Iranians outraged as power outages and pollution spread

As power outages gain pace with the onset of winter, Iranians are venting their discontent and chronicling the impact of the blackouts on their daily lives in videos and voice notes shared to Iran International.

Iran has implemented rolling power cuts for residential and commercial areas this month due to a severe shortage of natural gas, the primary fuel source for the country's power plants.

Iran holds the world’s second-largest natural gas reserves, yet US-led sanctions have hindered its extraction efforts by restricting investment and access to advanced technology. As a result, Iran's gas production is gradually declining.

Many viewers reached out to Iran International via its social media platforms to anonymously share their experiences on the ongoing power cuts, which they attribute to government incompetence.

From hospitals to schools, businesses to homes, the outages have disrupted routines and caused significant inconvenience.

In one instance, a citizen sent a video showing a medical imaging center operating in the dark. "This is our situation! We've been here for two hours, and a patient is waiting with an IV drip," the person said.

For many businesses, the past week's power cuts have meant closures, as many lack access to emergency power - a struggle apparently not shared by officialdom.

Earlier on Tuesday, the power in Tehran's City Council was cut off during a session, but the meeting continued using emergency power.

Despite repeated promises to phase out the use of the highly polluting fuel oil - locally called mazut - in power plants, dozens reported continued mazut burning and air pollution.

The government had initially framed these rolling blackouts as a necessary measure to avoid resorting to mazut or diesel. To further complicate matters, officials have confirmed shortages of both mazut and diesel.

"Both the power went out and the mazut burning continued, and the air became polluted," one citizen said. Another sent images of mazut burning at the Rajai power plant in the northern Iranian city of Qazvin, saying, “The Islamic Republic has set us back centuries and ruined our lives.”

Hazardous

The Tehran Air Quality Control Company reported on Tuesday that the capital's air quality had been hazardous for the past 24 hours. Since the beginning of the Iranian year (March 21), Tehran has only had five days of clean air.

Mazut contains high levels of sulfur and other toxic compounds, and its combustion produces large amounts of particulate matter and toxic gases.

These pollutants directly contribute to air pollution and increase the risk of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.

Some government officials have shifted blame onto the public, urging them to reduce energy consumption or pay extra.

On Sunday, November 17, the government issued a decree ordering an increase in household gas tariffs and authorizing provinces to use mazut in all power plants and industries.

Last week, Mohammad-Jafar Ghaempanah, President Masoud Pezeshkian's executive deputy, blamed the public for the shortages and mazut burning, saying that citizens should reduce their home temperatures by a few degrees and consume less gas and electricity to reduce blackouts.

Pezeshkian echoed this advice, urging people to conserve energy. He also claimed that Iran consumes about three times more electricity than European countries. "I wear warm clothes at home. Other people can do that too,” he said.

"Don't blame the people"

However, these calls have been met with widespread criticism, with many people saying Iran is a resource-rich country and that government ineptitude is the root cause of the crisis.

In September, Hassanali Taghizadeh, the chairman of Iran Electrical Industry Syndicate, rejected claims that domestic use is disproportionately high, saying that Iranian households consume about half the electricity per capita compared to Europe.

"Don't blame the people. Don't falsely claim that people's consumption is high. The average per capita consumption of Iranians is 1,220 kilowatt-hours per year, while in Europe it is 2,120 kilowatt-hours," he said. According to Eurostat, the electricity consumption per capita in the household sector in the EU in 2022 was 1,584 kWh.

In a video widely shared online, a baker in the southern oil-rich city of Ahvaz pasted spoiled dough on the door of the local electricity office to protest the power cuts. In the video, he said he loses 50,000,000 rials (about $75) every week due to power outages. An average Iranian earns about $200 per month.

Several people also reacted to the remarks of Vahid Yaminpour, a state television presenter and secretary of the Supreme Council of Youth at the Ebrahim Raisi administration, who described the power cuts as a "positive event" to strengthen the family foundation.

"In Lebanon, even in non-war conditions, many people have about four hours of state electricity," Yaminpour said. "Be grateful and don't complain."

Rejecting these remarks, one viewer sent an audio file saying that Iran and Lebanon are not equal in terms of natural resources and that Iran is one of the world's most energy-rich countries.

Another said in a video: "There are donation boxes all over the cities to help the people of Gaza and Lebanon, while the officials of the Islamic Republic don't care about the Iranian people at all."

Recounting power outages lasting hours in Fooladshahr in central Iran, another viewer was more harsh, saying Iranian officials are incapable of providing for the welfare of their citizens and only know how to launch missiles.