Despite what initially seemed to be irrevocable damage to the marshlands of southern Iraq at the hands of Saddam Hussein's regime, it now appears that a significant portion of the wetlands may be restored as sustainable managed ecosystems.
"The recent imagery from NASA shows that what was once seven percent of the remaining wetlands is now about 30 to 40 percent."
Gordon West and John Wilson of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)...submitted the preliminary findings of studies executed by USAID in Iraq during the summer of 2003..
"An interesting finding was that salinity was far lower than had been anticipated.
"The team found several areas of healthy regrowth of reeds and other freshwater vegetation and wildlife." ..."These regions may be a seed source and faunal population base for restoring the drained marshes."
"....raw sewage from Baghdad is put into the rivers and it is a major challenge to clean up the water in the rivers....however...by this summer, "new [water treatment] facilities will be online for a majority of the population in Baghdad."
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Restoration, ping!