The volume of water storage in dams supplying drinking water to Tehran Province is currently 581 million cubic meters, which shows a decline of about 51 mcm compared to the same time of last year when there were 632 mcm of water in the dams.
Since the beginning of the current water year (September 2022), about 799.5 mcm of water have entered the five dams of the province. This is while the figure was more than 881.9 mcm in the same period of last water year, which show a decline of 9% this year, ISNA reported.
Dams supplying water to Tehran include Taleqan, Latyan, Mamlou, Karaj and Lar. The five dams together can hold 2 billion cubic meters of water, but the water currently stored in them is less than 30% of their total capacity.
Almost 30% of potable water demand in the province are met by dams and the rest must be extracted from underground resources, which are already in a bad state.
Amir Kabir Dam has around 148 mcm of water, while it had 130 mcm this time last year.
The volume of water in Taleqan and Latyan dams has also decreased from 252 mcm and 64 mcm last year to 235 mcm and 62 mcm this year.
The water stored in Lar Dam was 121 mcm this time last year, but its current volume has reached 77 mcm, which shows a decline of 44 mcm.
Currently, Mamlou Dam has 57 mcm of water, down from 66 mcm last year.
Amid declining water reserves, water consumption is very high, as 3.5 mcm of water are being used daily in Tehran, which has complicated the issue and the potable water system is under pressure.
According to global standards, a four-member family's average water use is 15 cubic meters per month, whereas in Tehran it is 30 cubic meters for almost 40% of households.
Water Supply
Despite the decline in the water level of dams and high consumption, efforts are being made not to disrupt the water supply of any sector.
Around 1.2 billion cubic meters, or about 18% of the country's water, are consumed in Tehran annually. Tehran's subscribers need to reduce their consumption by 10% so that the water authority is not compelled to ration water.
If subscribers do not rethink their imprudent consumption pattern, a significant fall in water pressure in some areas will be inevitable.
The unsustainable consumption pattern seriously threatens water supply in the sprawling capital amid low rainfall and persistent drought.
Desertification, climate change, illegal water wells, wasteful farming practices, water-intensive industries in arid regions and injudicious water use in households are known to have a significant impact on the worsening crisis.
Reportedly, there are 13,000 legal and 32,000 illegal water wells in Tehran Province alone.
Injudicious consumption across Tehran Province over the past 15 years has taken a toll on water resources, such that the city is using 150 mcm of renewable water more than necessary.
