Iran has often made headlines over the years due to its theocratic governance, its nuclear program, and its longstanding geopolitical tensions with the United States, Israel, and Western powers. While these issues dominate global narratives, they can obscure the lived reality of nearly 90 million people who inhabit a country with a civilization dating back millennia. Iran is home to some of the world’s richest cultural, artistic, and scientific traditions — a legacy that stretches far beyond the confines of ideology and high-level diplomacy.
Yet, beneath this deep historical and cultural bedrock lies a complex web of social, economic, and environmental challenges, many of which transcend political systems and mirror crises experienced in various parts of the world. Chief among these challenges today is a rapidly escalating water crisis — one that threatens not only the country’s ecosystems and agriculture but also its long-term stability, human security, and capacity for peaceful development.
Water scarcity in Iran and the world
Water scarcity in Iran is no longer a looming threat — it is a present-day emergency. Years of over-extraction, mismanagement, urban sprawl, desertification, and climate change have led to the near-collapse of river systems, the drying of once-vast lakes such as Lake Urmia, and severe groundwater depletion. These environmental symptoms intersect with patterns of rural depopulation, growing food insecurity, and social unrest.
In light of these realities, it is crucial to reframe water not merely as a natural resource, but as a human right — a framework that is increasingly recognized at the international level. In 2010, the United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 64/292, formally recognizing the human right to water and sanitation, acknowledging that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realization of all human rights. The resolution calls upon states and international organizations to provide financial resources, capacity-building, and technology transfer to help countries, including those facing sanctions or isolation to ensure safe, accessible, and affordable water for all.
This foundational principle is further embedded in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly in Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6): “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.” SDG 6 is inextricably linked to other core goals such as SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). The interconnectedness of these goals underscores a critical point: water security is not only an environmental or technical issue; it is a moral, social, and political imperative.
While global attention fixates on political unrest and military conflicts, a silent catastrophe unfolds: water bankruptcy, a crisis where demand irreversibly outstrips supply, threatening ecosystems and human survival. Iran stands at the epicenter of this disaster, but the issue reverberates worldwide, from parched river basins to overexploited aquifers.
In Iran, over 85% of renewable freshwater resources are depleted, far exceeding the United Nations’ sustainability thresholds. Lake Urmia, once the Middle East’s largest saltwater lake, has lost 90% of its volume, reduced to a cracked expanse of salt. The Zayandeh-Rood River, a lifeline for ancient cities, now lies dry for months, igniting protests in Isfahan. Across 28 of Iran’s 31 provinces, tens of millions of people grapple with severe water stress, facing drought, food insecurity, and ecological collapse. Over 1.2 million illegal wells drain aquifers formed over centuries, accelerating desertification. This is not merely an environmental failure but a human rights emergency, as water and food security—enshrined in the aforementioned UN Resolution 64/292 and Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights—are eroded.
Globally, water bankruptcy manifests in diverse yet parallel crises. In 2018, Cape Town, South Africa, narrowly averted “Day Zero,” when taps would run dry, after years of drought and overconsumption. Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin, a critical agricultural hub, suffers from overallocation and climate-driven droughts, reducing river flows and devastating ecosystems. In California, USA, over-pumped aquifers have caused land subsidence, with groundwater levels dropping up to 100 feet in some areas. India’s Punjab region, a breadbasket, faces groundwater depletion from intensive irrigation, with 78% of wells classified as overexploited. In Mexico City, over-extraction has caused the city to sink by up to 10 meters, while the Colorado River, shared by the US and Mexico, often fails to reach its delta due to upstream diversions. These cases underscore a global pattern: mismanagement, climate change, and unchecked demand are pushing water systems toward collapse.
