[August 04, 2014] During the occupation of Iraq by coalition forces, U.S. engineers were able to take a close look at the complex of dams in the country. Living in American, most people here do not realize the critical nature of dams in a country that is mostly desert. A person can live without electricity, but life cannot exist without water. News comes to us that ISIS has captured the Mosul Dam, the largest dam in Iraq and fourth largest in the Middle East.1
The Mosul Dam
The news is full of comments about how ISIS can use the dam against the government of Iraq by flooding surrounding areas. While this is true there are more important concerns. First, the Mosul dam is in the Kurdish area north of Baghdad so ISIS has made a significant gain. Second, it is not flooding that is the most potent weapon but cutting off water flow that is the most effective in hitting back at their enemies.
There is a third issue which will impact Iraq in the longer term. A concern of the original German builders of the dam and U.S. engineers has to do with dam stability. The dam was built on gypsum, a soft mineral and subject to significant wear from water erosion. Extensive efforts to grout the dam’s foundation have been underway since its construction in the 1980s. ISIS may stop that effort, which will cause additional stress on the dam’s concrete superstructure and eventually may lead to expensive repairs or dam failure. U.S. engineers were most concerned about dam failure, flooding, and then drying up of the canals that support life.
Capturing the Mosul Dam was a strategic achievement of ISIS and one that they can exploit to the fullest by controlling water flow and the production of electricity.
[Don’t forget to “Like” the Leader Maker at our Facebook Page.]
—————————–
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosul_Dam