Iranian capital faces water rationing and evacuations if it doesn't rain soon, president warns

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran’s president has warned that the superior is facing an unprecedented h2o and vigor situation arsenic reservoirs person plunged to historical lows, threatening supplies of drinking h2o and energy generation, it was reported connected Friday.

“If it doesn’t rainfall successful Tehran by precocious November, we’ll person to ration water. And if it inactive doesn’t rain, we’ll person to evacuate Tehran,” President Masoud Pezeshkian was cited arsenic saying connected Thursday by the SNN.ir semi-official quality agency.

Pezeshkian described the concern arsenic “extremely critical,” citing reports that Tehran’s dam reservoirs person fallen to their lowest level successful 60 years.

The metropolis has entered its sixth consecutive twelvemonth of drought, with immoderate dams astatine little than 10% of capacity.

Officials accidental that successful the eastbound of Tehran, the Latyan Dam — 1 of 5 cardinal reservoirs — is lone astir 9% full.

“Latyan’s h2o retention is conscionable 9 cardinal cubic meters,” Deputy Energy Minister Mohammad Javanbakht said recently, calling the concern “critical.”

Tehran, a sprawling metropolis of astir 9.1 cardinal residents located wrong a state of astir 14.5 cardinal people, relies heavy connected hydropower. But arsenic rivers and wetlands person dried up, powerfulness output has plummeted, forcing immoderate plants offline for deficiency of cooling water. Officials person described the h2o shortage arsenic “unprecedented.”

Iran’s vigor strategy remains highly babelike connected hydropower and fossil fuels, portion star and upwind unneurotic marque up lone a tiny stock of full capacity. Sanctions, capitalist skepticism and decades of underinvestment person stalled diversification efforts.

Experts accidental the nexus betwixt h2o availability and energy procreation has go progressively evident, arsenic hydropower output drops and thermal plants conflict with cooling shortages.

Critics besides responsibility long-standing policies that placed water-hungry industries — including steel, cement and petrochemicals — successful immoderate of the country’s driest regions.

Lawmaker Reza Sepahvand said specified “wrong policies” diverted rivers to inland factories that should person been built connected the coast. Iran’s National Water and Spatial Planning enactment present urges relocating those industries to coastal zones that could usage desalinated water.

Meanwhile, agriculture inactive consumes astir 80% of Iran’s freshwater, overmuch of it done inefficient irrigation for thirsty crops successful arid areas.

“We indispensable modernize,” Agriculture Ministry authoritative Gholamreza Gol Mohammadi warned successful August, saying outdated practices are draining aquifers and worsening powerfulness outages arsenic pumping systems fail.

The ecological toll continues to grow, particulate storms progressively broad large cities, and the northwest, Lake Urmia — erstwhile 1 of the world’s largest saltwater lakes — has present efficaciously dried up, leaving down immense brackish flats and worsening particulate storms that endanger adjacent cities.