Tehran, Iran, October 19
By Mehdi Sepahvand – Trend:
The Iranian government is developing an indigenous farming and cultivation model that will suit the country’s climate and resources, with the aim to save on water.
The agricultural sector is responsible for the greatest share, 86 percent, of water consumption in Iran.
This model is being developed by the Supreme Council on Water, which is headed by the country’s first vice president and brings representatives from a multiplicity of ministries and organizations, Mohammad Ebrahimnia, the head of the Macro-Planning Office of the Water and Wastewater Department of the Ministry of Energy, told Trend October 18.
"This plan will hopefully come through by the end of the current year (Iranian year, to end March, 20, 2018). It takes into account the climatic features of the country and the resources," Ebrahimnia said.
He hoped that considering an existing common vibe to care for environment and water resources will eventually lead authorities to put Iran’s water management on the right track.
"We are also pursuing many other policies to maximize water efficiency. Using modern irrigation systems and importing the latest technologies, reducing the average age of farmers, and encouraging greenhouse farming are on agenda."
Iran is located in one of the most water-stressed regions in the world. Average annual rainfall is around 250 millimeters per year, or almost one-fourth of average global precipitation. That is compounded by excessive and seemingly unrestrained consumption of the dwindling resource.
Water consumption rose 2.5 percent in the first half of the current fiscal year (started March 21) compared with the similar period in the last fiscal, Sattar Mahmoudi, the caretaker minister of energy, said in September.