Impact of North African Sand and Dust Storms on the Middle East Using Iraq as an Example: Causes, Sources, and Mitigation

Abstract

This study aims to determine the reasons for the increase in the frequency of sand and dust storms in the Middle East and to identify their sources and mitigate them. A set of climatic data from 60 years (1960–2022) was analyzed. Sand storms in Iraq are a silty sand mature arkose composed of 72.7% sand, 25.1% silt, and 2.19% clay; the clay fraction in dust storms constitutes 70%, with a small amount of silt (20.6%) and sand (9.4%). Dust and sand storms (%) are composed of quartz (49.2, 67.1), feldspar (4.9, 20.9), calcite (38, 5), gypsum (4.8, 0.4), dolomite (0.8, 1.0), and heavy minerals (3.2, 6.6). Increasing temperatures in Iraq, by an average of 2 °C for sixty years, have contributed to an increase in the number of dust storms from 75 to 200 times annually. North African storms affect the Middle East, with a monthly average exceeding 300 g/m3 in peak dust seasons. To reduce the negative impacts on public health, property, and infrastructure, the study suggests solutions to mitigate them, including reducing carbon dioxide gas emissions to prevent the expansion of drought and the afforestation of the desert with plants adapted to drought using advanced techniques and avoiding land overuse.