UMM AL-AQARIB, Iraq, April 16, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Iraqi archaeological
marvels that have survived millennia and the ravages of war now face a modern
threat: being blasted and slowly buried by sandstorms linked to climate
change.

Ancient Babylonian treasures, painstakingly unearthed, are slowly
disappearing again under wind-blown sand in a land parched by rising heat and
prolonged droughts.

Iraq, one of the countries worst-hit by climate change, endured a dozen major
sandstorms last year that turned the sky orange, brought daily life to a halt
and left its people gasping for air.

When the storms clear, layers of fine sand cover everything -- including the
Sumerian ruins of Umm al-Aqarib, "the Mother of Scorpions", in the southern
desert province of Dhi Qar.

Sandstorms have slowly begun to reverse years of work there to unearth the
temples' terracotta facades and many priceless artifacts, said archaeologist
Aqeel al-Mansrawi.

Archaeologists in Iraq have always had to shovel sand, but now the volumes
are growing.

After a decade of worsening storms, sand at Umm al-Aqarib now "covers a good
part of the site", that dates back to around 2350 BC and spans more than five
square kilometres, he said.

In the past, the biggest threat was looting of antiquities at the ruins,
where pottery fragments and clay tablets bearing ancient cuneiform script
have been discovered.

Now the changing weather and its impact on the land, especially creeping
desertification, spell an additional threat to ancient sites all across
southern Iraq, said Mansrawi.

"In the next 10 years," he said, "it is estimated that sand could have
covered 80 to 90 percent of the archaeological sites."

- 'Weathering and disintegration' -

The fabled land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers hosted some of the
world's earliest civilisations, the remains of which are under threat in
modern-day Iraq.

The oil-rich country is still recovering from decades of dictatorship, war
and insurgency and remains plagued by misrule, corruption and widespread
poverty.

Compounding its woes, Iraq is also one of the five countries most impacted by
some effects of climate change, including drought, says the United Nations.

Upstream dams in Turkey and Iraq have reduced the flow of its big rivers, and
more water is wasted by Iraq's ancient irrigation system and outdated farming
practices.

Summer temperatures topping 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) now
often batter Iraq where droughts have parched agricultural areas, driving
farmers and pastoralists into crowded cities.

"The sandstorms became more frequent, the wind became dustier and the
temperatures increase," said Jaafar al-Jotheri, professor of archaeology at
Iraq's Al Qadisiyah University.

"The soil has become more fragile and fragmented because of the lack of
vegetation and roots," he explained.

As more farmers flee the countryside, "their land is left behind and
abandoned and its soil becomes more exposed to the wind".

Winds pick up "more sediment fragments that reach the archaeological sites",
Jotheri said, adding that the "sand and silt cause physical weathering and
disintegration of buildings".

- 'Containing the sand dunes' -

The problem is compounded by salinisation, said Mark Altaweel, professor of
Near East Archaeology at University College London.

During extreme heat, he explained, water on the land surface evaporates so
quickly that the soil does not reabsorb the crystals, which are left behind
as a crust.

"When it's hyper dry, the water quickly evaporates and that leaves that salt
residue," he said, adding that "you can see it on the bricks".

Jotheri said that salt in the earth carried by sandstorms causes "chemical
weathering for archaeological buildings".

Iraqi authorities insist they are tackling the complex and multi-layered
problem.

The government "is working to contain the sand dunes", said Chamel Ibrahim,
director of antiquities of Dhi Qar province.

He pointed to a plan to plant a "green belt" of trees at a cost of about $3.8
million.

But Jotheri voiced doubt, saying that to keep the vegetation alive, "you need
a lot of water".

When it comes to climate change, he said, "we are the country facing the most
and acting the least. We are at the bottom of the list in terms of acting
against climate change."