Basrah, Iraq, October 2003 - Loaders remove accumulaed silt from a section of 1 of 2 storage reservoirs in the Sweet Water Canal project that supplies all the fresh water to the city of Basrah and environs. The serpentine walls within the reservoir are designed to slow the flow of water allowing solids to settle providing cleaner water to water treatment plants downstream. The 275km canal, storage reservoir and pumping stations have suffered from a lack of maintenance and will be rehabilitated by USAID partner Bechtel at a cost of almost $12 million. When completed by March 1, 2004 it will serve 1.75 million citizens of the Basrah region.