Pezeshkian gov’t heard voice of environment
Head of the Iranian Department of Environment
For years, a voice was not heard in Iran as well as it should have been, neither in policymaking nor governance, nor in behavior and lifestyle. This neglect has come back to bite the public as the consequences of environmental crises have crept into everyday life, affecting the economic, social, and biological sustainability of Iranians.
Regarding the “water issue,” one of the most challenging fields, a 30% drop in rainfall over three decades and the extraction of 90% of renewable water resources have led to negative water balances in nearly all of the country’s aquifers. In other words, we have not just used renewable water sources; We have dipped into the water capital of future generations and eaten up the share meant for our children.
Moreover, water wastage in agriculture, the uncontrolled construction of dams, and the drilling of illegal wells (over 700,000 such wells) have caused land subsidence to rear its ugly head as an emerging threat to critical infrastructure across most provinces.
Other problems resulting in environmental consequences include the country’s 80% reliance on fossil fuels for energy production, the prevalence of outdated transportation fleets, the steady decline of forests, failure to allocate environmental water rights to wetlands, air pollution and dust storms, destruction of biodiverse natural habitats, and the daily generation of 58,000 tons of waste with less than 10% being recycled. Alongside these issues, the undeniable impacts of climate change, leading to an average temperature rise of 8.1°C (well above the global average) and aggravating environmental challenges in the country, cannot be swept under the rug.
Continuing on the same path in managing Iran’s macro environmental domain would play into a pessimistic scenario marked by a serious drop in groundwater, turning 40% of agricultural lands into desert, worsening dust phenomena, and forcing millions to migrate from dry areas.
The incumbent government, getting a handle on these environmental mega-challenges, has made revising the governance of territorial resources its top priority. This shift has picked up steam over the past year by focusing on investing in renewable energies, especially solar, and must continue until the country’s energy mix is properly diversified.
Other pillars include limiting the establishment of water-intensive industries in the central plateau, formulating decentralization policies to ease the pressure on major cities, executing sea-centric development plans aligned with environmental requirements, pursuing wetland water rights, drafting a national strategic waste management plan, promoting a circular economy to boost recycling, utilizing unconventional water sources (still in early stages), and strengthening environmental diplomacy, especially with regional countries. These measures must be taken with strong resolve and collaboration from all stakeholders (other branches of government, the private sector, experts, and NGOs).
Today, it is time to step up environmental governance in pursuit of restoring and healing the damage to our land. The road ahead is tough and demands putting national interests above local and individual ones. The warning of nature has been “heard,” but that alone is not enough. Bold and tough decisions are an unavoidable necessity to guarantee the livability of our land and to turn around the looming pessimistic scenario.
The article first appeared in the
Persian-language Iran Newspaper.