Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 8
By Fatih Karimov - Trend: Precipitations in Iran are predicted to fall 20 percent by the end of the first half of the next Iranian calendar year (Sept. 22).
Iran's Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian said precipitations will decrease compared to previous years, Iran's IRNA news agency reported on Feb. 8.
The first and the most important strategy to deal with the water shortage crisis is to apply efficient management methods and to reuse sources of water, he said.
Precipitations in Iran during the current crop year (started on Sept. 22) have decreased by 21 percent.
Between Sept. 23 and Jan. 7, precipitations amounted to 70 millimeters, compared to 89 millimeters in the same period last year.
The Islamic Republic is located in an arid zone and the country faces a serious water shortage crisis. However, many experts believe that the current water shortage problem is a result of water resources mismanagement, rather than the drought.
Iran's total annual water consumption is approximately 93 billion cubic meters, out of which about 92 percent is used in agriculture (86 billion cubic meters), 6.6 percent in municipality (6.18 billion cubic meters), and 1.2 percent in industry (1.12 billion cubic meters), according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Up to 70 percent of water used in the agriculture sector is being wasted, Iranian officials say.