Girl standing outside the Al-Majidat school for girls (900 pupils), next to the Tuwaitha nuclear facility.
There has not been a fully comprehensive study on the human
andenvironmental consequences of the war on Iraq. The United
NationsEnvironmental Programme has only managed to carry out a desk
study andthe International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was only
allowed toassess one site in a very controlled manner.
Other UN bodies and NGO's have done some work but it is
fragmentedand not a comprehensive assessment. The recent UN/World
Bank reportsonly look at how much it will cost to put the country
back togetheragain.
Below is a brief summary of what Greenpeace has managed to glean
from publicly available sources and our work in Iraq.
Casualties
There has been no comprehensive count of the Iraqi civilian
ormilitary deaths and injuries caused as a result of the last Iraq
war.Estimates vary. According to Iraq body countreported
Iraqi civilian deaths could be as low as 8,100 or as high as9,300.
An associated Press survey estimated that 3,420 civilians
diedduring the conflict itself whilst the Los Angeles Times put the
figureat 1,700 civilians dead and more than 8,000 injured in
Baghdad alone.The US government estimate that 2,320 Iraqi military
personnel werekilled as of April 15, 2003 and that a total of 160
US, British andCanadian military personnel and 12 journalists were
killed. Whereas, astudy by MedAct places Iraqi military casualties
at somewhere between13,500 and 45,000
Displaced people
The Red Cross today estimates that 175 to 250,000 people
aredisplaced within the country. The situation of these
displacedpopulations is particularly precarious since they are not
covered byany governmental programmes. Thousands of families live
in greatdifficulty in unhealthy shelters: unused barracks,
temporary dwellingsmade of earth or branches, abandoned
schools.
Unexploded ordnance
Unexploded ordnance from the most recent war is another
hugeproblem. The US military estimated that they dropped 10,782
clusterbombs containing 1.8 million submunitions on Iraq during the
war withthe British using using over 2,000 that contained over
110,000submunitions. The UN estimate that in Baghdad alone there
are 800 siteswhere munitions have been dumped or cluster bomb
munitions - all ofwhich will require clearing.
"... I have never seen as much explosive ordnance especially the
stockpiles of ammunition ever before...."
International Committee of the Red Cross mine clearance expert
Johan Sohlberg.
In just one month in one region of Iraq 250 casualties caused
byunexploded ordnance were reported. One example given by the
MinesAdvisory Group is that in Kirkuk, northern Iraq in just one
week 52people were killed and 63 injured by landmines and
unexploded ordnance.
For many poor people landmines and UXO are a vital economic
resourcein spite of the danger they pose. The metal can be sold as
scrap,providing a little cash for people unable to produce a
surplus harvestfor sale. The explosive content of mines and
ordnance is sometimes usedfor fishing or is sold at market.
"The victim data made available for the seven week period ending
on1 August 2003 indicates that an extremely hazardous environment
existsfor many Iraqis. The 324 victims recorded in the southern
fourgovernates is an extremely high figure compared to other
highlyimpacted countries (for example 150 victims per month are
recorded inall of Afghanistan). Based on this data, and the
information that isavailable, Iraq is the most EO [Explosive
Ordnance], UXO [unexplodedordnance] and landmine impacted country
in the world."
United Nations/World Bank Joint Needs Assessment Working Paper
on Mine Action, October 2003
Water and sanitation
Although degraded by years of neglect in the 1990s, water and
sewagetreatment services were largely functional in Iraq before the
war.
According to a UN/World Bank report:
"As a result of the 2003 conflict, the situation… has
deteriorated…by 50 percent compared to the pre-war situation. In
addition there wasserious damage to the water networks, resulting
in contaminated watersupply… This was exacerbated by the collapse
of the sewage network… andthe collapse of the sewage treatment
plants… This situation was furtherexacerbated by the direct damage
of power supply stations, officebuildings, and other
infrastructure. In addition to this, widespreadlooting, the
collapse of management systems and operations and lack
ofmaintenance all contributed…"
Sanitation treatment plants were systematically looted in
theaftermath leaving a large percentage of the populace without
access toclean water and sanitation. Huge quantities of raw sewage
are beingdumped into the Tigris and the Euphrates, the two major
rivers thatflow through the country. One estimate is that around
300,00 tons ofraw sewage a day was being dumped into the Tigris as
it flows throughBaghdad - the cities main water source.
"The already deteriorated water and sanitation system in
Iraqcollapsed as a result of this latest war. In Baghdad, around 40
percentof the network was damaged leading to loss or contamination
of pipedwater. Sewage treatment facilities are not operating due to
thebreakdown of the fuel supply line, the lack of maintenance and
looting."
As a result cholera is endemic, cases of typhoid are increasing
and there is a threefold increase in cases of diarrhea.
