Over 1,000 Illegal Wells Sealed in Khorasan Razavi 

More than 1,000 unauthorized wells in Khorasan Razavi Province have been sealed since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 2022), the director of Protection and Operation Office of Khorasan Razavi Regional Water Company said.
“A total of 1,060 illegal wells were sealed in the past 11 months in different counties of the province, helping save 21 million cubic meters of water,” Gholamreza Mamdouhi was also quoted as saying by Mehr news agency.
Drawing water from renewable sources in the province has reached frightening levels. Farming gobbles 55% of underground water and not using the dwindling resources prudently mean disaster in the sense that fruit gardens and farms will dry up.
Therefore, to help prevent over-extraction of water from authorized wells, the provincial company has been installing smart meter on wells, which has saved 135 mcm of water in the period, he added.
Transforming traditional wells into smart ones has helped reduce extraction of underground water by 20%.
Equipping wells with the new system helps utility companies closely monitor water use online.
Smart or intelligent wells are advanced wells with sensors and valves installed downhole to allow easy and systematic monitoring.
About 1.5 million smart meters have been installed across Iran over the last four years and around 3 million more meters are expected to be installed in different regions of the country for high-consuming subscribers in agricultural, industrial and household sectors by next fall.