Will 1)Mesopotamian Marshes Completely Disappear?

Broadcast: Apr 04, 2003

 

The war in Iraq is taking place around the Tigris and ²⁾Euphrates Rivers, what ³⁾archaeologists call the cradle of Western civilization. The historic rivers flow into the Mesopotamian marshes², which Biblical scholars believe inspired the Garden of Eden. But in the last decade, those marshes have all but disappeared. The United Nations says the loss of the marshes is a catastrophe³ on the order of the ⁴⁾deforestation of the Amazon rainforests, or the drying of the Aral Sea. The U.N. Environmental Program this week said restoring those marshes should be a part of postwar reconstruction⁴.

As a young boy, civil engineer Azzam Alwash says remembers paddling through narrow channels between the reeds in the Mesopotamian marshes. He says reeds six meters high lined the winding⁵ waterways.

"You're passing through these waterways surrounded by reeds," he said. "And you're pushing yourself through and then suddenly you go into an opening. And right in front of your opening you see a settlement of huts that are woven out of these reed beds. You see water buffalo^{6 5)}frolicking in the water. You see kids sitting on the banks of these artificial islands fishing."

The fish and shrimp⁷ that thrive in the Mesopotamian marshlands are major sources of protein in the region's diet. Migrating birds, including some endangered species, stop there as they fly between the Nile River and Siberia. And the wetlands filter out contaminants before they reach the Persian Gulf⁸.

All this makes the Mesopotamian marshlands significant on three levels, according to Professor Tom Crisman, program director at the University of Florida's Center for Wetlands.

"We're talking about a regional significance, we're talking about a national significance, and we're talking about very much of a localized significance," said Professor Crisman.

The marshlands are the largest remaining wetlands in the Middle East. Until recently, they covered up to 20,000 square kilometers. But now, less than one-tenth remains⁹. More than 30 large dams in Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Iraq have diverted water from the Tigris and Euphrates for irrigation, flood control, and ⁶⁾hydroelectric power. And more dams are planned.

But the most dramatic losses came in the last decade. Iraq built massive structures to drain the wetlands. Mr. Alwash, who is also an Iraqi democracy advocate, questions the Iraqi government's motives¹⁰.

"The ⁷⁾ostensible reason is that in fact they wanted to dry the area so that they can reclaim¹¹ the land for agriculture," he said. "As if Iraq is devoid¹² of agricultural land. Anybody that knows anything about the marshes and knows anything about soil and salinity¹³ level of water knows that claim is ⁸⁾ludicrous."

Mr. Alwash and others say the real motivation was to punish the local residents, who supported an uprising against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein after the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Research officer Hassan Partow wrote a United Nations Environment Program report on the  marshlands' destruction. He would not comment on the government's motivations. But, he says, the land is not being used extensively for farming.

"There has been some agricultural reclamation¹⁴ in the area, but overall this has been fairly limited," he said.

Instead, the entire ecosystem¹⁵ has fallen victim to the combined effects of the upstream dams and what critics say are Iraq's punitive¹⁶ drainages. Mr. Partow's UNEP report says the scale and speed of land cover change in the Mesopotamian marshlands have been extraordinary. In less than a decade, Mr. Partow says, one of the world's largest and most significant wetland ecosystems¹⁷ has completely collapsed¹⁸.

"The area has regressed from a rich and complex web of life to a salt-encrusted desert," said Mr. Partow.

Mr. Partow says several species of birds, ⁹⁾mammals, and fish are now extinct or on the verge¹⁹ of extinction²⁰. Without the climate-moderating marshes, the U.N. report predicts rising temperatures, declining rainfall, and dangerous dust storms. And the United Nations estimates up to 290,000 Marsh¹ Arabs have been driven from their homes.

But some see a hope for the Mesopotamian marshlands in postwar Iraqi reconstruction. The University of Florida's Tom Crisman says there are small remnants of the Mesopotamian marshlands on the border with Iran.

"We think these are reasonably intact. And that's a very good nucleus²¹ from which to expand the restoration effort," said Mr. Crisman.

But it won't be easy. Re-flooding the wetlands will have to be done gradually and carefully because of the heavy buildup of salts and pesticides²² that draining left behind. Resettling the Marsh Arabs adds an additional level of complexity²³. And growing populations in the region are putting increasing demands on water from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers that feed the marshlands.

For the past 20 years, Mr. Crisman has been working on restoring wetlands in Spain, Greece, and Egypt. He says these projects ask a basic question. "How little water do you need for the functioning of a wetland? Most of the time you're asking how much water can you get. But here we're asking how little water can we have and still have an ecology that's going to function," he said.