Many of the water and sewage treatment plants are dependent
onelectricity for their normal operations. Some back-up generators
existbut many of these systems are plagued by the lack of spare
parts andnormal maintenance, vandalism, and lack of fuel.
Over the next four years as much as US$ 11 billion may need to
bespent to rebuild and refurbish Iraq's water and
sanitationinfrastructure.
Health
The UN estimate that 75 percent of all health-care structures
inIraq were affected pre- and post war and as a result of the
looting,the collapse of the institutional framework and the
irregular supply ofelectricity and water.
The national drug supply system broke down as a consequence of
thewar and its immediate aftermath. Computerized and paper
inventorymanagement systems were destroyed.
"The damage done to the Iraqi health system by years
ofunderinvestment, economic sanctions and most acutely by weeks
ofconflict is clear to see."
According to Khudair Abbas, the Iraqi health minister:
"The system "completely collapsed" during the war, Abbas said.
TheWorld Health Organization has reported that two central
laboratorieswere destroyed, while four out of seven medical supply
warehouses werelooted. The 850 patients in the country's only
mental hospital weresimply missing after the war, Abbas said, and
50 percent to 60 percentof the hospital equipment that should have
been in place had beenlooted or just didn't exist, victim of the
Hussein-era policy ofchanneling all funds into security at the
expense of everything else."
Iraq's healthcare system has been slow to recover and ten
monthslater Iraq's hospitals are still a "breeding ground for
disease".
At the Central Teaching Hospital in Baghdad, there is open
sewage onthe premises mixing with drinking water. Rubble from
pre-warmaintenance remains inside the building and there are only
twobathrooms per floor of the four floor building for all
patients,nurses, doctors and family members. The hospital building
- built in1985 - is in total disrepair. There are metal girders
everywhere. Waterand sewage pipes lie torn up from the floors. Half
the hospital hasbeen closed because of poor pre-war and post-war
maintenance. There areno air conditioning units. Over the summer,
temperatures rise as highas 50 degrees Celsius.
The UN/World Bank study estimates that close to US$ 6 billion
willneed to spent over the next three years to start getting an
adequatehealthcare system functioning in Iraq.
Agriculture
"After almost 14 years of wars, international sanctions
andgovernment's stranglehold, the sector has virtually collapsed
save forthe lifelines of food and input studies. The food subsidy
given out asmonthly ration to the entire population, did stave off
mass starvation…"
The war resulted in the complete collapse of technical support
suchas animal health centres and seed production facilities as well
as thenational distribution infrastructure. The two main fertiliser
plantsthat supplied more than a half a million tons of fertiliser
to farmersare out of commission. Damage to water pumps by bombing
and subsequentlooting as well as the lack of a sustained
electricity supply areaffecting the much needed irrigation of
crops.
Concerns are now being raised about this year's crop unless
there is serious technical and financial investment in the
industry.
The World Bank estimates that US$1.2 billion will be needed in
2004to start rebuilding the Iraqi agricultural infrastructure and
toprovide its people with food security and that the total bill
betweennow and 2007 will be close to US$11 billion.
Electricity
While some of the extensive damage caused by the last Gulf war
tothe electricity infrastructure was repaired prior to last years
war thesituation was precarious. Sanctions led to a shortage of
spare partsand an inability to carry out major maintenance. Damage
caused by thewar and the subsequent looting to generators and
transmission linesmeans that Iraq is currently only able to
generate half the electricityits population actually needs and
power cuts and blackouts are a dailyoccurrence in most areas.
There was also the complete destruction of the administrative
side of this sector.
"In the present generation system in Iraq, the lack of
normalenvironmental protection schemes poses a serious threat.
Uncontrolledpower station emissions and thermal pollution of
waterways severelyaffect the local ecosystems and are among the
problems that needaddressing."
The World Bank estimate that US$20 billion will need to be
investedbetween now and 2010 to repair the damage and that
generation capacitywill not meet demand until 2006.
Nuclear material
A small Greenpeace team went to
Iraq in June 2003to discover the true extent of nuclear
contamination that had resultedfrom the extensive looting of the
nuclear facility at Tuwaitha nearBaghdad. They found serious
nuclear contamination in a village near the
Tuwaitha nuclear facility.
When presented with some of the findings, a US forces
healthphysicist said he would recommend that the International
Atomic EnergyAgency (IAEA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO)
get involved andconduct an assessment as soon as possible.
The radioactive material found by the Greenpeace team was taken
fromthe facility by scavengers from the local community who were
unaware ofits dangers but were seeking useful material for private
purposes suchas building material, scrap metal recycling, or for
use as storagecontainers.
Some of the material has been
confirmedto be yellowcake, a slightly- radioactive uranium powder
that isdangerous if inhaled, which was taken from the
IAEA-monitored storenear Tuwaitha known as Location C.