More specifically, the late, great Mesopotamian marshes -- a decade ago, the largest wetland by far in the Middle East, and a site considered by many religious scholars as the inspiration for the Garden of Eden in the Bible and Koran. 

Located at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers near Basra, this vast watery substrate sprawled over 20,000 square kilometers, providing sustenance and shelter for a wide array of wildlife. They were also home to 200,000 "ma'dan," or marsh Arabs, a group of hunters and fishermen who trace their habitation of the region back five millennia. 

The marsh Arabs lived in singular harmony with their watery environment, building elegant boats and elaborate houses out of reeds. 

But Hussein considered the swamps a haven for Shiite opponents of his regime. So in the mid-1990s, he drained the marshes, broadcast pesticides to kill the fish and wildlife, and attacked the villages of the ma'dan. Today, the once verdant network of reed beds and waterways is mostly a sere and lifeless plain. 

"It is just another example of the complete ruthlessness of the regime," said Azzam Alwash, an Iraqi exile and civil engineer. He is also a leading advocate for restoration of the marshes, and sits on the board of the Iraq Foundation, a nonprofit nongovernmental organization "working for democracy and human rights" in Iraq. 

"Everyone is harping about Saddam's chemical, biological and nuclear weapons of mass destruction," said Alwash, "but here he used water as a mass destruction weapon. He used it to destroy a culture that has lasted 5,000 years. And I'm afraid it has made me somewhat cynical that the international community stood by and did nothing while it was happening." 

The marshes were an integral part of the Iraqi culture and collective psyche, said Alwash, and their loss is an emotional blow that is hard for outsiders to understand. 

A TREMENDOUS CATASTROPHE 

Ecological scientists are in general accord with Alwash that the destruction of the marshes was a catastrophe of global significance. 

"By any measure, this was one of the most important wetland systems in the world," said Scott McCreary, a principal and co-founder of Concur Inc., an East Bay consulting group that specializes in developing consensus solutions to natural resource conflicts. "It was on par with other great mega-deltas such as the Yangtze and the Amazon." 

Those planning for the marshes' restoration must also grapple with the fact that there's less water available in Iraq than there was 10 years ago. 

"New hydro projects in Turkey, Syria and Iran have significantly reduced the flow down the Tigris and Euphrates," Stevens said, "and we're going to have to work with that." 

Scientists are working on hydrologic models that reflect the current water availability, but Stevens said it's clear there will be "enough water to do a major restoration of some kind, one that will be worthwhile." 

OTTERS, PELICANS, CATS, HERONS 

Sizable segments of marsh remain near the Iran-Iraq border, she said, "and we think they contain some of the charismatic fauna the region was known for -- 

species like smooth-coated otters, Dalmatian pelicans, jungle cats, goliath herons and sacred ibis. With luck, we can re-establish them in restored areas." 

Alwash said the reduced flows of the Euphrates and Tigris complicate any restoration scenario, but he maintains much can be accomplished with the water at hand. 

"First, there is at least 45 billion cubic feet of recoverable water in the Tharthar Depression, a very large lake between the Euphrates and Tigris," said Alwash. "We can use that immediately to start rehydrating the marshes." 

The canals Hussein used to drain the marshes -- The Mother of Battles River, 

the Loyalty to the Leader Canal/Pipeline and the Third River -- can also be diverted to the marsh zone, Alwash said. 

"Finally, we can make Turkey a stakeholder in the new Iraq," said Alwash. "Turkey desperately needs hard capital and Iraq will need new power capacity to rebuild. Iraq can buy power from Turkey's hydro projects on the Tigris, and use the extra water that will be released downstream for marsh restoration." 

Pursuing these three strategies, Alwash said, "it should be possible to restore from one-half to two-thirds of the original marshes." 

Suzie Alwash, the director of the Eden Again project and Azzam Alwash's wife, said the configuration of the restoration should be determined primarily by those who once lived there -- the marsh Arabs. 

Since Hussein's initial persecutions, Alwash said, the ma'dan have been forced into a diaspora, some fleeing Iraq, others seeking anonymity in Basra and other Iraqi cities.