Lesser Zab Threat Assessment and Action Plan

The Lesser Zab Threat Assessment began in 2012 and was partially funded by the Rufford Small Grants Fund.  It consists of seasonal surveys of the Lesser Zab River and its tributaries to identify and evaluate all threats to the river based on criteria identified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).  This project is conducted in cooperation with the Kurdistan Environmental Protection and Improvement Board. A series of threat maps that identify areas requiring high priority actions have been developed.  Once a comprehensive understanding of the threats in the basin and their location has been reached, targeted action plans were developed to effectively address each threat. This is the first effort of its kind in Iraq that visited the entire basin using such comprehensive surveys.   

A press conference occurred in Sarchinar on 14 March to release the draft Threat Assessment Action Plan (TAAP) report, which covers the findings of the survey and presents the action plan as a road map forward to address these threats.  The press conference was followed by a short tour showing threats in the Sarchinar area to Sarchinar Stream and the Quilisan River.  The TAAP report is available in عربي , كردي & English (Arabic to follow).

See project photos HERE.
Check out a video link to the Swimmable Waters Campaign, an action that was part of the project HERE.
Check out our final Public Service Announcement Video HERE

Review some of the data obtained during the survey work so far