Drying of Ahwaz Marshlands: Iran’s Policies Threaten What Remains of the Environment

The wetlands of Ahwaz are facing an escalating environmental crisis, after two major marshes have completely dried up as a result of Iran’s policies that have ignored the region’s water rights and deprived it of water flow for years, despite repeated warnings of an imminent catastrophe.

The Department of Environmental Protection in Ahwaz confirmed that the Miangran and Bandoon marshes are now completely dry, while other wetlands such as Khor al-Khafajiya, Bamdeej, and the Hawr al-Azim are suffering from critically low or nonexistent levels of fresh water.

In a press statement, the department said: “Due to reduced river inflow, extreme heat, and high evaporation rates, the water levels in the wetlands are far from satisfactory.

If the current situation continues, we will face a comprehensive environmental disaster.”

It added that current efforts are focused only on “providing the minimum amount of water,” by attempting to secure temporary pumping waves from the Water and Electricity Authority, but without any serious or lasting commitment from the Iranian authorities.

Although official studies have allocated water quotas for the wetlands during both drought and rainy seasons, Iran’s Ministry of Energy has never implemented them, according to the environmental department.

The department blamed Iran’s policies for the drying of Ahwaz’s wetlands, stating: “Even during times of rainfall, the wetlands were not granted their allocated shares. In practice, these quotas were nothing more than ink on paper, and water only reached the wetlands during accidental floods.”

Experts believe the main cause of the drought is water being trapped behind major dams and river diversions toward Persian regions in the north and center, such as the transfer of water from the Karun and Karkheh rivers to Isfahan and Yazd.

This has led to an unprecedented shortage in supplying Ahwaz’s marshlands.

They warned that the drying of these areas not only threatens ecosystems but also leads to the extinction of wildlife, rising levels of suspended dust, village depopulation, and widespread health and respiratory crises endangering the lives of Ahwazis.

While warnings of an impending environmental catastrophe increase, Iran continues to ignore the water rights of the Ahwazi people.

With the absence of political will to protect what remains of nature, the wetlands of Ahwaz appear to be on the brink of total disappearance.