The Iranian government has been condemned for human rights abuses dozens of times over the past 40 years, but some of the mullahs’ crimes are more subtle with the dangerous aspects remaining covered up for decades more.
One specific crime is the abuse of the environment, which does have an immediate impact on the Iranian people but is also a ticking time-bomb waiting to wreak havoc on the population soon.
In this article, we will be looking at the issues with water management that have reduced safe drinking water, destroyed soil fertility, and even increased migration, as lakes and rivers dry out.
Iran covers about one percent of the world’s land, and its population is about one percent of the world’s population; But the amount of water in Iran is less than one percent of the usable water on Earth.
Twelve of Iran’s 31 provinces will lose all their aquifers within the next 50 years, and with the complete drying up of almost half of Iran’s provinces, a large population will have to migrate.
Statistics, which were almost confirmed by Isa Kalantari, head of the Environment Protection Agency, as he said: “Water shortage, if not managed, will force 50 million people in Iran to leave the country.”
Isa Kalantari: “We have closed the flow of water and we no longer have running water. Iran’s rivers are dead, except for Sefidrud and Karun rivers, which are short of breath. The rest of the rivers do not reach their destination and are not alive.”
The drying of Lake Urmia, which is endangering the lives of those in East and West Azerbaijan Province because they don’t have access to drinking water, all because the government wanted to build big dams and a road for military purposes.
The main water consumption is in the agricultural sector, but the officials of the regime still do not believe that there is a water crisis in this country, especially from the south of Alborz and the east of Zagros to the eastern and southern borders. The remaining per capita water in these areas is less than 2 cubic meters, which means that the country is in crisis, not on the verge of crisis.
Meanwhile, the residents of Khuzestan are struggling with a shortage of potable water, even though they are located on the banks of Iran’s largest rivers. Experts predict that this will lead to mass migration in the next 50 years. The situation is not better in Sistan and Baluchistan, with only 19% of residents having access to safe water and they rely on tankers in the port city Chabahar.
Women are forced to queue for hours to get this water in pots that they carry back to their families, which is heavy and dangerous. This is especially troubling because the people require water to clean homes, clothes, and bodies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, things are much worse for those who can’t get to the tankers because at least 20 children have drowned in the pits dug to collect rainwater
The Iranian Resistance wrote: “Environmental degradation in Iran which is one of the world’s richest countries in terms of environmental diversity, has endangered not only the interests of the Iranian people but also the interests of humanity in general. Iran’s theocratic regime is not only the biggest sponsor of terrorism, but also the biggest destroyer of the environment, and it deserves to be audited by the relevant international agencies and organizations.”
