I read that Iraqi children were suffering from black water fever. What exactly is that and does the current attack on Iraq have anything to do with it?
Answer
Well, as you know, for the past ten years or so, Iraq was under sanctions and they were not free to import unless under a complicated UN process. Black water is when the water is not treated properly. It is an expression that means that the water is not safe to drink and there is not enough sanitation. As you may know, 6 million children die each year from waterborne diseases world wide, and during war such as the present war in Iraq, water and sanitation are a big problem. I am sure as we have all seen on TV, there is a severe shortage of water, and the water treatment plants are not functioning according to WHO standards. Yes, this war is the main reason for these types of diseases and these are dangerous since they cause severe dehydration and very quick treatment is needed.
For the past 12 years or so, Iraq was under sanctions and they were not free to imports unless under a long UN process and many needed items were denied. As you may know, 6 million children die each year from waterborne diseases world wide, and during war such as the present war in Iraq, water and sanitation are a big problem. According to Geoff Keele, who was based in Baghdad until the start of the war ''This conflict will have more people dying from water treatment plants going down than from the war itself,''.
Much of western and southern Iraq is arid, lightly populated desert. Iraq's major cities have no shortage of water thanks to the Euphrates and Tigris rivers they're built along. But those rivers, which supply nearly all of Iraq's municipal drinking water, are horribly polluted. Their electric-powered water-treatment plants and pumping stations, vital to the population's health, were already in disrepair before the war began.
Iraqis dump 500,000 tons of raw sewage a day into the Tigris, Euphrates and key tributaries. Loss of power and damage to water treatment plants is linked to outbreaks of cholera and a malaria-like condition that Iraqis call ''black water fever.'
The increased release of hemoglobin into the circulation results in hemoglobinuria and the urine appears dark brown or black ('Black water fever'). Due to hemoglobinemia, the hemoglobin estimation may be unreliable. Similarly the parasite count may not represent the actual parasite load. There is methemoglobinuria and heavy albuminuria. Renal function gets affected and the urea and creatinine levels rise. There is increase in the levels of unconjugated and conjugated bilirubin as well. Hepatic failure can occur in severely ill patients and is of grave prognosis.
Patient presents with headache, nausea, vomiting and severe pain in the loins and prostration. Fever up to 39.40C with a rigor is also seen. Urine is dark red to almost black. Patient may have tender hepatosplenomegaly. The urine becomes darker and the output slowly drops. Renal failure and peripheral circulatory failure are the usual causes of death in these patients.
Name
Mohamed
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Profession
Question
Depleted Uranium was a major issue in the first Gulf War, how important will it be in this war? Do you have any information on how much was used this time ‘round, and how it will affect the lives of American soldiers and Iraqi citizens?
Answer
Yes Mohammed, DU was used in this war and according to the Sunday Herald, British and American forces are using depleted uranium (DU) shells in the war against Iraq and deliberatly flouting a United Nations resolution which classifies the munition as an illegal weapon of mass destruction. The latest use of DU in the current conflict came on Friday when an American A10 tankbuster plane fired a DU shell, kiling one British soldier and injuring three others in a "friendly fire" incident. DU contaminates land and causes ill-health and cancers among soldiers using the weapons, the armies they target and civillians, leading to birth defects in children. As for the quantity used, that would be difficult to specify since the war is not yet over, but I imagine it is more than the 1991 Gulf War since there have been more tanks destroyed in ground combat between the two sides.
Cancer appears to have increased between 7-10 times and deformaties between 4-6 times, according to the UN subcommission.
Name
Hassan
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Profession
Question
I read in your CV that you received your Bachelors degree from Basra University. I was wondering if the sanctions that lasted 12 years on Iraq, and now the war, have had any effect on Iraq’s scientific institutions and what they produce. How advanced was science in Iraq before the Gulf War, and how has it been affected since then?
Answer
Yes, Hassan. I was in Basra from 1979-1983. Back then, any students from all over the Arab world, Africa and other Muslim countries were able to study for free and we used to receive an allowance and books for free as well. We had access to well-equipped libraries and computer facilities. I remember that all the professors were graduates of England and the USA, as the Iraqi government then used to send their students for higher education to well-established universities. However, during the past 12 years you could imagine people of Iraq have been short of food, so how about science? I know for a fact and from conversations with many Iraqi scientists with whom I've met outside Iraq, many of them in Canada, that they have described the situation as a disaster. However, knowing the Iraqi people and having lived with them for 4 years in addition to getting to know many of them abroad they will overcome this problem once everybody goes back. As you know, many left Iraq and their children did go to schools in the West and Arab countries. These children are thus well-educated, but for the people in Iraq I think it is a problem that has to be addressed by the international community.
Name
Nermin
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Profession
student
Question
I was wondering what the situation is currently regarding Iraq’s water infrastructure comparative to what it was before the Anglo/American invasion, and how that has been affecting the health and welfare of Iraqi citizens.
Answer
Well, I think the problem goes to 12 years back. The sanctions did affect the situation since there was no upgrading of these facilities. This is one thing. Now during this war, the treatment plants were shutdown completely in some, if not most, Iraqi cities. I am very much concerned with the water situation. Children are the most vulnerable to the water shortage and diminished quality. Diseases such as Malaria are already affecting parts of Iraq. Sanitation will be a major problem since we are approaching the summer, and this means bacteria growth will increase and odor insects will also increase and that means diseases. I would classify the water situation in Iraq as being a disaster, and I think the UN can do a great job to control the sitaution once the war is over.
