicity. The DU exists in significant concentrations in areas where combat took place, mostly in and around the cities of Bagdad and Basra, the total number of particularly encountered areas being about 15. The way of long-term isolation of DU that is proposed in this paper is to construct relatively simple landfills of sandwiched contaminated soil and clay or clayey soil, covered by sand/gravel and erosion-resistant coarser material on top. The very low annual precipitation and long draught in the deserts, implying significant evaporation, means that the system of tight soil interlayered with contaminated soil, embedding wrecked military objects, minimizes percolation and release of DU, keeping it adsorbed on the finest soil particles. The clay-based material must be composed in a way that, i/ desiccation fractures are not formed in periods of long draught and ii/ not swell uncontrolled and loose strength in wet periods. The DU-contaminated soil is proposed to be scraped off and transported in closed trucks to four desert sites where landfills of the sandwich-type are proposed to be constructed.

Depleted uranium (DU) was used twice by the Americans and allied forces against Iraqi troops and personnel in 1991 and 2003. The largest single radionuclide contamination occurred in the Gulf during Gulf War II, 1991, where depleted uranium was used as an amour-penetrating ordnance. Due to this use the countryside of Iraq was contaminated to a significant extent and thus chronically exposed the civilian population and military personnel to different environmental loads i.e. DU dust, vapors, and aerosols etc. In addition to the radioactive contamination due to military activities in Gulf wars, other dangerous source of contamination has been reported from the material and equipment at the Iraqi Energy Authority. After the fall of the Baath regime in 2003, the Iraqi Energy Authority, like all other Ministries and governmental organizations, sustained immense losses due to the turmoil and looting. As an example the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMI) reported in 2003 that uranium (as yellow cakes) as well as byproducts from processing activities in addition to tons of radioactive waste was stored in barrels. Simple citizens stole these barrels and used them for storing water. The radioactive materials in these barrels were in this way either spread in large quantities on the ground or taken to their homes. Other examples of how DU material is spread are given in the report as well. This report is highlighting the effect of radioactive waste on the people and the environment of Iraq and trying to find possible solutions to the problem. Special concerns are directed to the question of finding sustainable, environmentally acceptable and safe landfills for the final deposition of DU contaminated material.

Insufficiency of water resources in the Middle East Region represents vital factors that influence the stability of the region and its progress. Expectations indicate that the condition will be dimmer and more complicated, especially in Iraqi territory. Iraq, which is situated in the Middle East, it covers an area of 433,970 square kilometers and populated by about 32 million inhabitants. Iraq greatly relies in its water resources on the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers as a surface water resources, and several productive groundwater aquifers in which from the hydrogeological point of view divided into several major aquifer units including Foothill, Al-Jazira, Aquifer System, Mandali-Badra-Teeb, Mesopotamian and Desert Aquifer system. Recently, Iraq is suffering from water shortage problems. This is due to external and internal factors affecting the water quality of water resources; they are controlled and uncontrolled factors. The uncontrolled factors are climate change and its consequences, such as reduction of precipitation and temperature increasing. The controlled factors have a significantly negative influence on water resources, but their effects involve more specific regions. The controlled factors are mainly represented by building dams and irrigation projects within the upper parts of the Tigris and Euphrates catchments, Al-Tharthar Scheme, waste water, solid wastes and wastes from wars, which has a significant effect on surface water in Iraq because about 80% of the water supply to Euphrates and Tigris Rivers come from Turkey. In addition, the pressures resulting from the high demand for water resources, and the continued decline in their quantity rates have led to major changes in the hydrological condition in Iraq during the past 30 years. The decrease in surface water levels and precipitation during these three decades reflects the drop in the levels of water reservoirs, lakes, and rivers to the unexpected levels. The level of main country’s water source, Tigris, and Euphrates Rivers has fallen to less than a third of its natural levels. As storage capacity depreciates, the government estimates that its water reserves have been reduced precariously. According to the survey from the Ministry of Water Resources, millions of Iraqi people have faced a severe shortage of drinking water. Since of the importance of water for human life and the need to monitor temporal and spatial changes in quality and quantity, there is a need to develop a general Iraqi Water Quality Index (Iraq WQI) to monitor surface water and groundwater and classify it into five categories, very good, good, acceptable, bad and very bad, in terms of suitability for domestics, irrigation and agriculture depending on the Iraqi and WHO standards for drinking water. In addition, strict establishment for the regular quantitative monitoring surface water and groundwater setting and processes. Prospects are more negative for all riparian countries. This implies that solving these problems requires actual and serious international, regional, and national cooperation to set a prudent plan for water resources management of the two basins. Iraq being the most affected country should seriously set a prudent, scientific, and strategic plan for the management and conservation of its water resources.

