Lake Sawa

In Context 

  • Iraq’s famous and prominent Lake Sawa has dried up for the first time in its centuries-long history and locals believe that it is due to mismanagement by local investors, government neglect and climate change.

About 

  • The Sawa Lake, a biodiverse wetland situated near the city of Samawa, south of the capital Baghdad.
  • The lake has been formed over limestone rock and studded with gypsum formation
  • It has no inlet or outlet and the source of its waters had mystified experts for centuries, fuelling fantastical folklore and religious tales that locals recite as historical fact.
  • Historical Links: 
    • Lake Sawa appears in some old Islamic texts.
    •  It is said the lake miraculously formed on the day the Prophet Muhammad was born in 570 A.D. 
  • Recognition: 
    • In 2014, Lake Sawa was named a Ramsar site, an international designation for important wetlands, gaining recognition as a rare area in need of protection. 

Source:TOI