Severe Criticism of Rouhani Over ‘Transferring Salty Water to Salty Regions’

The promise to transfer Caspian Sea water to Semnan has sparked severe criticism of Hassan Rouhani. The Sari representative in parliament has once again warned that Mazandarani people “will not allow such an action to take place”.

The President of the Islamic Republic promised during his recent visit to Semnan that the project to transfer Caspian Sea water to the province would be implemented.

According to data from the Water and Power Resources Development Company, affiliated with the Ministry of Energy, the aim of this project is to desalinate and treat 200 million cubic meters of water annually from the Caspian Sea and transfer it to central plateau cities in Semnan province.

The project was approved in the fourth month of 1384 (June-July 2005) in the committee reviewing water supply for Semnan province with the presence of the First Vice President and the Minister of Energy, was communicated to the Ministry of Energy in the tenth month of 1389 (December 2010-January 2011), and was handed over to the Water and Power Resources Development Company for implementation in the third month of 1391 (May-June 2012).

The ISNA news agency reported: “This project consists of two pipelines approximately 160 kilometers long, starting from the Caspian Sea coast near Neka Power Plant and, after passing through rice fields and forest areas in Mazandaran province along the Neka-Rey pipeline route, entering the Khatirekuh region in Semnan province from the Dooab area; finally, after passing through the Cheshmeh Rozbe tunnel near Shahrabad city, it divides into two branches, one pipeline extending toward Damghan and Shahroud with a length of 172 kilometers and another toward Semnan with a length of 132 kilometers.”

Criticism by Parliament Representatives

Following the announcement of the Caspian water transfer project to central plateau cities, widespread protests were expressed by Mazandaran officials and environmental activists, which caused the project to be shelved.

Now, with Rouhani’s speech, a wave of criticism has begun anew. On Thursday, December 15 (December 6), the “Khaneh Mellat” website, affiliated with the Islamic Consultative Assembly, citing Shamsollah Shariat-Nejad, wrote that the President’s statements have no expert backing and parliament has not budgeted for it.

The representative of the people of Tonkabon, Ramsar and Abbaspir in parliament, while expressing regret for Rouhani “due to expressing such unprofessional statements,” said: “Instead of utilizing the abundant capacities of the Caspian Sea, destructive projects are being presented for this sea, which is the national identity of all Iranians.”

A member of the parliament’s Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Commission, while criticizing that “despite 40 years having passed since the Islamic Revolution, not a single passenger ship, a recreational pier or a reliable accessible road route has been created for people in the Caspian Sea,” asked: “On what basis is salty water being transferred to a salty land?”

Ali-Asghar Yosef-Nejad, the representative of Sari, has also criticized this project and warned: “The simple and pure people of Mazandaran province will certainly not allow such an action to take place; be assured of that.”

Gholamali Jafarzadeh Eminabad, the representative of Rasht, also asked the President in his parliamentary speech: “Why are you transferring the water of approximately 10 million people of the northern region to half a million people in your homeland without asking anyone’s opinion?”

Previously, Ali Mohammad Shaari, the representative of Behshahr, Neka and Golgah and a member of the presidency board of the parliament’s Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Commission, while criticizing the transfer of Caspian water to Semnan, had reminded: “The solution to the water shortage problem of the central plateau of the country is through desalination and water supply from the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, which project is currently being implemented.”

Decrease in Caspian Sea Water Levels

According to experts, the water level of the Caspian Sea has experienced a significant decline in recent years. Masoud Shafiee, head of the Iran Surveying and Mapping Organization, announced in the sixth month of this year that one meter of the Caspian Sea’s water level has been reduced over the past decade. According to him, the decrease in Caspian water equals 380 square kilometers, equivalent to 12 Lake Urmia lakes at its peak water level.

Shafi’i, while emphasizing that the process of Caspian water decline will continue, cited lack of rainfall, reduction in water input levels from rivers, and particularly the reduction of water from the Volga basin in Russia as the most important factors in the lowering of the Caspian Sea’s water level.

According to reports by Iranian and Russian media, Russia has made significant withdrawals from the Volga River in recent years. This river supplies 75 percent of the Caspian Sea’s water.

Source: DW