TEHRAN Deputy Minister of Energy for Water Affairs Rasoul Zargar said here Monday that precipitation water has reached 290 billion cubic meters (cu/m) in the period from September to April which is 180 cu/m less than in the same period in the year before. He added that the country's average precipitation in the same period was 180 mm. Zargar also said that based on the figures released by the Resource Research Organization (RRO) the amount of the precipitation in the same period compared to the average precipitation in the past 30 years is 24 percent and compared to the year before is 39 percent lower.

He also cautioned that despite the reduction in precipitation, the growth in water consumption for drinking and in agriculture and industry is expected to increased by seven percent. Furthermore, he added, a one degree increase in average temperature has led to quicker water evaporation, causing obstacles for the authorities to provide water. The Deputy Energy Minister also stated that volume of water reserves in the 25 major dams is 11.4 billion cu/m which compared to the preceding year registers an 18 percent reduction.

He added, river water has also declined by 35 percent on the average this year. Zargar also said that the largest decline has been recorded in Persian Gulf and the smallest in Caspian Sea regions. He added that the water shortage is not exclusive to Iran and several of the regional countries, with the exception of Turkey, are faced with the same problem.

"People in some water-short regions are authorized to dig wells, by obtaining government authorization in a very short time and with minimum of formalities," he concluded. (IRNA)