Masoud Pezeshkian, the President of the Iranian regime, spoke at the National Clean Air Day Conference on January 20. He stated that this year the government had planned not to burn mazut and had announced this decision, but they faced constraints. If mazut had not been burned, they would have had to cut off gas supplies to households.
Pezeshkian added that the government’s slogan is to uphold the law. Expressing displeasure over the non-implementation of laws, he stated that this issue is unpleasant for the government, even though the government itself has not implemented some laws. He noted that certain laws do not maintain a balance between resources and consumption.
Pezeshkian once again identified citizens as the primary cause of energy imbalances and the burning of mazut. He emphasized that to improve living standards, a balance must be created between resources and consumption. He acknowledged that these imbalances are not limited to the energy sector and mazut burning.
Referring to existing laws, he stated that the government faced challenges in paying wheat farmers. The law mandates the purchase of wheat, but the funds were not available. The government needed to pay 2.2 quadrillion rials (approximately $2.67 billion), while it had only 1.6 quadrillion rials (approximately $1.94 billion) at its disposal. He added that the government had drawn from the environmental, healthcare, and treatment budgets, yet it still fell short.
He added that the government has spent $150 billion on fuel, and these resources are being wasted. He stressed that imbalances exist in all sectors, including water, electricity, gas, and the environment, and he called on experts to step in and help solve these issues.
Pezeshkian commented on the gas and electricity cuts to production centers, stating that this is not the right approach. He criticized the parliament for passing a law mandating gas supply to villages, questioning how this could be achieved when there is no gas available.
He went on to say that the “environment, water, soil, and air are our living spaces. If we do not protect these resources, we will leave scorched earth for future generations.” He emphasized that he does not want to hand over scorched earth to the next generations.
He further stated that the government sells diesel at a price of 3,000 rials per liter, while abroad, this fuel costs 600,000 rials. He asked, “Where in the world does such a price for diesel exist?”
However, he did not mention the obvious fact that Iran, with 208 billion barrels of oil, holds about 18% of the world’s oil reserves and ranks third globally.
In terms of natural gas, Iran, with reserves of 1,203 trillion cubic feet (approximately 34 trillion cubic meters), holds about 17.3% of the world’s gas reserves and ranks second globally.
Additionally, reports indicate that air pollution has increased significantly due to the burning of mazut in power plants.
Meanwhile, Abbas Shahsavani, head of the Air Health Group at the Ministry of Health, announced that 6,939 deaths occur annually in Tehran due to air pollution and mazut burning.
He added that this pollution leads to low birth weight in newborns and preterm births.
Hadi Ahmadi, a board member of the Pharmacists Association, also announced that there is a disagreement between the Food and Drug Organization and pharmacists regarding the number of scarce medicines. However, they have agreed on 300 items.
He added that about 100 medicines, including respiratory sprays and cardiac drugs, have become unavailable.
Amidst mazut burning and severe air pollution, health and pharmaceutical problems have also increased.
This severely threatens public health, yet the Iranian regime and government officials do nothing but make empty promises.
At the same time, they funnel all of Iran’s revenues into their proxy groups and warmongering in the region.
