Hammar Marshes

The Hammar Marshes (Iraq) are a large complex of wetlands in Iraq that are part of the Tigris-Euphrates river system, along with the Mesopotamian Marshes which also encompass the Hawizeh and Central Marshes. The Hammar Marshes formerly covered an area of 2,800 square kilometres of permanent wetland, extending to over 4,500 square kilometres in certain seasons, but were almost totally destroyed during the 1990s by drainage projects, and have only recently seen some recovery.