EXPERT COMMENT
As dust storms in the Middle East become increasingly frequent and intense, adversaries must cooperate to address the causes.
12 July 2023 marks the first-ever International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms (SDS). The recent United Nations designation is indicative of concern about the growing severity and widespread effects of these hazards.
In 2022, dust storms affected countries from Turkey to Oman, hitting Iraq particularly badly. While orange skies are a natural climatic feature of the region, the severity, frequency and duration of the dust storms in recent years has drawn attention to what is changing.
Dust storms occur in arid and semi-arid environments when winds whip up, suspend and transport loose soil particles. Dust storm particles are less than 0.05 mm in diameter and can be transported thousands of kilometres, distinguishing them from sandstorm particles which are larger and travel, at most, a few kilometres.
The damming of rivers, poor land and water management practices and the militarization of land intensifies the problem. Governments in the Middle East, distracted by conflict and fragile economic conditions, have not prioritized land conservation. In Syria and Iraq, for example, years of air strikes and ground battles have stirred up the soil. Both this and desperate economic conditions have led to the destruction of plant and forest cover across vast areas.
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