Iraq probes fish die-off in marshes | In Pictures News

The Iraqi authorities have opened an investigation into a mass death of fish in the central and southern marshes of the country, the last in a series of these incidents in recent years.

A possible cause of devastation is a shortage of oxygen, triggered by a low flow of water, increased evaporation and an increase in temperatures driven by climate change, according to managers and environmental activists. Another is the use of chemicals by fishermen.

“We have received several complaints from citizens,” said Jamal Abd Zeid, director of the environment of the Najaf governorate, which extends from the center to the south of Iraq, adding that a technical inspection team had been created.

He explained that the team would examine water shortages, electric fishing and the use by fishermen of “poisons”.

For at least five years, Iraq has endured successive droughts linked to climate change. The authorities also attribute the sharp drop in the flow of the river to the construction of dams by neighboring Iran and the Turkiye.

The destruction of the natural environment of Iraq adds another layer of suffering to a country that has already faced decades of war and political oppression.

“We need laboratory tests to determine the exact cause” of the death of the fish, said environmental activist Jassim al-Assadi, who suggested that agricultural pesticides could also be responsible.

Surveys on similar incidents have shown that the use of poison in fishing can lead to mass deaths.

“It is dangerous for public health, as well as for the food chain,” said Al-Assadi. “Use poison today, then again in a month or two … it will accumulate.”