Forecast of Water Wars in Iran
The prediction of water wars in Iran is very close. If previously water protests were specific to villagers, now city residents are also involved. If before, farmers had no water for crop cultivation and environmental water rights were not fulfilled, now even citizens lack drinking water. For years, farmers in eastern Isfahan have been holding protests against the failure to secure their water rights from the Zayandeh Rood river.
However, in recent weeks, we have seen that first, the residents of Shahr-e Kord, and now Hamedan, have protested against the interruption of piped drinking water. The water crisis in Shahr-e Kord has been resolved, but the situation in Hamedan is critical, and it is predicted that Yasuj will also face a water outage crisis.
Issa Kalantari, the former head of the Environmental Protection Organization, said last year that water wars between the provinces of Isfahan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Yazd, Khuzestan, and Lorestan had begun, and this war is spreading from province to province and from village to village. It was previously announced that the water crisis in many Iranian cities has reached a warning stage.
Water consumption in Tehran, Arak, Isfahan, Shiraz, Qazvin, Qom, Karaj, Kerman, Mashhad, Hamedan, and Yazd has exceeded the water reservoirs in these cities, and 517 other cities have consumption equal to their reservoirs. The former Minister of Energy also stated last year that he was concerned about the increasing demand for drinking water, as the government lacks the ability to supply water continuously across the country.
Protests from Shahr-e Kord to Hamedan
IRNA reported that about 200 protesters in Hamedan held empty water bottles and chanted slogans against the officials regarding this issue, demanding swift action to provide drinking water for the city. ‘Death to the incompetent official’ and ‘Incompetent official, resign, resign’ were among the slogans chanted by the protesters during this gathering.
According to the state news agency, police forces were also deployed at the protest site, trying to maintain order and disperse the people, requesting the protesters to disperse and leave the area. It is said that the Ekbatan Dam reservoir has decreased and is on the verge of going offline. Currently, water supply to the city’s neighborhoods is being done through mobile tankers and distribution of drinking water packages.
Last week, the people of Shahr-e Kord also held a protest gathering. On August 25th, 500 people from Shahr-e Kord protested against the widespread water shortage in the city for several days, holding placards and chanting slogans. During this gathering, people chanted slogans like ‘Born from the springs, we are thirsty, we are thirsty’ and ‘Incompetent official, resign, resign.’
After the recent flood, the water from the Kouhrang spring, which is the main water supplier for Shahr-e Kord, became muddy and undrinkable. Furthermore, the intensity of the flood caused serious damage to the water transfer route. Although experts believe the issue is not only related to the muddiness of the water.
Isfahan’s Water Rights Were Not Given
Farmers in eastern Isfahan have also been facing a water crisis for years. They say that they have lost not only their source of income but also their investments over these years. The last time, in the fall of last year, they camped in protest in the middle of the Zayandeh Rood river near the Khajoo Bridge, and city residents joined them. This public protest was recognized and covered by the national broadcaster for the first time, but within a few days, the farmers’ setup was dismantled and the city protests were countered.
Experts believe that when we remain indifferent to the occurrence of water wars and ignore global studies, and we ourselves do not engage in extensive research, the result is that our eyes open only when we are in the middle of a crisis. Although experience has shown that our managers have never been held accountable in the long term for their silence today.
Last year, the Asia Times magazine reported on the seriousness of water scarcity in Iran, stating that it is well-known that officials, when faced with opposition and public dissatisfaction, downplay the severity and scope of the various crises they face. Now, however, Iranian officials have unusually sounded the alarm about the growing water scarcity crisis, a crisis that could lead to widespread conflicts over access to this vital resource in Iran. Once the media headlines read, ‘The sound of water wars is coming from Isfahan,’ ‘The sound of water wars is coming from Khuzestan.’ Now it seems the sound of water wars is coming from all over Iran.
Other articles on this topic have been published in Iran Gate.
- Forgotten Crises
- Water, Weather, and Environment in Times of War
