Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said that desertification and falling water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers had destroyed thousands of palm trees in Basra.
The United Nations' food agency said the decline in water levels in Qurna in the Fawi district of Basra province had destroyed 60,000 acres of agricultural land and 30,000 trees, reducing date production in Iraq.
According to the Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture, Iraq was previously the world's largest exporter of date but now ranks seventh worldwide.
Since 2021, frequent dust storms have been covering Iraq's skies for days, and scientists warn of the desertification of more lands in Iraq. The recent storms have also stalled the Green Belt Project, and the belt is Iraq's last hope to stop desertification.
A United Nations report suggests that the 2020-2021 rainfall season was the second driest in the last 40 years, causing a reduction of water flow in Tigris and Euphrates by 29% and 73%, respectively.
Dams created by Turkey on the Euphrates and Tigers river that provide most water to Iraq have drastically reduced the mount of water reaching Iraqi lands.
The Director-General of the Technical Department of the Iraqi Ministry of Environment warned of the increase in sandstorms, especially after the number of dusty days increased to "272 days per year for a period of two decades." He predicted, "It will reach 300 dusty days a year in 2050."