The recent wave of dust storms affecting provinces in south and southwest of the country originated outside Iran, mostly in Saudi Arabia; Tasnim news agency reported.
Signs were first observed in Ahvaz, Khuzestan Province and evidence shows that the mass had formed in Saudi Arabia and moved towards Iran with southward-blowing winds, explained head of the Department of Environment (DoE) task force to fight dust particles Zia’eddin Shoaei.
It has also affected Lorestan Province, as well as some northwestern provinces.
The severity of the haze in Saudi Arabia was to the extent that it prevented the flight of Saudi planes from attacking Yemen for a week. The haze reached Hormozgan Province last week, resulting in flight cancellations in the southern province.
Despite previous reports, the dust haze hit Iran earlier than expected, asserted Shoaei, adding that the level of humidity has notably decreased in the neighboring countries like Iraq and Saudi Arabia due to an increase in temperature and the winds; phenomena which exacerbate the already-troublesome dust storms.
The official said that the DoE seeks to reduce the harm caused by this natural phenomenon through measures such as raising public awareness and mulching local sources of dust storms.
In spite of encouraging levels of rainfall in the oil-rich Khuzestan Province, dust storms are expected to plague the region once again.
“But thanks to the rain, they will begin later than expected, most likely around September” he noted.
Shoaei pointed to negotiations with the countries in the region dealing with the dust particle issue to reach a common solution to control and solve the problem, noting that Saudi Arabia has refused to attend the meetings.
