A water market will be piloted in Qazvin Province in the summer, which will be expanded if the results are encouraging, managing director of the provincial regional water company said.
“The establishment of the market where buyers and sellers trade water rights through short- and long-term leases is aimed at curtailing the withdrawal of groundwater resources that are dwindling rapidly in the Qazvin Plain,” Mansour Sotoudeh was also quoted as saying by the Energy Ministry’s news service Paven.
A similar initiative will also be carried out in Khorasan Razavi and Yazd provinces, he added, noting that such a market will help farmers buy and sell water within and between catchments, or along rivers, depending on their need.
Water trading has become a vital business tool for farmers in many countries, such as Spain, Australia and the US.
Sotoudeh said that during the pilot study that will continue for 12 months, close to 1% of the region’s total share of groundwater resources (12 million cubic meters) are expected to be traded.
According to the official, upon the plan’s completion and after fixing its shortcomings, the volume of tradable water will increase in proportion to the market demand.
Referring to other projects to reduce groundwater extraction, Sotoudeh noted that developing water treatment plans, installing smart water meters on wells, sealing illegal water wells and obliging factories to tap into unconventional resources are among the most important schemes.
"Water markets encourage a more efficient water use," he said, adding that well-structured markets can augment water conservation efforts that have made little progress.
Such markets help the allocation of more water to productive economic sectors.
Farming Sector
The farming sector, for instance, uses more water relative to its economic output than other sectors.
Sotoudeh noted that in some areas of Qazvin Province, a 30-cm decline in groundwater level per year has been reported.
If the trend continues, the wells will eventually dry up and have a serious negative impact on agriculture in the region, he warned.
"Of the total use, 90% are in agriculture. Household and industries account for 7% and 3%, respectively," the official said, echoing the growing concern of conservationists and economic experts in Iran about the poor agro performance and the cost it is imposing on the economy.
The government has been mulling water markets since 2016 and several studies have been conducted.
According to Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian, about $7 million have been invested for the construction of Balakhanlou Dam in Bouin-Zahra City, Qazvin Province, and it is expected to be completed by December.
“The dam will have a capacity of 38.5 million cubic meters and is built on the Haji Arab River to supply drinking water to five cities and 30 villages in the province,” he said.
The project, which has registered 70% progress, will prevent the reduction in groundwater level, irrigate 4,200 hectares of farmlands and control seasonal floods in Haji Arab River.
Average Rainfall
Mehrabian said the average rainfall in Qazvin Province is 300 mm.
“The amount of annual water consumption in the province is 2 billion cubic meters, of which 500 million cubic meters are supplied from surface water and 1.5 billion cubic meters from groundwater resources,” he added.
The minister noted that about 88% of the water in the province are consumed in the agriculture sector, 8% in the household sector and 4% in industries and services.
Some industries in the province are currently using treated wastewater, as close to 58,000 cubic meters of effluents are reclaimed in the province annually.
Commenting on other important water projects of the province, Mehrabian said one of these projects is the construction of Nohab Dam that will be hopefully completed by the end of the year (March 20, 2024).
Located in Takestan County, the dam has a capacity of 120 million cubic meters that will be used to irrigate farmlands and plains, and help prevent floods.
