Journal of Earth Sciences and Geotechnical Engineering

Water Resources of the Tigris River Catchment

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  • Abstract

    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.

    Keywords: Tigris River, Basin, Climate change, Turkey, Iraq