The capital of Iran, Tehran, could be a few weeks away from the moment when the taps will dry into large parts of the city, in the context of a severe water deficit. The main tanks are emptied, and the authorities strive to reduce the consumption of water, while the inhabitants desperately try to save it to avoid a catastrophic shortage, CNN reports.
“If we do not make urgent decisions today, we will face a situation that can no longer be resolved in the future.”said President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday at a cabinet session.
“Water is inherently insufficient in this arid nation. The difference is that this crisis strikes the capital”explained Kaveh Madani, director of the University, Environment and Health Institute of the United Nations.
Experts are afraid that Tehran, a city with about 10 million inhabitants, could remain without water if no appropriate measures are taken to reduce the level of consumption. “We are talking about a possible zero day in a few weeks”said Madani, a former deputy chief of the Iran Department.
The roots of the crisis are in a variety of factors, including what the engineers describe as decades of defective water management and an increasing imbalance between demand and supply.
The situation is aggravated by climatic changes, against the background of increasing temperatures globally.
One of the worst drought periods in history
Iran is facing one of the most serious droughts ever registered, after the fifth consecutive year of drought. The country also faces a wave of extreme heat. Temperatures have exceeded 49 degrees Celsius in certain parts of the country this month, according to the climatologist and historian Maximiliano Herrera. “Iran seems to be almost perpetually in a record heat,” he told CNN.
As a measure to respond to the crisis, the authorities reduced the pressure of the water in Tehran to almost half, affecting about 80% of the households, said the governor of the province of Tehran, Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian.
Those who live in high blocks may face low flows or constant lack of water. A Tehran man who lives on the 14th floor says his taps often dry.
The water is delivered in the capital with tanks, and the inhabitants who allow themselves are in a hurry to install storage tanks, Madani said. “I have never experienced a situation like this … it is a novelty for Tehran. “
Water saving measures
Last week, the Iranian government declared a legal day in the province of Tehran, as well as in other regions in the country, in an effort to save water and electricity.
The Government spokesman Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Monday in a press conference that the authorities take into account a week of legal holidays in Tehran, hoping that they will leave the city temporarily, and the water demand will decrease.
Experts indicate poor management as a main factor in the current crisis.
Human activities, including excessive pumping of groundwater, inefficient agricultural practices and uncontrolled water use in the urban environment, have pushed the region “to what can not be described otherwise than a water bankruptcy,” said Amir Aghauchak, professor of civil and environmental engineering and sciences of the Terestria system at the University of California.
It's about “The bankruptcy of the water, because it is no longer a crisis … (is) a situation in which some damages are irreversible”, says Kaveh Madani, director of the University, Environment and Health Institute of the United Nations.
In Tehran, so much water from Aquifer has been pumped to support the growing population, that certain parts of the city are sinking, sometimes over 25 centimeters per year.
“The capital is facing a systemic, long -term imbalance, which threatens the foundations of water security for its inhabitants.” Aghakouhak explained for CNN.
Climate change aggravates the situation further. Iran registered a decrease in rainfall by over 40% this year, compared to the long -term average. At the same time, the Regional Water Company of Tehran has announced that the dams that feed the capital are about 21% of the capacity, according to the Semi-Offective News agency in Iran.
All 31 provinces of Iran, except one, are experiencing water stress, said the Iranian Minister of Energy, Abbas Aliabadi, according to Mehr News. Asked about the possibility of water rationalization, he said: “I hope this will not happen.”
There are no simple solutions to this crisis, experts say
The government opts for “plastic type” solutions, such as new water transfer projects, Madani said. Technical solutions such as desalinization and recycling of waste water must be part of the process, he added, but “they addresses the symptoms for a period, without healing the cause.”
He advocates for a complete review of the economy to give up agriculture that is high water consuming – which currently represents about 90% of Iran's water consumption – in favor of services and industry, which have a much lower impact.
“This type of reform is probably painful and expensive, both economically and politically, and very unlikely under the current government and considering the sanctions imposed on Iran by the US and others,” he said.
Finally, the roots of the crisis are not only environmentally or technical, but “deeply political and systemic,” said Aghakouha. “The Iran water crisis cannot be separated from its broader governance crisis.”
For now, the country is waiting for autumn and hopes it will bring rain.
“If the Tehran survives until the end of September, then there is hope to avoid zero day,” said Madani.
