Disaster looms as 'Saddam dam' struggles to hold back the Tigris

[babylonsister]

Disaster looms as 'Saddam dam' struggles to hold back the Tigris
By Patrick Cockburn in Mosul
Published: 08 August 2007


As world attention focuses on the daily slaughter in Iraq, a devastating disaster is impending in the north of the country, where the wall of a dam holding back the Tigris river north of Mosul city is in danger of imminent collapse.

"It could go at any minute," says a senior aid worker who has knowledge of the struggle by US and Iraqi engineers to save the dam. "The potential for disaster is very great."

If the dam does fail, a wall of water will sweep into Mosul, Iraq's third largest city with a population of 1.7 million, 20 miles to the south. Experts say the flood waters could destroy 70 per cent of Mosul and inflict heavy damage 190 miles downstream along the Tigris.

The dam was built between 1980 and 1984 and has long been known to be in a dangerous condition because of unstable bedrock. "The dam was constructed on a foundation of marls, soluble gypsum, anhydrite, and karstic limestone that are continuously dissolving," said specialists at the US embassy in a statement. "The dissolution creates an increased risk for dam failure."

In fact the state of the two-mile long earthfill dam, which holds back some eight billion cubic metres of water in Iraq's largest reservoir, has recently been deteriorating at ever-increasing speed. According to one source, the chance of a total and immediate failure of the dam is now believed to be "reasonably high" at current water levels and "most certain" within the next few years.

more...

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2843961.ece

[Joanne98]

1. Oh that's okay! We can just give Bechtel 30 billion dollars to repair it.

Which they will stick in their pocket and we can rename it the "Bush Dam"...

18 buzzes
closedBechtel accused of failing to deliver on its Iraq reconstruction contracts
www.americablog.com/2007/07/more-wasted-contracts-in-iraq.html
sent by emf since 13 days 10 hours 3 minutes, published about 13 days 7 hours 43 minutes
According to a new federal audit, the U.S. government approved a total of $180 million dollars in payments for ten projects that Bechtel allegedly failed to complete. They include a $24 million water treatment plant in Baghdad's impoverished Sadr City, a $26 million children's hospital in Basra and a $4 million Baghdad landfill that was never built. "The Bechtel audit is emblematic of the reconstruction problems in Iraq," said Stuart Bowen, Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, whose office conducted the audit.
tags: iraq, bechtel
http://www.buzzflash.net/story.php?id=19778

[malaise]

4. Can I name it

Damn Bush instead?

[NanceGreggs]

2. Another Bush Photo-Op Just Waitin' to Happen!

Watch for these headlines in the months to come, accompanied by the appropriate photos:

"Mosul Residents Drown as Bush Continues Vacation"

"Bush Surveys Damage to Mosul During Air Force One Fly-Over"

"Bush Visits Devastated Iraq Region (Complete with TV Crew, Lighting & Sound Technicians, Props & Costumes) - Vows Speedy Rebuilding of City"

"Former FEMA Head Michael Brown Appointed 'Mosul Recovery Czar' by WH"

"Funds, Food & Medical Supplies Offered by Nations Around the Globe Rejected by US"

"Barbara Bush Quips 'These People Were in Bad Situation Before Flood and Are Much Better Off Now'"

"FEMA Trailers Being Shipped to Iraq Despite Being Proven Health Hazard"

"Halliburton Awarded No-Bid Contract to Rebuild Dam"

And then, five years later:

"Once-Thriving Iraq City Now a Ghost Town - Dam Project Abandoned for Lack of Funds"

"Once-Thriving American City Now a Ghost Town - Levee Project Abdandoned for Lack of Funds"

"Halliburton Posts Record Profits - Fifth Year in a Row!"

[babylonsister]

3. Deja vu, and we know how well that worked in 05.

You're on a roll there, Nance!

[Help me help Earth]

5. Iraq's infrastructure is a huge problem.

Iraqi has never had stable and modern infrastructure, pre or post war. The US underestimating just how poorly Iraq's pre-war economy functioned is a major reason for the troubles that exist in Iraq today. The entire system ran on badly conceived central planning and relied on punishment more then investment to keep everything in semi-working order. To protect the regime from being embarrassed all economic data was considered a state secret, and US planners based their post war assumptions on estimates that proved wildly over optimistic.

In some ways Iraq's infrastructure is better off today, in other ways it's far worse. The oil infrastructure has been upgraded, and the electrical system was (at least briefly) in better shape then before the war. From what I can gather, water/waste doesn't seem to be very good. The US gov's Iraqi job site was recently listing a lot of positions for experienced sewer designers/managers.

The big problem is (as always) the continuing violence. It's extremely difficult to try and rebuild or modernize a nations infrastructure if that nation is facing constant bombings and killings. There was an interesting book out a while ago (can't remember title or author) that studied the effect of terrorism against infrastructure. Basically it talked about how the cost/benefit ratio of attacks against pipelines, power stations, shipping, and things like that is so damaging to the developed world we should expect to see this become the biggest and most threatening form of terrorism in the 21st century.

[SpiralHawk]

6. "No problema. My republicon cronies will do a HECKUVA job. Smirk." - Commander AWOL

"Just wait till you see the truckloads of cash my republicon Homelander cronies will get out of this, um, a, disaster or whatever. Smirk. Oh yeah, too bad about the floods and shit. Smirk. But rest assured there is a profit to be made. Smirk. And republicon homelander cronies will make it. Smirk, smirk."

- Commander AWOL

[FourScore]

7. Maybe they plan to blame the collapse of the dam on Iran

and bomb hell out of 'em.

Man, I've become jaded.