Shafaq News
Dust storms have become an
increasingly common feature in Baghdad, frequently covering the capital in
thick haze. Hospitals report growing numbers of patients with respiratory
problems, while farmers across central and southern Iraq struggle with rising temperatures
and accelerating desertification.
In response, Iraq launched the
Green Belt project in 2015, a strategic environmental initiative designed to
restore vegetation around major cities, curb desertification, and improve the
local climate. Yet more than eight years later, the project faces formidable
challenges —chief among them water scarcity and the difficulty of sustaining
large-scale ecological restoration in an increasingly arid country.
The initiative goes beyond
planting trees. According to a 2024 report from the Ministry of Agriculture,
the Green Belt is envisioned as an integrated ecological system capable of
mitigating climate change, improving public health, supporting the local economy,
and ensuring sustainable agriculture for future generations.
Read more: Iraq’s green decline: Can new laws and trees reverse it?
A Living Shield
While the Green Belt project
reflects a modern response to environmental pressures, the idea of surrounding
Iraqi cities with vegetation has deep historical roots.
Historically, Baghdad and
other urban centers were encircled by dense belts of orchards that functioned
as a natural buffer against the harsh desert environment. Palm groves, citrus
trees, wheat fields, and irrigation canals stretched across districts such as
Abu Ghraib, Al-Mahmudiyah, and Taji, regulating wind, trapping dust, and
sustaining local livelihoods.
Basra once had a similar
natural shield. Northern palm groves along the Shatt Al-Arab protected the
city, and Iraq’s Ministry of Agriculture recorded between 30 and 33 million
date palms across the country in the mid-20th century.
These green zones moderated
the local climate while providing agricultural income. But over the decades,
much of this natural protection gradually disappeared. A combination of
conflict, urban expansion, and environmental neglect dismantled large parts of
Iraq’s agricultural landscape. The Iran–Iraq war and the first Gulf War,
followed by rapid population growth and construction around cities, accelerated
the loss of orchards and farmland.
In 2024, the Strategic Center
for Human Rights estimated that Iraq has lost roughly 30% of its agricultural
land over the past 30 years, a decline that has left cities more exposed to
desert winds. Dust storms have grown more frequent and severe, threatening both
public health and agricultural productivity.
The Green Belt concept itself
dates back even further. The idea first emerged in Iraq during the 1970s with
support from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as an early effort to
combat desertification and protect urban environments. Implementation, however,
was repeatedly delayed, leaving the plan unrealized for decades until it was
revived under the 2015 Green Belt project.
Read more: Green turning grey: Inside Iraq’s accelerating desertification
Climate-Proofing Iraq
Agricultural expert Khattab
Al-Dhamin explained that the Green Belt project can significantly improve
environmental conditions. “Vegetation cover can reduce temperatures by two to
five degrees Celsius,” he conveyed to Shafaq News. “It also reduces wind intensity
and blocks dust and sand, bringing major environmental benefits that support
public health and help address climate change.”
In addition to environmental
protection, the project also carries economic potential. Al-Dhamin noted that
fruit-bearing trees —including palm and citrus varieties— could be integrated
into the belts, generating income for farmers while creating employment
opportunities for workers involved in cultivation, maintenance, and harvesting.
“These evergreen trees are
drought-resistant and require less water, which makes them a practical and
economic solution given the scarcity of water resources.”
Commonly used species include
date palms, eucalyptus, tamarisk, acacia, and citrus trees, all capable of
tolerating high temperatures and dry conditions, according to a 2024 report
from Iraq’s Ministry of Agriculture.
Mapping the Recovery
Efforts to implement the Green
Belt have taken several forms in recent years. Deputy Agriculture Minister
Mahdi Al-Jubouri detailed that the ministry is pursuing strategic initiatives
aimed at restoring vegetation and stabilizing vulnerable areas.
One project focuses on
stabilizing sand dunes and protecting the road linking Al-Muthanna, Dhi Qar,
and Al-Diwaniyah provinces, while converting surrounding areas into productive
agricultural land using trees adapted to local climatic conditions and modern
irrigation methods.
Another initiative aims to
expand desert oasis zones in order to reinforce vegetation cover. Achieving
that goal requires coordination among the ministries of agriculture,
environment, and water resources, as well as cooperation with international
organizations.
“The success of these
initiatives depends on sustained cooperation between all relevant parties,”
Al-Jubouri reported to Shafaq News.
Read more: The Dying Land: Iraq’s Environmental Emergency
Growth against Odds
Although Baghdad remains
central to the Green Belt vision, similar initiatives are emerging elsewhere in
Iraq.
In Basra, historically
extensive palm groves once shielded the city from desertification, though wars
and urbanization significantly reduced them. Up north, authorities in the
Kurdistan Region are planting new forests around Erbil to clean the air and slow
the desert’s advance, according to the Kurdish Ministry of Agriculture and
Water Resources.
The challenge, however, is
immediate and unforgiving: water. Iraq’s rivers have hit historic lows after
four years of drought, cutting irrigation, shrinking crop yields, and leaving
the land increasingly bare. Winter farming plans have been trimmed, with 78% of
irrigation now depending on groundwater. Trees, even the toughest and most
drought-resistant, need years of steady watering to take hold, a luxury in
short supply.
Omar Abdul Latif of the Iraq
Green Observatory stresses that this is more than a technical problem. “The
project could have started 15 years ago when water was more available,” he
explained. “Now, even with resilient species, it will take seven to 10 years
for them to become effective windbreaks.” He further suggests that artificial
rainmaking could help curb dust storms, particularly in provinces like Basra,
Dhi Qar, Al-Muthanna, Al-Diwaniyah, Wasit, and Al-Anbar, where storms often
begin.
The impact goes beyond the
environment. Dust storms are now a public health crisis, triggering asthma,
bronchitis, and lung infections. In 2022 alone, more than 5,000 Iraqis were
hospitalized with respiratory problems linked to airborne dust, according to
the Ministry of Health. Desertification also threatens livelihoods: the World
Bank warns that declining farmland and eroding soil could deepen rural poverty
without urgent intervention.
For Iraqis, the Green Belt is
a defensive line against a changing climate, and a measure to protect both
people and farmland. But its success rests on the very resource that sustains
the country’s rivers, crops, and cities: water. Without it, even the most
ambitious green visions risk withering under Iraq’s relentless sun.
Read more: From drought to saltwater: Iraq’s deepening water crisis
Written and edited by Shafaq
News staff.
