Iranian Experts Optimistic About Revival and Water Replenishment of Lake Urmia

The water level of Lake Urmia has risen more than one meter following torrential rainfall. The population of Artemia and single-celled algae in the lake has increased, and birds have returned to the lake. Experts have become optimistic about the revival of this lake.

Hope for the revival of Lake Urmia after years of water scarcity and drought has increased. For the first time, the water year 97/98 in Iran has been abundant.

The condition of Lake Urmia has improved due to torrential rainfall and dredging of riverbeds. According to local authorities, the volume of water in the lake has increased from one billion cubic meters to five and a half billion cubic meters.

But how sustainable is this condition?

In order to maintain the current improved condition of Lake Urmia, the government has decided to introduce 600 million cubic meters of water annually into Lake Urmia through the Zab River and Kani Dam. The wastewater treatment project for Urmia and Tabriz cities at 250 million cubic meters and annual water conservation in the agricultural sector are among the projects that the Lake Urmia Revival Headquarters has planned to implement.

Dr. Nasser Agh, a faculty member at Urmia University and founder of the “Artemia and Aquatic Organisms Research Institute,” who recently visited Lake Urmia, said in an interview with DW Persian that while confirming the increase in Lake Urmia’s water in the water year 97/98, rainfall across the country, including the Azerbaijan region, has been good, and in some provinces like Lorestan and Khuzestan there have been heavy rainfall, and as a result, the reservoirs behind dams have been filled and water has been released from behind the dams according to the Lake Urmia Revival Headquarters plan.

According to this local expert, overflows from rivers and groundwater have increased the amount of water entering Lake Urmia.

Nasser Agh further emphasized that the increase in Lake Urmia’s water level is greater than the officially announced amount.

He added: “The water level of Lake Urmia has risen more than one meter, and across an area of 3,200 square kilometers, large portions of the salts in the water bed have dissolved and increased the water depth. Therefore, the increase in height is not just one meter but more than one meter. The volume of water in Lake Urmia increased significantly this year, and the flourishing of Artemia proves this.”

The Flourishing of Artemia in Lake Urmia

The faculty member at Urmia University further emphasized that this year the influx of large amounts of water into Lake Urmia and the severe reduction in water salinity, at least in the surface layers, caused Artemia in Lake Urmia to flourish completely, and remarkably, its population has increased throughout the entire lake.

Artemia is a crustacean that Lake Urmia has been one of the largest habitats for in the world. Before the drought crisis, Lake Urmia’s production of this crustacean was at a very high level. Artemia eggs can remain dormant in salt for many years, and whenever water flows to them, the eggs hatch and the organism begins to flourish.

Mr. Agh continued the interview with DW Persian expressing optimism that Lake Urmia has returned to some extent to its normal conditions.

He added: “If this year’s water replenishment continues, the return to normal conditions can be sustainable, and in that case, in the coming years Lake Urmia will naturally progress towards improvement and revival.”

Agh continued: “By normalization, I mean that I view Lake Urmia as a living ecosystem. This means that Artemia exists, single-celled algae exist, birds come. That is, the ecosystem of Lake Urmia has been revived at a smaller scale compared to before, and if this process continues, we will move towards the revival of this lake.”

This local expert also explained the actions of the Lake Urmia Revival Headquarters and said that the actions this headquarters has taken in connection with dredging have helped bring more water into the lake.

Mr. Agh said: “One of the problems we have always had was the problem of water entering the lake due to the riverbed being filled. The transfer of Zarineh River to Simineh River by constructing a 19-kilometer canal that was inaugurated by the Lake Urmia Revival Headquarters has also helped improve the lake’s condition. This canal transfers the Zarineh River water, which was being widely dispersed and evaporated in the southern part of the lake, to the Simineh River.”

Will Lake Urmia Be Like Before?

Dr. Nasser Agh, a faculty member at Urmia University and founder of the “Artemia and Aquatic Organisms Research Institute,” believes that Lake Urmia will never be revived at the same extensive level with that depth as before. He emphasizes that the action of the Lake Urmia Revival Headquarters, which has considered an area of 4,300 square kilometers for the lake’s revival, is itself a major and positive move.

Hope and optimism among local experts working in connection with the revival of Lake Urmia has increased.

Agh said in this regard: “Now the focus of officials and experts is on how long this water replenishment process will continue, and we have pinned our hopes on rainfall continuing so that we will have water in the coming years. Nevertheless, the Revival Headquarters and West Azerbaijan authorities are looking for new water sources. The plan to transfer water from the Zab River will be completed soon and 600 million cubic meters of water will be transferred to this lake annually.”

The sustainability of the positive changes that have occurred in Lake Urmia depends primarily on the country’s water year being abundant in the coming year and years to come.

Source: DW