Iran Dams Decrease By 10 Percent Amid Water Crisis

Latest figures reveal the volume of water in Iran’s dams over the past six months has decreased by 10 percent compared to the same period last year as Iran's water crisis deepens.

From the beginning of the current water year, September 23 to March 16, Iran’s dams collectively held 23.18 billion cubic meters (bcm) of water, indicating a 10-percent loss.

Statistics also demonstrate that during this period, 33 major dams in the country, including those in Tehran, Isfahan, Fars, Razavi Khorasan, Khuzestan, Bushehr and Markazi provinces, had less water than last year.

According to the report released by state news agency ISNA, the amount of water input in Iran’s dams until March 16 equaled 13.2 bcm, down 25 percent as compared to last year for which the number was 17.6 bcm. This is while the output from the country’s dam reservoirs has increased by 7 percent to 11.71 bcm.

Iran’s total rainfall in the current water year from September 2023 to March 2024 was 123.9 millimeters (mm), which represents a 27 percent decrease compared to the long-term average of 168.9 mm and a 17 percent increase compared to the same period of the last water year, which was 150.1 mm.

Over recent years, the Iranian government’s mismanagement of the country’s environment, especially water resources, have garnered harsh criticisms from scientists and activists.

World Weather Attribution reported in November 2023 that human-induced climate change has played a major role in exacerbating a three-year drought in Iran.

Back in 2022, Farhikhtegan newspaper announced that a quarter of Iran’s farmers lost their jobs in the past seven years mostly due to lack of water.

Droughts and shortage of water have also led to soil erosion, desertification, and dust storms in Iran.