The executive operation of a project to transfer water to Jiroft and Anbarabad cities in Kerman Province from the Jiroft Dam started on Feb. 9.
The project is expected to be completed in three years, with an investment of about $18.5 million, the Energy Ministry’s news portal Paven reported.
Aimed at supplying 29.1 million cubic meters of drinking water per year to the two cities, the plan includes the installation of 32.4 kilometers of a transmission line from Jiroft Dam to the treatment plant in Jiroft City and also 38.5 km of pipes to Anbarabad.
One of the largest dams in Iran, Jiroft Dam was built about 30 years ago on the Halil River 40 km northeast of Jiroft City. It plays an important role in supplying the water needed by the farming sector in southern Kerman.
With a capacity of around 410 million cubic meters of water, the dam water is now used to irrigate 14,200 hectares of farmlands in the region.
Since its establishment in 1992, the dam has been used only for agricultural purposes. However, due to problems related to supply of drinking water in the province, the dam will also provide potable water for people in the near future.
Another water transfer project is near completion in the province. The plan is to transfer water from Nesa Dam to rural areas in the cities of Bam and Baravat.
The initiative, aimed at supplying village dwellers in the region with good quality piped water, is expected to come on stream by the yearend (March 20, 2023).
Close to 60 km of pipeline have been laid and operations to build a pumping station and a water treatment facility is underway.
Upon its launch, the same pipeline will be used to transfer piped water to other rural districts in Narmashir, Rigan and Fahroj counties.
Water Transfer to Industries
Although water transfer from the Persian Gulf to Sirjan in Kerman Province has eased the water crisis in industries like Golgohar Mining and Industrial Complex, other parts of the province are still suffering from a chronic shortage.
A 300-km pipeline with seven pumping stations annually transfers 200 million cubic meters of desalinated water from the Bandar Abbas Desalination Plant in southern Hormozgan Province to Sirjan.
Water demand in Kerman is 3,000 liters per second while the maximum production capacity is 1,850 liters/second.
Several development projects in the province are on hold, as water tension in the dry area has aggravated over the last decade and many households have started to evacuate villages.
Each year, a whopping 6 billion cubic meters of water are withdrawn from the drought-stricken province’s aquifers, of which 95%, 2% and 3% are respectively used by agricultural, industrial and household sectors.
The province’s drinking water comes from 365 wells, three springs, eight aqueducts and two dams.
The abundance of illegal water wells is another serious concern for environmentalists and economic experts.
Large amounts of water are withdrawn from deep wells dug much deeper every year due to rising demand and dwindling groundwater levels.
Despite regular warnings and sealing of many illegal wells, excessive withdrawals from aquifers continue in the agriculture sector.
Over 5,000 illegal wells have been sealed in 15 years in the central province, which helped save more than 270 million cubic meters of water.
The installation of smart water meters and extension of incebntives to farmers to employ modern irrigation methods and avoid water-intensive crops are among recent measures implemented in the province.