Mr. Alwash, the civil engineer, helped bring an international group of experts,including Mr. Crisman, together to study marshland reconstruction, with funding from the U.S. State Department. Perhaps after reconstruction the next generation of Iraqis will again paddle through the reeds in the Mesopotamian marshes as Mr. Alwash did, and as people there have done for five thousand years.

Steve Baragona VOA news, Washington.

1)    Mesopotamian Marshes美索不达米亚沼泽地(西南亚地区)

2)    Euphrates Rivers 幼发拉底河

3)    archaeologist[7B:ki5ClEdVist]n. 考古学家

4)    deforestation[di7fCris5teiFEn]n. 采伐森林, 森林开伐

5)    frolicky[`frClIkI]adj. 爱闹着玩的, 嬉戏的

6)    hydroelectric[5haidrEi5lektrik]adj. 水力电气的

7)    ostensible[Cs5tensEbl]adj. 可公开得, (指理由等)表面的, 虚假的

8)    ludicrous[5lu:dikrEs]adj. 可笑的, 滑稽的, 愚蠢的

9)    mammal[5mAmEl]n. 哺乳动物

 

1 marsh   

n.沼泽，湿地

参考例句：

• There are a lot of frogs in the marsh.沼泽里有许多青蛙。
• I made my way slowly out of the marsh.我缓慢地走出这片沼泽地。

2 marshes   

n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。
• We had to cross the marshes. 我们不得不穿过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

4 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

5 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

6 buffalo   

n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛

参考例句：

• Asian buffalo isn't as wild as that of America's. 亚洲水牛比美洲水牛温顺些。
• The boots are made of buffalo hide. 这双靴子是由水牛皮制成的。

7 shrimp   

n.虾，小虾；矮小的人

参考例句：

• When the shrimp farm is built it will block the stream.一旦养虾场建起来，将会截断这条河流。
• When it comes to seafood,I like shrimp the best.说到海鲜，我最喜欢虾。

8 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

10 motives   

n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• to impeach sb's motives 怀疑某人的动机
• His motives are unclear. 他的用意不明。

11 reclaim   

v.要求归还，收回；开垦

参考例句：

• I have tried to reclaim my money without success.我没能把钱取回来。
• You must present this ticket when you reclaim your luggage.当你要取回行李时，必须出示这张票子。

12 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

13 salinity   

n.盐分；咸度；盐浓度；咸性

参考例句：

• In the sea water sampled the salinity is two parts per thousand.在取样的海水中，盐度为千分之二。
• In many sedimentary basins the salinity of the formation water increases with depth or compaction.在许多沉积盆地中，地层水的含盐量随深度或压实作用而增高。

14 reclamation   

n.开垦；改造；（废料等的）回收

参考例句：

• We should encourage reclamation and recycling.我们应当鼓励废物的回收和利用。
• The area is needed for a land reclamation project.一个土地开垦项目要在这一地区进行。

15 ecosystem   

n.生态系统

参考例句：

• This destroyed the ecosystem of the island.这样破坏了岛上的生态系统。
• We all have an interest in maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem.维持生态系统的完整是我们共同的利益。

16 punitive   

adj.惩罚的，刑罚的

参考例句：

• They took punitive measures against the whole gang.他们对整帮人采取惩罚性措施。
• The punitive tariff was imposed to discourage tire imports from China.该惩罚性关税的征收是用以限制中国轮胎进口的措施。

17 ecosystems   

n.生态系统( ecosystem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest. 森林里有高度敏感、灵敏平衡的各种生态系统。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Madagascar's ecosystems range from rainforest to semi-desert. 马达加斯加生态系统类型多样，从雨林到半荒漠等不一而足。 来自辞典例句

18 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

19 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

20 extinction   

n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种

参考例句：

• The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
• The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。

21 nucleus   

n.核，核心，原子核

参考例句：

• These young people formed the nucleus of the club.这些年轻人成了俱乐部的核心。
• These councils would form the nucleus of a future regime.这些委员会将成为一个未来政权的核心。

22 pesticides   

n.杀虫剂( pesticide的名词复数 )；除害药物

参考例句：

• vegetables grown without the use of pesticides 未用杀虫剂种植的蔬菜
• There is a lot of concern over the amount of herbicides and pesticides used in farming. 人们对农业上灭草剂和杀虫剂的用量非常担忧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。