Water Overextraction, Land Subsidence Threaten Central Plateau

There are 58,000 unauthorized wells in the central plateau of Iran, from which 1.8 billion cubic meters of water are extracted annually, which is a significant figure considering the low rainfall and severe water shortage in the region, said the deputy for protection and social affairs of the central and eastern plateau watershed at Iran Water Resource Management.
Referring to land subsidence as one of the harmful consequences of excessive and illegal water extraction, Abdollah Fazeli Farsani said land subsidence has now affected most of the country's plains and is also damaging the infrastructure in some regions, IRNA reported.
The official pointed to Isfahan Province, located in central Iran, where the sharp decline in underground water resources and land subsidence have become a serious threat to historical structures and cultural heritage.