Daily water use of Tehran’s residents averaged 250 to 255 liters per person, leaving them only 40 liters shy of the province’s maximum available water per person.
According to Mohammad Parvaresh, CEO of Tehran’s Water and Wastewater Company, Tehran Province’s annual water supply is 1.35 billion cubic meters which, given the province’s 12.69 million residents, means every person’s share of available water is 106 cubic meters per year, or 292 liters per day, Tasnim News Agency reported.
Factoring in Tehran’s population growth and prolonged drought, Tehran’s residents are fast approaching the maximum water supply limit. Once residents of Tehran cross the daily 292-liter threshold, some experts expect the eruption of epic challenges like “water wars”.
Rahim Meydani, deputy for water affairs at the Ministry of Energy, said, “We have tried to increase Tehran’s water supply by constructing Karaj, Latian, Lar, Mamlou and Taleqan dams. There is no more surface water left for us to use.
“If injudicious use of water continues, extremely complicated issues will ensue.”
Although wasteful water use on the part of Tehranis is a problem that must be addressed, it cannot be singled out as the main culprit behind the province’s ongoing battle with water scarcity.
The agriculture sector gobbles up 90% of Iran’s water, 70% of which are wasted due to inefficient irrigation methods, according to recent reports.
Experts have repeatedly criticized farmers’ unabashed desire to grow water-intensive crops, such as watermelon, and have called on officials to address the problem sooner rather than later.
