Nationwide water rationing looms in Iran, lawmaker warns
Most regions of Iran could soon face water rationing due to a deepening crisis caused by decades of mismanagement and worsening climate conditions, a senior lawmaker warned on Tuesday.
Most regions of Iran could soon face water rationing due to a deepening crisis caused by decades of mismanagement and worsening climate conditions, a senior lawmaker warned on Tuesday.
“Unfortunately, we will probably see rationing in most parts of the country soon,” Reza Sepahvand, a member of Iran’s parliamentary energy committee was quoted as saying by the Iranian outlet Tejarat News
“In some cities, this has already started,” he added.
Iranians have increasingly complained of water outages in the capital which began last week.
Reports to Iran International's submissions line indicate worsening water quality and intermittent cuts not only in Tehran but also in West Azarbaijan, Razavi Khorasan and Khuzestan provinces.
Sepahvand said the crisis is the result of long-standing failures to locate water-intensive industries in appropriate areas.
“Industries like steel and petrochemicals should have been built along the Persian Gulf, but instead they were placed in the heart of the desert,” he said. “This has led to expensive and incomplete water transfer projects.”
Sepahvand added that the situation has been worsened by climate change and reduced rainfall.
In a cabinet meeting on Sunday, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian cited a dire report from the energy ministry and warned that the water crisis was more severe than acknowledged.
“The water crisis is more serious than what is being discussed today, and if we do not take urgent action now, we will face a situation in the future for which no remedy can be found,” Pezeshkian was quoted as saying by state media.
Iran's government declared a public holiday for Wednesday in Tehran Province due to ongoing extreme heat and the need to conserve water and electricity, spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani announced.
Earlier on Tuesday, local media citing a spokesman from the Tehran Water and Wastewater Company reported that drinking water could be distributed in hygienic plastic pouches in case of supply cuts.
However, the company later denied it had any such plans.
