Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 14
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
Iran's dam reservoir input reached 7 billion cubic meters during the current crop year, which began Sept. 22, 2016.
The figure indicates a 37 percent fall compared to same period of preceding year, Iran’s energy ministry reported Jan. 14.
Water reserves behind Iran's reservoirs have reached 23.6 billion cubic meters, according to the report.
For the time being, the total water capacity in the dam reservoirs is about 49 billion cubic meters.
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.