Iran Acknowledges the Need to Relocate Its Capital Due to Drought
World
Record-breaking drought and rapid land subsidence have pushed Tehran to the brink of an environmental crisis. Against this backdrop, President Masoud Pezeşkian acknowledged for the first time that relocating Iran’s capital is no longer a distant concept — it has become a necessary measure.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeşkian stated that moving the capital out of Tehran has become essential, according to the Fars news agency. He noted that authorities previously lacked the funding to consider such a project, but the rapidly deteriorating environmental situation leaves no room for delay.
Pezeşkian pointed out that land in Tehran is sinking by up to 30 centimeters per day — a clear sign of an impending disaster. The situation is worsened by an extreme lack of rainfall: the National Weather Forecasting Center reported an 89% decline in precipitation compared to long-term averages, making this autumn the driest in five decades.
In early November, officials warned that Tehran could run out of drinking water within two weeks, and the evacuation of up to 15 million residents was briefly considered. However, presidential representative for marine resources Ali Abdolalizade later announced that the relocation issue had been taken off the agenda after the completion of a major project diverting water from the Persian Gulf through a roughly 1,000-kilometer pipeline.
Meanwhile, Iranian authorities have begun cloud seeding operations, dispersing reagents to artificially induce rainfall in the country’s driest regions.
Pezeşkian pointed out that land in Tehran is sinking by up to 30 centimeters per day — a clear sign of an impending disaster. The situation is worsened by an extreme lack of rainfall: the National Weather Forecasting Center reported an 89% decline in precipitation compared to long-term averages, making this autumn the driest in five decades.
In early November, officials warned that Tehran could run out of drinking water within two weeks, and the evacuation of up to 15 million residents was briefly considered. However, presidential representative for marine resources Ali Abdolalizade later announced that the relocation issue had been taken off the agenda after the completion of a major project diverting water from the Persian Gulf through a roughly 1,000-kilometer pipeline.
Meanwhile, Iranian authorities have begun cloud seeding operations, dispersing reagents to artificially induce rainfall in the country’s driest regions.
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