The water inflow into the Zayandehrud Dam in Isfahan Province since the beginning of the current water year (September 2022) has surpassed 527 mcm, which is 30% higher than the amount received in the same period of last year when 406 mcm of water had entered the dam, the director of operation and maintenance of the dam said.
“Considering a reduction in the dam’s outflow, currently 415 mcm of water are stored there, indicating a 35% rise compared with the 308 mcm it held this time of last year,” Seyyed Mojtaba Mousavi-Naeini was also quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
The rise in water inflow is due to the higher precipitation of recent months. The average rainfall in Kouhrang region, the main catchment area of the Zayandehrud River, has been 1,389 mm since last September, while last year it was 1,153 mm and the long-term average was 1,175 mm.
This year's rainfall in Kouhrang has increased by 20% compared to the same period of last year and by 18% compared to the 50-year average.
Despite the year-on-year rise, the dam’s storage level has decreased by 45% compared to the long-term [50-year] average, he said, adding that 34% of the dam capacity are full now.
Main Supplier
With a nominal capacity of 1.239 mcm, Zayandehrud Dam is one of the main dams in central Iran, which supplies water to household, agricultural and industrial sectors, as well as the environment in the central regions. The arch-shaped dam, which was put into operation in 1970, is located on the famous Zayandehrud, 110 km west of Isfahan in Chadegan County.
The primary purpose of the dam is to supply water to the ancient and world famous tourist city.
The dam is designed to provide daily drinking water for more than 5 million people in the central province, for agriculture alongside Zayandehrud and for heavy industries in the central area of the provincial capital.
In the not-too-distant past, Zayandehrud had regular and significant water flow, but is almost dry for more than eight months to the detriment of farmers who are largely dependent on the river for their livelihood.
Located in an arid region of Iran with below minimum precipitation, Isfahan, like many other provinces, has been struggling with drought for several years, resulting in the gradual drying up of the river.
Agricultural Sector
About 75% of the water of Zayandehrud belong to the farmers of the region, but when the river is dry, they tap the groundwater resources.
A whopping 3 billion cubic meters of water are annually extracted from underground sources in the parched province via 40,000 authorized wells.
Furthermore, about 20,000 illegal wells in the area are pumping 350 million cubic meters of water from depleting underground aquifers per year.
There is no dry farming in Isfahan due to low precipitation (120 millimeters a year). Groundwater tables and aquifers supply most of the farming needs. Only 569,000 hectares (about 5%) out of the province’s 10 million hectares are arable.
Almost 172 million cubic meters of wastewater are recycled in Isfahan Province annually. Of the total, 60% or 100 mcm are used for farming and the rest for industries, watering green spaces, maintaining watersheds and developing anti-desertification programs.
Zayandehrud originates in the mountains of Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari Province and flows eastward toward Isfahan before ending up in Gavkhouni Wetland. Officials say Isfahan's struggle with drought has made it difficult to supply farms with dam water while upholding the water rights of Zayandehrud and Gavkhouni.
Unrestrained urbanization, obsolete farming practices and the presence of water-intensive industries are putting immense pressure on the province's rapidly dwindling water resources.
