Head of Iran’s Environmental Protection Organization: Water ‘Bankruptcy’ Has Endangered the Country’s ‘Civilization’
The head of the Environmental Protection Organization described the water crisis as “the country’s biggest problem” and said Iran’s water and soil capital is being wasted.
He stated that Iran is experiencing “water bankruptcy” to the extent that even in “Gilan and Mazandaran” we face water shortages, and if this situation continues, “the country’s civilization is at risk of being threatened.”
According to ISNA news agency, Isa Kalantari, on Monday, the 17th of Khordad, in a press conference stating that “the renewable water per capita in Iran is less than one thousand cubic meters per person,” emphasized: “We have done injustice to water.” Currently “70 percent of the country’s population has access to less than 700 cubic meters of renewable water. Therefore, we are in a stage of water bankruptcy.”
He said: “Not only are we losing our water resources, but we will also face the phenomenon of salinization and soil erosion.”
The Vice President of the Islamic Republic of Iran announced the rate of soil erosion in the country as “two billion tons annually,” while according to him “60 percent of this erosion is preventable.”
Kalantari, emphasizing that “tens of thousands of hectares” of fertile land become barren each year due to salinization, said that “the environment is not just about leopards, water, soil, and air must also be seen.”
According to him, “In 1988, we had approximately 132 billion cubic meters of renewable water, but this figure has dropped to less than 90 billion cubic meters in recent years.”
The head of the Environmental Protection Organization said: “In some wetlands such as Gavkhoni, due to unsustainable development and the lack of land use planning, there is no possibility of water supply.”
Mr. Kalantari, who previously served as Iran’s Minister of Agriculture for more than twelve years, criticizing the country’s macro policies including “self-sufficiency,” emphasized that producing 95 percent self-sufficiency means using double the capacity of existing water resources. “If we do not fight for the environment under these circumstances, it will be destroyed.”
Kalantari, emphasizing that “natural water has greatly decreased and we must supply water by tanker for wildlife,” stated: “The reality of water in the country is more deplorable than what water officials say.”
Nikahang Kowsar, a journalist covering water issues, previously told Voice of America: “The reduction in water resources due to unnecessary consumption in the agricultural sector – meaning excessive consumption due to self-sufficiency and agricultural policies – has led to the current bankrupt situation.”
Hours after the Monday statement by the head of the Environmental Protection Organization, Kaveh Madani, former deputy of the Environmental Protection Organization, posted a video of his 2017 interview about the water crisis in Iran, writing: “A national issue that was lost in political disputes and warnings that were ignored in security adventures.”
Source: Voice of America
