15-03-2025
Vanishing reservoirs, empty taps: how Iran's water crisis became a national emergency
In recent days, images of vast, dried-up reservoirs near Tehran have circulated on social media. These dams supply water to more than nine million people in the Iranian capital, and their depletion has sparked widespread concern. A combination of decades of drought, mismanagement, and crumbling infrastructure is driving Iran towards an unprecedented water crisis as the Middle East enters its warm season, experts warn.
A video of the Amir Kabir Dam, 30 km northwest of Tehran, taken in August 2024 shows clear blue water reaching up into the hills. In a video from the same vantage point in March 2025, the water has disappeared, replaced by a cracked, desolate lake bed.
Another video being widely shared by Iranians shows a group of motorcyclists driving on the muddy bed of the Latyan Dam reservoir, 15 km northeast of the capital. "You'd be shocked if you knew this was the bed of the Latyan reservoir,' the caption reads.
Tehran is on the brink of running out of water. Authorities are preparing to introduce rationing, with daily supply cuts expected to curb consumption as shortages worsen, officials and experts say.
Seventy percent of Tehran's water comes from five nearby dams, including Karaj and Latyan. But an unprecedented dry spell – the rainfall in Tehran since the beginning of 2025 has been the lowest recorded in 55 years – means water levels have been declining fast. State media reported on March 5 that the five reservoirs are only 13% full.
Iran has been suffering from drought for more than 40 years. Water shortages in rural areas have led to tensions between farmers and authorities they accuse of mismanaging water supplies.
Read more on The Observers - France 24Read also:How 'corruption and lucrative projects' are 'killing' the biggest lake in the Middle EastThe environmental impact of Iranian desert safarisGas shortage renders Iran's air quality 'unbreathable' due to mazut pollution