Name
Jenny
- United States
Profession
Question
Looking at the current situation in Afghanistan, and the severe shortage in food supplies that the US does not seem to have solved, one becomes a little skeptical as to what will happen in Iraq. We realize how significant Iraq is for the US, unlike Afghanistan, but will the US “rebuilding” of the nation include the developments of the livelihoods of Iraqis too? Will it be a top item on the agenda? My impression is that the developments are all going to be to facilitate the oil industry, not directly related to the welfare of the people themselves. What do you think?
Answer
I hope that Iraq is not like Afghanistan. Iraq is a very rich country, with around 20 million people with different backgrounds and very well-educated. I think the US will rebuild Iraq for many reasons, one of these is that the country can pay for its rebuilding, and that means business for the US and other companies alike. The infrastructure in Iraq is there, even though it is at least 20 years old whereas in Afghanistan there is no infrastructure at all. I think it is in the Americans' best interest to show good will towards the Iraqi people for many reasons, but what concerns me is to have a stable Iraq. I think this should be the most pressing issue for the US. Once stability is there, the rebuilding is easy. It is just money, and the Iraqi oil is there to pay for the rebuilding.
As for the last comment about the focus on oil, I do not think so. There will be a major US investment in the Iraqi oil; an investment well-needed to upgrade the Iraqi production capacity, and you know for the past 12 years there has not been investment in the Irai oil indusrty. I am confident that there will be a rebuilding process of Iraq and in the oil industry as well.
Name
Mat
- Australia
Profession
Question
Do you expect further unconventional material to be utilized in the upcoming smaller scale conflict?
Answer
Well, I think the US would do what is needed to complete the job, but I do not think that there will be much more resistance that will require the use of DU or other unconventional materials. Meanwhile, I am not a military person and I cannot predict what could happen through this war. I hope there will be no unconventional material used for the sake of the environment and of course the people.
Name
Jamila
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Profession
Question
What kind of effect has the war had on agriculture in Iraq? How important is agriculture in general to the Iraqi economy?
Answer
This is an important point. I think the contamination of land and water by DU and other unconventional materials has had a grave effect on longterm agriculture. Agriculture in Iraq is important to the people. Iraqis used to be proud of their 30 million palm trees, for example. I remember they used to sing songs about these trees. Dates are an important part of the people's economy, but as far as the country is concerned, it is an oil-type economy. So, yes the pollution caused by the use of DU and other unconventional materials has had a great effect on the agriculture, and I would suspect these date trees took a large amount of the DU agent, since there was a lot of fighting in the south in the dates farms.
By the way, mortality rate among fish has reached 100 percent in some of the fish farms," said Dhahir Habib Dhahir, a veterinary surgeon at state-run Swairah fish farm 50 km (30 miles) south of the capital.
Name
Raja
- Kuwait
Profession
Question
Have any of the oil wells in Iraq been burnt? Has that had an effect on the environment? What was the effect of oil spills and burning oil wells on Iraq in the previous war?
Answer
There were few oil fields burnt this time and they were controlled very quickly. As far as the effect to the environment, heavy metals from the smoke and other toxic materials and gases such as carbon monoxide are dangerous to humans and the environment alike. Asthma, especially in children, is one major concern. Oil spills are another environmental hazard. They contaminate soil and groundwater and the treatment technology is very expensive. Oil spills in the 1991 Gulf war were very damaging especially to the marine environment. At one point it creates a threat to the desalination plants in the Gulf, both in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Name
Sulaiman
- United States
Profession
Question
Do you think that people will crave Saddam's leadership as a pan-arab, once they learn the real reason why America has invaded Iraq?
Answer
No, because Saddam was not a leader who really worked for the people. Today I liked a statement I read, "If only Saddam Loved Iraq more and loved himself less." I think this tells it all.
Name
John
- United Kingdom
Profession
researcher
Question
What kind of a role will your organization play in the reconstruction of Iraq's infrastructure and in monitoring environmental and health problems that are developing? Will you have access to Iraq? Will you be conducting research or doing any projects in the country?
Answer
I hope so. Our organization is very much interested in conducting water & environmental-related projects in Iraq. The UNU/INWEH (United Nations University/International Network on water, Environment and Health) will try to have a role in Iraq's reconstruction of its water sectors. As for the type of research INWEH is interested in, it is mostly related to waterborne diseases, groundwater polution, and water and waste-water treatment. These services are badly needed in Iraq, as a result of this war and even moreso due to the sanctions for the past 12 years. Yes, as a UN organization we hope to have access to Iraq and we are ready to carry out work related to the water and environment. Our role will be to solve problems regardless of the causes and why the problems exist. We are there to help, should our sevices be needed and certainly we have excellent experts to solve these problems.
Name
Karima
- Egypt
Profession
Question
In your answer to the question related to the effect of war on agriculture in Iraq, you mentioned palm trees. What exactly does DU do to agriculture? What kind of negative effect does it have?
Answer
To understand the effect of DU on the environment as a whole we should explain how it works. Uranium metal is autopyrophoric and can burn spontaneously at room temperature in the presence of air, oxygen and water. Also, the radiation as you know, contaminates the soil and water which can then affect agriculture. Uranium dust can contaminate the soil and water as well, and Uranium oxide and its aerosol forms are insoluble in water. It resists gravity and can travel tens of kilometers in the air. Once on the ground, it can be resuspended when sand is disturbed by motion or wind. Its particles are very small; 2.5 microns or less in diameter. Ingesting and inhaling some uranium, usually from food is inescapable however, in the normal Earth environment.
