Reuters: Tehran’s taps run dry amid Iran’s worsening water crisis

Iran is facing its most severe water crisis in decades. Officials warn that Tehran—a city of over 10 million people—could soon become uninhabitable if the drought sweeping the country continues.

According to Reuters, President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that if there is no rainfall by December, the government will have to start rationing water in Tehran.

Iran’s water crisis, following an exhaustingly hot summer, is not only the result of low rainfall. Decades of mismanagement—including excessive dam construction, illegal well drilling, and inefficient agricultural practices—have depleted reserves, critics and water experts have reported to state media in recent days. The crisis dominates media coverage, appearing in panel discussions and debates.

Pezeshkian’s government has cited multiple factors for the crisis, including “policies of past governments, climate change and over-consumption.”

Iran’s National Water and Wastewater Company denied reports of formal water rationing in Tehran but confirmed that nighttime water pressure reductions are being applied in the capital, which in some areas can drop to zero, according to state media.

The capital relies entirely on five reservoirs supplied by rivers outside the city. However, water inflow has dropped sharply. Behzad Parsa, head of the Tehran Regional Water Company, said last week that water levels are down 43% compared to last year, leaving Amir Kabir Dam with just 14 million cubic meters of water—8% of its full capacity.

He added that Tehran’s reservoirs, which once held nearly 500 million cubic meters, now hold barely 250 million—a nearly 50% reduction—and at current consumption rates, they could be depleted within two weeks.

The crisis extends far beyond Tehran. Across the country, 19 major dams—roughly 10% of Iran’s total—have effectively run dry. In the holy Shiite city of Mashhad, Iran’s second-largest city with 4 million residents, water reserves have fallen below 3%.

By Vugar Khalilov