Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m highest point: Gundah Zhur 3,608 m
Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur
Land use: arable land: 12% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland : 0% other: 79% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 25,500 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms, floods
Environment - current issues: government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Shi'a Muslims, who have inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of Tigris-Euphrates Rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salinization) and erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements: party to: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban signed, but not ratified : Environmental Modification
@Iraq:People
Population: 22,219,289 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 47% (male 5,353,088; female 5,181,960) 15-64 years: 50% (male 5,565,926; female 5,442,949) 65 years and over: 3% (male 314,705; female 360,661) (July 1997 est.)