{"id":259203,"date":"2022-05-20T22:46:42","date_gmt":"2022-05-20T20:46:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=259203"},"modified":"2023-02-05T05:13:12","modified_gmt":"2023-02-05T04:13:12","slug":"what-you-need-to-know-about-irans-land-subsidence-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/society\/what-you-need-to-know-about-irans-land-subsidence-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Need To Know About Iran\u2019s Land Subsidence Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Subsidence in Tehran lead to a major accident in the city’s subway network in June 2016<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Climate change, water stress, and other environmental crises threaten our planet. While there are potential threats of ecological problems in many countries, Iran, under the mullahs\u2019 regime, is one step away from an environmental disaster.<\/p>\n

Besides going to bed with an empty stomach and enduring the regime\u2019s systematic oppression, the fear of dying due to land subsidence has exacerbated the people\u2019s misery and concern.<\/p>\n

Many Iranian environmentalists warn about subsidence and that many Iranian cities are on the verge of total collapse.<\/p>\n

Due to water stress, land subsidence in Iran has been the country\u2019s most important environmental crisis in recent years.<\/p>\n

Iran is one of the countries with the highest land subsidence, believed to be ninety times more than developed countries. The situation has reached a point where Iran\u2019s state media and regime officials are acknowledging the harrowing facts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAccording to Ali Baitullahi, Director of the Road, Housing and Urban Development Research Center, Iran has the fourth-largest land subsidence in the world. He said that we have less than 10 years, all plains in Iran are sinking, and the risk of this happening in Isfahan is much higher than in other cities,\u201d the state-run Tejaratnews reported on October 16, 2021.<\/a><\/p>\n

It is worth noting that the Geological Survey of Iran reported in early 2021 that out of 609 plains in Iran, about 500 plains have freshwater, and all of them face subsidence. In Isfahan, subsidence has penetrated the city.<\/p>\n

In September, a video from southern Isfahan showed deep holes, sometimes 12 meters deep. These holes are close to the Isfahan-Shiraz railway and pose an imminent danger to commuter trains.<\/p>\n

On May 17, the semi-official ISNA news agency quoted<\/a> Isfahan\u2019s governor, who acknowledged, \u201cOver 100 schools were evacuated and closed last year due to land subsidence threat.\u201d<\/p>\n

But this problem is not limited to Isfahan.<\/p>\n

On April 16, 2022, the state-run Sanayepress quoted Alireza Shahidi, Head of the Geology and Mineral Exploration Organization of Iran, describing what he called the \u201csilent earthquake\u201d and \u201cdisaster\u201d of land subsidence. He had also warned about its \u201csecurity\u201d consequences, or in other words, the people\u2019s reaction.<\/p>\n

\u201cLand subsidence in Iran is more than five times the global average. About eight million housing units across the country are in subsidence zones that are at risk,\u201d wrote the state-run Fararou website on May 8.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cLand subsidence occurs in most provinces, and only Gilan province is an exception. In other northern provinces of the country, such as Mazandaran and Golestan, we see subsidence, and the southwestern provinces have worrying land subsidence,\u201d the state-run Fararou website added.<\/p>\n

\u201cSubsidence in Tehran is a serious issue and is more common and significant in southwest Tehran,. This phenomenon may damage monuments adjacent to landslides,\u201d the state-run Mehr news agency quoted<\/a> Mehdi Abbasi, Chairman of the Urban Planning Commission of the Islamic Council of Tehran, as saying on May 18.<\/p>\n

On July 1, the Intel Labs Research Group also warned about massive ground subsidence in Tehran and called it a \u201csilent ticking bomb.\u201d\u00a0 While showing some satellite images, Intel Lab emphasized that ground subsidence \u201cis now catching Tehran city itself for the last years thus endangering a growing population of 13 million residents and its critical infrastructures.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Intel Lab underlined that the \u201cExcessive groundwater extraction has caused land subsidence at a rate of up to 25 centimeters per year in some areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is land subsidence, and what causes it?<\/p>\n

Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth’s surface, which natural processes and human activities can cause.<\/p>\n

Subsidence occurs when groundwater is improperly extracted, and water storage cavities become empty pores. Over time, with the pressure of the upper ground layers, the pores dry up. When the water in the earth\u2019s pores is reduced due to excessive consumption and the digging of countless wells. As a result, the soil grains are compressed together.<\/p>\n

This phenomenon was first observed in Shanghai, China, in 1921. After World War II, the problem was exacerbated by the rapid extraction of water, oil, and gas from the lower layers, especially the granular ones.<\/p>\n

Why is the subsidence in Iran growing?<\/p>\n

According to Alireza Shahidi, \u201cAll over the world, access to water resources is between three and 20 percent, and when it reaches 40 to 60 percent, it is referred to as tension, and between 60 and 80 percent is a crisis. In Iran, it sometimes reaches over 80 percent. We have wittingly or unwittingly have led the country to destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s economy is oil-dependent. Since hijacking the anti-monarchical revolution in 1979, Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy has heavily relied on oil and gas export. But the revenue of Iran\u2019s national wealth has been squandered on terrorism and oppression. Tehran has accelerated oil and gas extraction without improving the infrastructures to always have cash for its mercenaries and illicit activities. As a result, the increasing extraction of petroleum and natural gas without considering its environmental consequences has contributed to the emergence and growth of subsidence.<\/p>\n

Besides, one of the main reasons for Iran\u2019s water crisis is the construction of unscientific dams by the Revolutionary Guards<\/a> (IRGC) and its front companies. The IRGC uses these dams for military purposes and its factories. In addition, the IRGC has been digging deep wells. Before the 1979 revolution, there were only 36,000 wells in Iran. But official reports in 2015 indicate there are at least 794,000 wells across the country.<\/p>\n

Iran’s groundwater management is under the Ministry of Energy and the country’s surface water management is under the control of the Revolutionary Guards. By taking ownership of all surface and subsurface waters of the country, digging wells, and building dams, these two institutions have monopolized water.<\/p>\n

In 2018, the New York Times emphasized<\/a> that \u201c25 percent of the total water that is withdrawn from aquifers, rivers, and lakes exceeds the amount that can be replenished.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a result of the Iranian regime\u2019s destructive policies, Iran is on the verge of a catastrophe. Iran\u2019s historic sites in cities like Isfahan and Shiraz are on the brink of collapse. According to the official IRNA news agency in 2021, \u201cSubsidence in the country starts from 25 cm and reaches two to three meters.\u201d<\/p>\n

This phenomenon endangers the lives of millions of Iranians, and hundreds of Iranian cities would soon become inhabitable.<\/p>\n

What is the solution?<\/p>\n

Assume there is a government in Iran that cares about its people. Then, there are indeed several solutions to the land subsidence crisis. Some practical steps that could reduce the risk of severe ground subsidence include:<\/p>\n