The Mesopotamian Plain hydrogeologically is a semi-closed basin where most of the groundwater accumulates in the central and southern parts of the plain. However, small part of the groundwater flows out of the basin to the Gulf. This special character has significant effects on the depth and type of the groundwater in the plain. The depth ranges from (<10 – 100)m; however, the depth in the most of the plain ranges from (10 – 20)m. The type of the ground water is mainly salty water with concentrations of (10,000 – 50,000) mg/l; however, in the central part it is even Brine water (> 500,000 mg/l). No fresh groundwater exists in the plain.

Iraq is facing water shortage problem, which is becoming more severe with time. Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) can help to minimize the water shortage problem. Seven years of rainfall records was used to find out the quantity of water that can be harvested using a Watershed modeling system (WMS).Koya city is located in the northern part of Iraq. The population of the city is about 39484.The application of the WMS model for rainfall records of seven years (2002-3 to 2010-11) showed that 275.51 million cubic meters of water can be harvested. This implies that annual average of rain harvested water is 39.4 million cubic meters and the allocation per capita to be 997 cubic meters per year. This amount of water can greatly help to the development of industry and agriculture in the city.

An algorithm is outlined for the implicit integration of isotropic plasticity models for an arbitrary choice of mixed stress and strain control variables. Drained as well as undrained behaviour is considered. The closest-point-projection method in conjunction with a completely strain-driven format is used in a core algorithm. In the drained case strain response variables are determined via iterations to satisfy equilibrium of prescribed and calculated stresses that correspond to the strain response variables. In the undrained case, on the other hand, strains and pore pressure are determined via simultaneous iterations to satisfy equilibrium and the incompressibility condition. The algorithm is applied to a new generalized cam-clay model, and various iteration techniques are assessed. In particular, Newton iterations which employ the matrix of algorithmic tangent stiffness moduli are shown to compete favourably with more conventional methods.

Mono, hybrid, and ternary nanofluids were tested inside the plain and twisted-tape pipes using k-omega shear stress transport turbulence models. The Reynolds number was 5,000 ≤ Re ≤ 15,000, and thermophysical properties were calculated under the condition of 303 K. Single nanofluids (Al2O3/distilled water [DW], SiO2/DW, and ZnO/DW), hybrid nanofluids (SiO2 + Al2O3/DW, SiO2 + ZnO/DW, and ZnO + Al2O3/DW) in the mixture ratio of 80:20, and ternary nanofluids (SiO2 + Al2O3 + ZnO/DW) in the mixture ratio of 60:20:20 were estimated in different volumetric concentrations (1, 2, 3, and 4%). The twisted pipe had a higher outlet temperature than the plain pipe, while SiO2/DW had a lower T_out value with 310.933 K (plain pipe) and 313.842 K (twisted pipe) at Re = 9,000. The thermal system gained better energy using ZnO/DW with 6178.060 W (plain pipe) and 8426.474 W (twisted pipe). Furthermore, using SiO2/DW at Re = 9,000, heat transfer improved by 18.017% (plain pipe) and 21.007% (twisted pipe). At Re = 900, the pressure in plain and twisted pipes employing SiO2/DW reduced by 167.114 and 166.994%, respectively. In general, the thermohydraulic performance of DW and nanofluids was superior to one. Meanwhile, with Re = 15,000, DW had a higher value of _{η Thermohydraulic} = 1.678

Uplift water pressure is one of the dominating forces with signicant impact acting on a dam. It is usually measured with piezometers installed along the dam. However, the value of the pressure along the dam is often hard to measure due to the limited number of piezometers available (Bernstone et al., 2009). Furthermore, uplift pressure can oscillate substantially in a single hole both with time and also spatially under the dam due to the combination of rock mass characteristics in the foundation, loads and temperature variations.There is still a lack of information regarding the magnitude and variation of the uplift pressure. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the spatial variation of the uplift pressure based on uplift pressure measurements taken from Storfinnforsen and Ramsele dams. The aim is also to investigate how the uplift pressure depends on the rock mass conditions. The two dams Storfinnforsen and Ramsele provides a unique opportunity due to the signicant amount of piezometers, 270 in total, installed along the rock foundation for the new monitoring programme at the monoliths of both dams.Based on the measured uplift pressure, a probabilistic distribution has been assigned to the uplift pressure. In addition, a possible correlation between the rock mass quality and the uplift pressure as well as the joint aperture and the uplift pressure was analysed.

Several springs exist at the south-western desert of Iraq in Najaf Province at latitude 31˚00' -32˚15' and longitude 43˚30' - 44˚30'. They are almost parallel to Euphrates River on the eastern edge of western desert. General direction for the distribution of springs coincides with that of faults running northwest-southeast. The Hydrogen sulfide, temperature, pH and electrical conductivity were investigated in these springs. The analyses indicated that the concentration of H2S decreased from northwest toward southeast which is attributed to the escape of this gas to the atmosphere during the flow of groundwater near or on the earth surface. The surrounding geologic conditions did not affect the temperature and pH of the springs. Electrical conductivity showed an increase from northwest towards southeast which reflects dissolving more ions from the rocks of the aquifer. The electrical conductivity and hydrogen sulfide concentration had reverse relationship.