Iran’s complex predicament
In Iran, domestic mismanagement amplifies natural scarcity. Decades of poor governance have prioritized water-intensive crops like rice and sugarcane in arid regions, straining scarce resources. Inter-basin water transfers and outdated irrigation practices, with 90% of agricultural water lost to inefficiency, exacerbate the crisis. A “dam construction mafia” has built poorly planned dams, disrupting river flows and displacing communities. Environmental experts are sidelined, their warnings ignored. Additionally, nuclear and military activities consume critical water resources and often bypass environmental oversight, diverting public funds from essential environmental recovery.
Geopolitical constraints, particularly international sanctions for over 45 years, have compounded Iran’s environmental crisis by extremely limiting access to water-saving technologies, sustainable energy systems, and modern agricultural tools. While sanctions don’t target the environment explicitly, their impact is undeniable: stalled restoration projects, halted research, and paralyzed sustainable development efforts leave Iran ill-equipped to adapt. Sanctions also obstruct climate finance and development aid, preventing large-scale ecological restoration and rural adaptation initiatives. This convergence of geopolitical pressure and internal policy failure directly undermines the UN-recognized human right to water and contributes to deepening social and ecological inequality.
Women in rural Iran bear a disproportionate burden. As primary managers of household water and food production, they face grueling treks to collect water, soaring food prices, and heightened domestic stress when resources vanish. Yet, they are largely excluded from water governance, a systemic oversight that undermines solutions. Empowering women’s knowledge and leadership is not just fair-it is essential. Iran’s crisis ripples beyond its borders, threatening regional stability. The drying of shared rivers like the Helmand, Tigris, and Aras risks escalating tensions with Afghanistan, Iraq, and Turkey. Internal displacement from rural to urban areas strains cities, fueling unrest and reshaping demographics. Without action, food shortages and climate migration could destabilize the Middle East, with global repercussions. The world cannot ignore these stakes.
Globally, transboundary water disputes are rising. The Nile River’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has sparked tensions with Egypt and Sudan, who fear reduced flows. In Central Asia, the Amu Darya’s overuse threatens livelihoods in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. These conflicts highlight the need for cooperative water management; a lesson Iran and its neighbours must heed. Addressing water bankruptcy demands urgent, coordinated action.
The way forward
In Iran, the government must declare a national water emergency to unlock international support and fast-track reforms. Agricultural practices need overhaul: replacing 30% of water-intensive crops with drought-resilient varieties, modernizing irrigation across 5 million hectares, and funding regenerative farming could save billions of cubic meters annually. Illegal water extraction must stop, using satellite monitoring to seal unauthorized wells and enforce provincial groundwater quotas. Empowering women and youth is critical; ensuring 30% female representation on water boards and launching a Youth Climate Corps for data collection and innovation would harness untapped potential.
Water diplomacy must be revived through regional treaties and independent oversight to manage shared rivers equitably. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Iran must shift from symbolic projects to a transparent, justice-focused role, prioritizing climate resilience over metrics. Globally, similar measures are needed.
Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin Authority has introduced water buybacks to curb overallocation, a model for sustainable allocation. Israel’s drip irrigation systems, which save 60% of water compared to traditional methods, offer a blueprint for efficiency. Jordan’s water harvesting initiatives demonstrate low-cost solutions for arid regions. These successes show that solutions exist but require political will and investment.
Water is not a political weapon, nor is food a sanctionable commodity. Environmental justice is non-negotiable, rooted in the UN Charter, the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and international human rights frameworks. SDG 6 and SDG 13 cannot be achieved if water security is politicized or ignored.
Iran’s ecological collapse is not a distant warning—it’s a present reality. The international community’s silence on Iran’s water crisis is complicity. Bureaucratic delays and political caution must yield to bold action. The Iranian government, the UN, individual governments, and civil society must prioritize water as a human right, not a bargaining chip. Ultimately, addressing Iran’s water crisis offers a powerful opportunity for constructive international cooperation, one that places human dignity, ecological sustainability, and regional peace at the heart of the response. It is time to move beyond the binaries of geopolitics and towards an ethic of solidarity, including the conviction that access to clean water is not a privilege — it is a birthright.
