The Supreme Water Council ratified measures thwarting usage of drinking water in irrigation of green spaces, ISNA quoted development and planning deputy of Water and Wastewater Company Aliasghar Ghane as saying.
According to the ratified law, municipalities, supported by the ministry of interior, will be obliged to separate drinking from irrigation water.
Instead of potable water, it was agreed to use treated wastewater for irrigation of open spaces in pilot cities.
“This will result in the development of green spaces, and reduction of water loss , and costs,” Ghane said.
Government Intervention
The most effective way to stop the use of drinking water for open spaces is obliging municipalities to create a separate water system for irrigation.
“The government must intervene and take steps,” Qane said.
Next comes tariff, he added. A proper tariff will discourage municipalities to irrigate open spaces with drinking water; eventually they will have to stop watering open spaces with potable water.
In various cities of Iran, tap water is more or less used for irrigation of green spaces. This is while the water has gone through costly treatment process before it comes out of taps. In many cities, tap water is as pure as drinking water; when the costly water goes down for irrigation, it will instantly turn into wastewater.
According to ISNA, drinking water is used for irrigation purposes in various quantities in different cities. Treating water to a potable standard is a costly process, which makes using it for irrigation a waste of money and resources.
In some cities such as Bandar Abbas, Hormozgan Province, drinking water comprises up to 80% of irrigation water, resulting in great losses to national economy. All the toil in collecting, transferring, and treating water is thus easily wasted away.
