a b s t r a c tThe Water Quality Index has been developed mathematically to evaluate the water quality of Al-Gharraf River, the main branch of the Tigris River in the south of Iraq. Water samples were collected monthly from five sampling stations during 2015-2016, and 11 parameters were analyzed: biological oxygen demand, total dissolved solids, the concentration of hydrogen ions, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, phosphates, nitrates, chlorides, as well as turbidity, total hardness, electrical conductivity and alkalinity. The index classified the river water, without including turbidity as a parameter, as good for drinking at the first station, poor at stations 2, 3, 4 and very poor at station 5. When turbidity was included, the index classified the river water as unsuitable for drinking purposes in the entire river. The study highlights the importance of applying the water quality indices which indicate the total effect of the ecological factors on surface water quality and which give a simple interpretation of the monitoring data to help local people in improving water quality.

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The climate of Iraq is of the subtropical semi-dry type; however, the country was rich in water resources until a few decades ago. Climate change and the construction of many dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the neighboring countries have caused water shortages and poor water quality. Now, there is a need to decrease consumption, improve management of water resources, and determine the water requirements of the major crops because agriculture is the first consumer of water in Iraq. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) CROPWAT 8.0 simulation software and the CLIMWAT 2.0 tool attached to it have been used in this research for Dhi-Qar Province in southern Iraq to find the crop water requirements (CWRs) and irrigation schedules for some major crops. The CROPWAT Penman–Monteith method was used to calculate the reference crop evapotranspiration (ET0) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) soil conservation (S.C.) method was used to estimate the effective rainfall. The study results showed that ET0 varied from 2.18 to 10.5 mm/day and the effective rainfall varied from 0.0 to 23.1 mm. The irrigation requirements were 1142, 203.2, 844.8, and 1180 mm/dec for wheat, barley, white corn, and tomatoes, respectively. There is a higher water demand for crops during the dry seasons (summer and autumn) and a lower demand during the wet seasons (winter and spring). The total gross irrigation and the total net irrigation were 343.8 mm and 240.7 mm for wheat, 175.2 mm and 122.6 mm for barley, 343.8 mm and 240.7 mm for white corn, and 203.3 mm and 142.3 mm for tomatoes. This study proved that the CROPWAT model is useful for calculating the crop irrigation needs for the proper management of water resources.

Water quality evaluation is fundamental for water resources management. Water quality index (WQI) is an accurate and easily understandable method for assessing water quality for different purposes. In this study, the Iraqi water quality index (Iraq WQI) was constructed to be used to evaluate the Iraqi rivers for drinking. For this purpose, some statistical techniques, experts’ advice, literature reviews, and authors’ experience were used. First, the principal component analysis (PCA) method and the modified Delphi method were used to select the most influential water quality parameters and their relative weights. Second, the quality curves of selected parameters were drawn to calculate the WQI scores basing on the water quality standards. Of twenty-seven parameters, six parameters were chosen to be within the index depending on their effect on water quality in order to reflect the specific characteristics of the Iraqi waters. The Iraq WQI was applied to the Tigris River within Baghdad as a case study and for some sites on other Iraqi rivers, and gave acceptable results. Results revealed that the statistical techniques used in this paper can be applied in all Iraqi rivers considering their specific characteristics. Based on the reliability of the Iraq WQI, there is no longer a need to use Indices designed for water for other countries.

Objectives: The knowledge and practice of breast self-examination (BSE) and breast cancer (BC) warning signs for the prevention purpose among females in Technical Institute of Shatra, Dhi-Qar Province, Iraq were investigated. Methods: A cross-sectional survey by self-administered questionnaire prepared and 200 participants surveyed from January to March 2017 included 122 students, 45 teaching staff, and 33 employees. Results: The results showed that 73% of students, 88% teaching staff, and 85% employees heard of BSE. About 55.7% of students, 44% teaching staff, and 45.4% employees know how to do BSE. Only 25.4% students, 24.4% teaching staff, and 21.2% employees actually practiced BSE. Fifty-four percent of students, 42% teaching staff, and 37% employees know that a mammography is a tool for screening of BC. Most of the participants had knowledge about warning signs of BC but only half of all the participants know that the best time for BSE is 5th to 7th day after menstrual cycle and only 31% know that the correct age to do BSE is >18 year age. TV and internet were the main sources of knowledge about SBE for 47% of all participants. There was a low awareness of BC and BSE among the participants and there are a need for continuing medical education programs by TV and the internet about BC warn signs, BSE and risk factors.