The lake’s deterioration, a concern since the early 2000s, has significantly intensified, reflecting the country’s environmental predicament.
Sharif University of Technology’s study reveals that the lake’s water level on June 3 was the lowest since 1964. Now in 2023, the water volume has drastically reduced, contradicting the Iranian regime’s claims of the lake’s restoration. The regime’s attempts to mask the true state of the lake include presenting undated images and crediting unspecified future rainfall for the lake’s recovery.
However, the worrying reports are based on the Lake Urmia research project data, not the regime-provided figures, which have been criticized for obfuscation and manipulation in the regime’s favor.
If the lake dries up entirely, it could become a dust source, potentially initiating destructive salt storms reaching as far as Karaj and Tehran. Such an event would threaten agriculture in northwest Iran, causing significant financial loss.
This claim, presented at a conference with the University of Berlin, was rejected by German scientists and questioned by an expert from the Geological Organization, who suggested examining human factors instead.
The Iranian regime has controversially attributed the lake’s drying to global climate change, asserting a 2-degree Celsius global temperature increase as the culprit.
This human factor refers to the misappropriation of the lake’s water rights over the past two decades. These rights, meant to preserve Urmia Lake, have been exploited for irrigation purposes, mainly benefitting regime leaders and Revolutionary Guard commanders.
The regime’s environmental protection organization deputy admitted in an interview that less than 25% of the lake’s water rights have been fulfilled since the current water year began in September 2022. Consequently, Lake Urmia has received only 800 million cubic meters of its 3.4 billion cubic meters annual allocation.
Although the dams were built for supplying drinking water and aiding agriculture, they only meet about 10% of agricultural water needs. As a result, around one-third of the country’s water is wasted annually.
Lake Urmia’s plight exemplifies the broader environmental negligence by the current regime, marked by the destruction of various wetlands and rivers. This ecological devastation stands as a testament to the regime’s disregard for the environment amid its self-preservation efforts.
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