Tens of thousands of Iraqis are threatened by the Makhoul Dam, which the government expects to be operational on the mighty Tigris River in years.
“I was born here and grew up here,” said Juburi, whose village of Al-Messahag is situated on pastures on the banks of the river.
“It’s hard to get through anymore. It’s a total afterlife that we leave behind. “
Once the dam is built, the entire Juburi region will have 3 billion cubic meters (105 billion cubic feet) of water.
In a country highly vulnerable to climate change, and shaken by three consecutive years of drought, the government has defended the project, which will improve water resources and prevent shortages.
However, activists denounce the impact on more than 30 villages – which are home to some 118,000 more people – and the threats to biodiversity and archaeological sites.
Employed at a state-owned oil refinery, Juburi paints his children on the land of the circle of relatives, where they plant wheat and citrus.
He would agree to act, he said, to put the “national interest above self-interest”: the dam “serves Iraq” as a whole.
Juburi also demanded “adequate damage” to safeguard his life and that of his family.
Iraq already has 8 dams, but complains that the structure of the upstream facilities, basically in neighboring Turkey, has impacted the volumes of its rivers.
Plans for Makhoul to install date back to 2001, the twilight of dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime.
His downfall, a U. S. -led invasion and the chaotic profession that followed, left the assignment deserted for years.
Work nevertheless began in 2021, with drilling, soil research and a bridge over the river.
Riad al-Samarai, deputy governor of Salaheddin province, lists a 250MW hydroelectric plant and an “irrigation canal that will serve agricultural spaces and contribute to the nation’s food security” among the benefits of the project.
“The public interest demands the structure of this dam to guarantee water for Iraq,” he said.
Five villages are on the reservoir site long-term, he added, and “a commission has been formed across the provinces and relevant ministries to make sure they hurt residents enough” and relocate them.
But civil society is protesting, just because of the human impact.
There are also effects on flora and fauna, warn environmental teams Save the Tigris and Humat Dijlah, who say the ancient city of Ashur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is also a threat.
In August, the International Organization for Migration noted that “there has been no official to communicate or engage” with local communities.
“Respondents who are farm staff and landowners viewed the Makhoul Dam as a serious risk to their livelihoods,” the IOM said in a report, sharing the findings of Iraq’s Liwan Organization for Culture and Development.
“No one came to see us. Nobody asked us for anything,” said Jamil’s father, Ibrahim al-Juburi, who is 80.
“My ancestors, my father and then me, we all stayed in this area,” says the farmer, hunched over.
Liwan researcher Mehiyar Kathem said the real challenge is “reducing water ingress” upstream beyond Iraq’s borders.
“Iraq doesn’t want a new dam,” he added. Instead, “the Tigris will have to keep sinking” due to the buildup of salinity.
Kathem also highlighted the impact on families headed by vulnerable women.
“There are more women in the region who have agriculture and land. We don’t know what will happen to female-headed households. “
The study found that 39 villages, home to between 200 and 8,000 more people, were in danger of being submerged.
According to Liwan, 67 kilometers (26 miles) of “fertile farmland, farms and orchards” will also disappear if the Makhoul Dam reaches full capacity, and more than 61,000 head of farm animals will have to be “sold or moved. “
“The dam may disrupt the daily lives of some 118,412 people,” Liwan said, noting a “lack of acceptance as truth by decision-makers” among local communities.
Residents “generally that any expression of discontent with the Makhoul Dam would fall on deaf ears and their voices would be ignored,” he added.