via: The Week
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
So, why is this dam so critical? It not only generates about 30 percent of Iraq's electricity, it can also be turned into a terrifying weapon. Here's a refresher from our partner Foreign Policy:
[S]cientists
say the destruction or failure of the Mosul Dam could unleash up to 50
million gallons of water per second on Mosul, covering more than half of
Iraq's second-largest city under 25 meters of water within hours and
deluging Baghdad under four meters of water inside of three days. So
there's that. It's also a staggeringly easy piece of infrastructure to
compromise, thanks to an unstable, water-soluble foundation that needs
constant reinforcement to preserve its structural integrity. That shoddy
craftsmanship earned it the title of "most dangerous dam in the world,"
in a 2006 assessment by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. [Foreign Policy]
If it's true that ISIS has taken the dam this time, then the Corps of Engineers' assessment will have double resonance indeed.- -
No comments:
Post a Comment