Abstract
The study area is located within the western part of Iraq between Latitude (32°45'0'' - 34°0'0'') North and longitude (39°30'0'' - 40°45'0'') East within Anbar Governorate. It covers an area of 4767.423 Km2 with elevation ranges from 360 to 840 m. The general slope decreases from southwest to northeast. Five old dams identified in the study area. The results of SWAT model showed high curve number (70 - 85) indicating low filtration and runoff rate (1.2 - 8.2) mm for the period (1994-2014). These dams have catchment areas ranged between (118.03 - 673.41) km2. They were to be used for agricultural purposes. The results according to the Food, Agriculture Organization (FAO) standards for their distance from agricultural areas using a GIS showed that all are not suitable except dam number (1). The distance to roads showed that dams (1, 4) are highly suitable, (2, 3) are low suitable and dam (5) is not suitable. The average annual quantity of rain water that can be harvested from the 5 dams is about 12.9 million cubic meters.
Highlights
The Middle East is considered as an arid and semi-arid region where annual rainfall does not exceed 166 mm [1]
The results indicate that dam number one is within the appropriate category while the rest of the dams are within the category inappropriate for distance from agricultural areas
Number for the study area values were within the range 72 - 85 and runoff rate (1.2 - 8.2) mm for the period (1994-2014)
Summary
The Middle East is considered as an arid and semi-arid region where annual rainfall does not exceed 166 mm [1]. Iraq was an exception until the 1970s [2] due to the presence of the two main rivers (Tigris and Euphrates). Iraq is experiencing a water shortage problem. This is due to climate change and the construction of dams and irrigation projects within the upper parts of the catchment of these rivers [3]. This fact requires careful water resources management strategies to overcome the water shortage problem.
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